Tipping During the Holidays & All Year

Tipping During the Holidays & All Year

Tipping during the holidays and all year is always a sticky subject, and a topic Ask the Pro Stylist has touched upon repeatedly. However, just recently a beauty student was stiffed after an incredible service was performed, which would cost hundreds in a salon, and took hours to do, landing the stingy guest on this Monday’s Hair Police.

Happy Monday beautiful, and welcome to Ask the Pro Stylist’s Hair Police weekly column that brings salon, beauty and hair faux pas to the forefront. A cheap guest stiffed a future professional after receiving top-quality work, which prompted yet another tipping guide for during the holidays and all year long.

Since witnessing a tipping violation this past Saturday, the act had been scheduled for this week’s Hair Police. Ironically enough, Behind The Chair posted something similar this weekend, because tipping is always an issue, especially during the holidays.

In the past I have devoted columns to tipping etiquette. We’ve all gotten stiffed for one reason or another, but what I witnessed this past Saturday was just downright wrong.

A young woman walked into a beauty school to have her hair re-pigmented. She was spending over $300 every few months to have her dark brown hair “platinum.” However, she never received the desired results, and instead her hair was severely damaged with a light orange base.

She wanted to return to her natural color, which required the future professional to be guided through several steps in an educational process to teach her how to create the look and not have it fade. The student added a gloss over the color that the guest truly needed (and wanted) for extra shine to help her very damaged hair look healthy.

The entire process took approximately 4 hours and cost a fraction of what she was paying in another salon. (Although it is a beauty school, services are offered at reduced rates, overseen by licensed professionals.) The end result looked as if she left a high-end salon however, after all that the guest didn’t tip the student, a fact that was very discouraging to the budding professional.

Tipping is an integral part of the learning process. This guest was catered to and had a very professional and beautiful service at a fraction of what she spent to have her hair damaged (badly). She complimented and thanked the student, gushing over how healthy her hair looked.

So remember future guests of beauty schools, these budding pros take it to heart if they aren’t tipped. If you are paying such a small fee, then please show your appreciation with a tip so they can buy a cup of coffee or lunch. They do not get paid a salary or receive a commission for your service.

And for holiday tipping this season, please be generous with your stylist and show your appreciation with a card, a gift, or a little extra tip when she/he is staying on Christmas Eve to make you look beautiful. Until next week, happy styling!