How long will you wait past your hair appointment time?

[MichelleCarmen]

I''ve been going to the same hairdresser for over a year. She does a great job cutting my hair. . .I only get a trim every three months, so it''s been a while so I don''t remember how prompt she was those first few appointments.

The second to last appointment, she was HALF an hour behind schedual and I had to sit there. My appointment was around 12:30-1ish so I waited because I figured a client of hers ended up being late. Yesterday, though, I made an early morning appointment and she STILL was behind. I waited 15 minutes, then went to the front counter and they said she''d be another 5-10 mintutes. It''s a big salon, so I told the woman to find me another stylist who was available right then and there.

Am I being too picky about not wanting to wait 20-30 mintutes past time? The woman I was going to does a great job, but surely there are others out there too.

Thoughts?

 

[TravelingGal]

I figure I''ll be waiting about 30 minutes, max, especially if I am a late appointment. I''m probably too lax in this department. I just know that things get behind, even when the scheduling is done well.

 

[iwannaprettyone]

I don''t mind waiting 30 mins if I don''t have other plans- although you can''t help but think they will be in a rush to get you done to catch up...

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Honestly? Get over it.

People run behind at work, it happens. Has your husband ever had to stay late, or had a meeting run long? Or, better yet, have you ever run when you wished you hadn''t?

Yes, it''s an appointment but you''re not her only client and she has other people to worry about too. A stylists job depends on how reliable her clients are, if her 9am walks in at 9:15, that''s 15 minutes right in the beginning of the day she''s behind and won''t make up...and there is little she can do, aside from looking to her clients to be understanding... she cannot refuse her client, because that''s her paycheck.

I understand your frusteration, so prehaps you should start going to a "walk-in" salon where you don''t need an appointment to be seen. Because, there is no promises that this won''t happen again--or multiple times, even if you start seeing someone new.

 

[Maisie]

I don''t mind waiting for my hair cut but I hate it when my doctor runs late. I just don''t love sitting in the waiting room with other sick people.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 4/23/2009 3:47:02 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Honestly? Get over it.

I've been going to the same salon for 12+ years and usually change my stylist every few years because they all have an individual technique and it's nice to have change. . .none of the others have been late like that on more than one occasion! If they had been, I would have grown accustomed to waiting or would have long ago changed salons.

 

[Rhea]

I''ve never waited more than 5 minutes. My stylist, E, never lets me. I arrive and within 2 minutes someone has taken my coat and offered me a drink. E then comes over to chat about what I want for a couple of minutes, more if I''m making a big change. Then the shampoo woman takes me away. When I''m brought back from the shampooing E is with me again within 2-3 minutes to start working with me. I''m sure if E is running late the shampoo woman takes longer to clean my hair, but I''ve never noticed.

 

[bee*]

It depends on whether I have stuff to do or not. Usually I just wait until she''s ready.

 

[ice-queen]

Date: 4/23/2009 3:47:02 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Honestly? Get over it.

Honestly, I don''t think you should "get over it"...I think you should get a new stylist (if this continues and is a consitent problem). It is understandable to run late every now and then, but not everytime. I went to the same stylist for years and routinely had to wait around 30 minutes for my appointment...finally I got sick of it and switched salons. Now, I rarely have to wait more than a couple minutes. I understand that sometimes things happen that are out of the stylist''s control, but when it happens everytime you have to wonder if it is their fault, like trying to squeeze in too many appointments in one day.

 

[princesss]

The vast majority of my stylists have been very prompt. My current stylist will call me if he''s running a little late to see if the delay is okay with me, or if I want to reschedule, which I think is incredibly thoughtful (and one of the many things that keeps me coming back to him, and sending everybody I know to him). I never schedule anything after my hair appointment, and so I just enjoy either having time to chat with people or read my book. A half hour delay for somebody I know gives a great hair cut won''t phase me a bit, but I view going to the salon as a slow, theraputic process, so the longer it takes, the more relaxed I am when I leave!

 

[iwannaprettyone]

Date: 4/23/2009 3:47:02 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Honestly? Get over it.

People run behind at work, it happens. Has your husband ever had to stay late, or had a meeting run long? Or, better yet, have you ever run when you wished you hadn''t?

Yes, it''s an appointment but you''re not her only client and she has other people to worry about too. A stylists job depends on how reliable her clients are, if her 9am walks in at 9:15, that''s 15 minutes right in the beginning of the day she''s behind and won''t make up...and there is little she can do, aside from looking to her clients to be understanding... she cannot refuse her client, because that''s her paycheck.

I understand your frusteration, so prehaps you should start going to a ''walk-in'' salon where you don''t need an appointment to be seen. Because, there is no promises that this won''t happen again--or multiple times, even if you start seeing someone new.

But if I show more than 15 late that cuts in to my service time after 30 your appointment is terminated- that is my salons policy- Luckily my stylist runs on time 99% of the time, if she is running late I get a phone call to give me the opportunity to reschedule.

Touche on the doctor thing Maisie- I wait about an hour and half everytime I go. Last time I freaked out on the receptionist (I was very sick y''all

not deathly ill but had no business sitting in a chair when I could barely get outta bed). By the time they called my name my blood pressure was thru the roof. I don''t get it, what is the point of making an apt at 9 if you won''t see the Dr. till noon. If this was an isolated issue I would be totally chill about it, but alas it is everytime.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

I must admit...in beauty school we bounce a term around called "Clientland" and it refers to this idealistic mind set that clients often have when it comes to a salon experience or a stylist in general.

Good salons never make you feel like you''ve been "forgotten"...they have assistants that greet you, wash your hair, serve you drinks. Middle grade salons have friendly front desk operators who hang your coat up, give you a drink, and supply a magazine. And both of those services are put in place to keep you from noticing the "real" stuff...like laundry backup, time delays, and other day to day complications.

A salon is a business...things get messed up, people run behind. Busier stylists tend to be worse off than slower ones, simply because they do have a full day where any number of things can go wrong and they have little to no time to rebound. Slower stylists can usually make up time due to the gaps in their schedule.

Again, my suggestion is switch stylists or move on.

 

[KimberlyH]

I typically wait 10 minutes or so and that doesn''t bother me. If she left me sitting for 20+ minutes on a regular basis I would be frustrated.

I hear what you''re saying, Italia, but those clients who force the stylist to run late are putting him/her in a position making other clients, whose money is just as valuable, angry, so there has to be some cutoff (if a client is more that X amount of minutes late the appt. must be rescheduled or services altered to fit the timeframe).

 

[Rhea]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:21:18 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor


Good salons never make you feel like you''ve been ''forgotten''...they have assistants that greet you, wash your hair, serve you drinks. Middle grade salons have friendly front desk operators who hang your coat up, give you a drink, and supply a magazine. And both of those services are put in place to keep you from noticing the ''real'' stuff...like laundry backup, time delays, and other day to day complications.

This is what surprises me. I get the whole drink, coat, thing. I still don''t wait. E has always greeted me and done the playing with my hair bit to figure out what I want within 5 minutes of me walking in the door. This is a small place, not a fancy place, and I pay very little all things considered - about £25 for a hair cut, which is like paying $25-$35. I''m sure with the whole drink, chat, and shampoo thing E can build another 15 minutes into her schedule without me even noticing. Why don''t other places mentioned do this? I''ve never knowingly waited any length of time to be seen and I''ve been going every 2-3 months on Fridays and Saturdays for over 3 years. I''ve never had a chance to even get through one magazine article! If my little place makes it seem so easy that it never crosses my mind I might be waiting, you''d think every place would do the same.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:24:25 PM
Author: KimberlyH
I typically wait 10 minutes or so and that doesn''t bother me. If she left me sitting for 20+ minutes on a regular basis I would be frustrated.

I hear what you''re saying, Italia, but those clients who force the stylist to run late are putting him/her in a position making other clients, whose money is just as valuable, angry, so there has to be some cutoff (if a client is more that X amount of minutes late the appt. must be rescheduled or services altered to fit the timeframe).

When I worked behind the chair, I never turned anyone away. I made it work. It was tough, but I loved my clients and their happiness was really important to me. I used assistants to shampoo or blowdry for me if I running behind...so normally the transition was flawless.

Many of my stylist friends who enforce time limits give a client 30 minutes for color, 15 for cut before they cancel the service.

 

[upgrade]

I used to go to a family member who is a stylist. It would generally take at least 2 weeks to get an appointment and then the wait would be at minimum 30 minutes. There were times when she would keep me waiting for an hour or more- once I didn''t get to the chair until 2 hours after my scheduled time.

Or, she would call right as I was walking out my front door to tell me she had to cancel my appointment. After I had booked a babysitter and gone through the mayhem of getting ready to leave the house in the morning with small children. Between that and the fact that the price went up with every appointment, I sucked it up, prepared for the family backlash and found a new stylist. She still brings it up to me years later but I got brave enough to tell her that I would love to keep going to her but I could no longer afford her rates and I was so strapped for time with the kids that I didn''t have hours at a time to spend at the salon. I don''t know if she''s like that with all her clients, but the ones who are family all share the frustration and it can be really awkward to go elsewhere when you''re related.

My new stylist- now she''s fabulous! Never once have I waited! She books her clients far enough apart that there is never a wait and I love it!! I understand that things get busy but wow is it ever great to know that I won''t have to wait.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:31:19 PM
Author: Addy

Date: 4/23/2009 4:21:18 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor


Good salons never make you feel like you''ve been ''forgotten''...they have assistants that greet you, wash your hair, serve you drinks. Middle grade salons have friendly front desk operators who hang your coat up, give you a drink, and supply a magazine. And both of those services are put in place to keep you from noticing the ''real'' stuff...like laundry backup, time delays, and other day to day complications.

This is what surprises me. I get the whole drink, coat, thing. I still don''t wait. E has always greeted me and done the playing with my hair bit to figure out what I want within 5 minutes of me walking in the door. This is a small place, not a fancy place, and I pay very little all things considered - about £25 for a hair cut, which is like paying $25-$35. I''m sure with the whole drink, chat, and shampoo thing E can build another 15 minutes into her schedule without me even noticing. Why don''t other places mentioned do this? I''ve never knowingly waited any length of time to be seen and I''ve been going every 2-3 months on Fridays and Saturdays for over 3 years. I''ve never had a chance to even get through one magazine article! If my little place makes it seem so easy that it never crosses my mind I might be waiting, you''d think every place would do the same.

Money, mostly. Assistants are expensive to hire and keep. Some salons actually deduct a portion of the stylist income to cover assistant fees...but others don''t and find keeping someone on the books who isn''t generating money to be difficult.

 

[KimberlyH]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:35:24 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor

Date: 4/23/2009 4:24:25 PM
Author: KimberlyH
I typically wait 10 minutes or so and that doesn''t bother me. If she left me sitting for 20+ minutes on a regular basis I would be frustrated.

I hear what you''re saying, Italia, but those clients who force the stylist to run late are putting him/her in a position making other clients, whose money is just as valuable, angry, so there has to be some cutoff (if a client is more that X amount of minutes late the appt. must be rescheduled or services altered to fit the timeframe).

When I worked behind the chair, I never turned anyone away. I made it work. It was tough, but I loved my clients and their happiness was really important to me. I used assistants to shampoo or blowdry for me if I running behind...so normally the transition was flawless.

Many of my stylist friends who enforce time limits give a client 30 minutes for color, 15 for cut before they cancel the service.

This would make a difference for me. I go to a very small salon (4 stylists, 1 make up person, 1 front desk person) so I am only seen/handled by my stylist. If she had staff to assist and they took over it wouldn''t matter at all, but because she is the only person who takes care of me, being left waiting means sitting in the lounge area with a magazine (and a drink of some sort, offered by her).

My stylist is great, and manages to make it work, as you said you did. I''m lucky and I love her. I would be frustrated if I was left sitting around waiting all of the time.

 

[violet3]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:13:55 PM
Author: ice-queen

Date: 4/23/2009 3:47:02 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Honestly? Get over it.

Honestly, I don't think you should 'get over it'...I think you should get a new stylist (if this continues and is a consitent problem). It is understandable to run late every now and then, but not everytime. I went to the same stylist for years and routinely had to wait around 30 minutes for my appointment...finally I got sick of it and switched salons. Now, I rarely have to wait more than a couple minutes. I understand that sometimes things happen that are out of the stylist's control, but when it happens everytime you have to wonder if it is their fault, like trying to squeeze in too many appointments in one day.

Right, but its really only been twice. If this is something that really bothers you MC, although you don't remember about the promptness the first few times, i am guessing that she was prompt enough not to annoy you. I would wait and see how it is next time if you like her.

If i waited twice, it would not bother me at all. In general, waiting for treatments i find relaxing and enjoyable actually never bothers me - i find the whole experience pretty soothing even if it's just reading a magazine while waiting for my haircut

 

[kama_s]

Date: 4/23/2009 3:47:02 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Honestly? Get over it.

People run behind at work, it happens. Has your husband ever had to stay late, or had a meeting run long? Or, better yet, have you ever run when you wished you hadn't?

Yes, it's an appointment but you're not her only client and she has other people to worry about too. A stylists job depends on how reliable her clients are, if her 9am walks in at 9:15, that's 15 minutes right in the beginning of the day she's behind and won't make up...and there is little she can do, aside from looking to her clients to be understanding... she cannot refuse her client, because that's her paycheck.

I understand your frusteration, so prehaps you should start going to a 'walk-in' salon where you don't need an appointment to be seen. Because, there is no promises that this won't happen again--or multiple times, even if you start seeing someone new.

I think that might be the case if it was the first time MC had to wait. If it happens routinely, then the salon is probably not managing time well, perhaps even having clients back to back. My salon always leaves a little period between appointments, and only once have I been asked to wait for 10 minutes. Even in that 10 minute wait, the owner asked me about my wedding plans, two others asked if I wanted something to drink, I was offered magazines to read and my stylist was extremely apologetic (she didn't have to be, I competely understand that things can be out of her control). Also, you're absolutely correct re: the difference between a good salon and a mediocre one. I dont think I've ever felt ignored, even though things might be getting crazy in the salon!

If I'm ever running late, even by 2 minutes, I call my salon and let them know. Same courtesy should be offered both ways. I, too, am running on a schedule - so if my appt runs late, I'd be late to whatever's next on my schedule.

Maisie, you're not the only one!! Thankfully I work in a hospital with tons of physicians as friends...so most of the time I just get my prescriptions off them

ETA: I dont expect a phonecall to inform me they're running 5 minutes late. I think even 20 minutes is acceptable, anything more and I'd like to know. Last week my eyebrow waxing lady was running 30min late and she called to let me know. I just re-scheduled for another day and I was really appreciative that she let me know.

 

[fieryred33143]

I have waited up to an hour. I have sat in a chair with my hair half done while she picked up her son from school. And at the very minimum I''m usually waiting 15 minutes.

But my case is different because I have really difficult hair and she''s the only one that I have found in my area that just knows how to handle it. So I sit, sometimes fuming, and wait. Which is why I haven''t done my hair in a very long time.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 4/23/2009 4:24:25 PM
Author: KimberlyH
I typically wait 10 minutes or so and that doesn''t bother me. If she left me sitting for 20+ minutes on a regular basis I would be frustrated.

I hear what you''re saying, Italia, but those clients who force the stylist to run late are putting him/her in a position making other clients, whose money is just as valuable, angry, so there has to be some cutoff (if a client is more that X amount of minutes late the appt. must be rescheduled or services altered to fit the timeframe).

I''m fortunate that my stylist is good enough that he will do that. He says it''s not fair to his other clients so if one is more than 15 minutes late, they must reschedule. Come to think of it, I''ve never waited more than that for him.

 

[rainwood]

I''ve been going to my stylist for years, and she''s both the owner and the busiest one there. She often runs a little bit late because my appointments are usually in the afternoon. I expect that and sometimes don''t arrive right on the dot because I know I''ll be waiting. If time were really critical on a particular day, I''d call ahead and see if she was running late and plan my departure accordingly.

I definitely call ahead with health care professionals where a half hour or more wait seems like the norm. There''s no reason to sit there stressing about the wait if you already know the doctor/dentist/whoever is running 45 minutes late that day. And I''ve usually gotten pretty honest answers once they know what I''m trying to accomplish, and as long as I''m nice about it. They don''t want a bunch of angry people sitting around in their waiting room either.

 

[VegasAngel]

I see a few different stylists & most run a little behind.-15 minutes max is the most I will wait. One thing I''ve noticed is that stylists who work for the salon are usually on time, give me a courtesy reminder call etc.. Those who rent space are usually behind for whatever reason, dont confirm appts. & so on.

 

[HollyS]

If the hairdresser made me look like a million bucks, and no one else ever had - - I''d wait forever and a day. Maybe longer.

If they''re just okay at what they do, and I don''t resemble Eva Longoria in the least when I leave their chair, then they need to reschedule me after maybe a 30 minute wait. And I''d rethink my salon/stylist options for the next time.

 

[soocool]

I used to go to an upscale salon in my area called David Witchell''s and many times my stylist kept me waiting, not because her clients were late, but because some of her snooty customers would just walk in and demand an appointment right then and there. A few times I was able to finagle a free manicure, but enough was enough. I left there and never went back.

I later met someone who cuts hair at her home and I am never kept waiting. She can spend more than the minimal time on me, plus we have become great friends.

 

[BooBearsMom]

Oh MC, I feel your pain. I *always* have to wait about 30 minutes before my stylist takes me back. I get a cut and color, which takes another 3 hours (because she''s juggling me and two other clients at the same time). That''s 3 and 1/2 hours, plus another 1/2 hour drive time, so 4 hours when I go to the salon! It drives me crazy, but I really like how she cuts my hair, so I keep going back. Here''s the kicker though - every time, she admits that she''s running late because her kid wouldn''t let her leave for work in the morning! He wants her to take him to the park, not daddy, etc.

At the last salon I went to, I never had to wait, not even one minute. But then again I paid $165 for a haircut (and I won''t even mention how much they charged for highlights).

 

[Phoenix]

I'm not a very patient person, as my hubby would readily attest, LOL!

I don't care how talented or skilled someone is, I am a very punctual person and if s.o. kept me waiting for more than fifteen minutes, I'd just walk. Half an hour or more is just unacceptable, im my book and IMHO, I think that's just rude!

 

[strmrdr]

My sister tries her best to keep no one waiting more than 15min.
Sometimes stuff happens however and it is longer.

 

[Elmorton]

I''ve waited 30 mins before - but I was notified right away that it would be a 30 min wait, so I had the choice to cancel, stay, or run a quick errand and come back. That''s not a problem at all with me. I run late as a general rule, so I really don''t expect the rest of the world to be on time in the first place. I do appreciate it though when I''m notified right away that there will be a wait rather than sit there obsessing about what I should do with my hair, haha.