If I was ignored but the hair color was acceptable, I wouldn’t have written this post. If my concerns were addressed by the owner, I wouldn’t have written this post. If my hair was recolored by another beautician as I asked, I wouldn’t have written this post.

I also get my hair cut by Toby. Toby is great. She’s the only person I’ve found that can cut my type of hair. I’ve had one bad experience at the salon, but after I let Toby know the issue, she quickly had me taken care of.

I have had experiences where I felt a little ignored, but I’ve always been happy with the results. For me, it’s better than having your ear chatted off. They’re all really nice ladies and I will continue going to them in the future. I’ve had so many bad salons in the past, I’m really grateful for their services.

Perhaps in the future, talking with the people in charge is the best bet. Beauty salons in particular deal with a lot of upset people. People are very sensitive about their appearance. Generally they do whatever is requested and don’t ask questions.

I -WON’T- pay for a haircut until I’m 100% satisfied. Would you pay for bad food in a restaurant? Not me. I send it back until they get it right. Even a good chef sometimes under cooks the steak. Sometimes even really good stylists give a bad haircut. You’ve just got to outline what you need and how. That’s what service is about.

I was kind of shocked about the comments on Leslie’s weight. She’s a very sweet girl. While she can be a little distracted, she’s very pleasant. I think she takes wonderful care of herself. Certainly, there’s nothing about her weight worth noting.

Best wishes to you and hopefully you’ll find a salon more to your needs and liking.

Yes, I believe that the post would have been more acceptable if only general descriptions and not names were presented.

Myself-I have had hairdressers who have not talked to me or talked very little to me and then there are the ones who talk way too much. It’s a crap shoot.

I have been to quite a few shops where the employees are styling their own hair and primping before the mirror. So, Leslie is not unique in this matter. I guess I would rather have a stylist who took great pride in her appearance and hope that pride transferred to me as she is working on my hair, then have an unkempt mess do it!

I understand that Leslie did try to resolve the issue with you which actually was the “grown up” thing to do. Were you unhappy with Leslie or the whole shop? Was it such a big deal that the owner needed involved?
You did not like the coloring and Leslie offered to fix it. You should have given it a try, because she is an excellent beautician. Other than that there is always Judges Joe and Judy you could have taken it up with!

Not only the shop and employees but you too are responsible for the visit’s outcome. So many things could have been handled differently-instead of steaming you could have started your own conversation with Leslie and who ever else was in the shop. It’s a beauty salon-did you never watch Steel Magnolias? If not then do, if you have then apply some of the principles to get involved the next time.

Leslie’s performance as a hair stylist does not need improvement-although I know you were unhappy with your outcome. Other so-called “issues” will disappear as she matures.

Sophie

What I will not do is allow you to use my blog to offload your anger onto me and my audience. Nobody wants to read paragraph after paragraph of insults, threats and cliches. Get your own blog if you need a place to express yourself.

I understand you’re upset. But attacking me doesn’t resolve it. Tell me why you’re upset. Tell me why you think what I posted was wrong. If you want me to hear you, present a reasonable argument with recommendations for improvement.

Is naming names wrong in this context? Why?

Would the post have been acceptable if only general descriptions, and not names, were presented?

Is not engaging a customer in conversation acceptable behavior in a hairdresser?

Should employees indulge in personal grooming habits in a business environment?

Does a business owner have a responsibility to seek out customer complaints for resolution?

Are the shop and its employees at all responsible for the outcome of my visit?

How can Leslie improve performance to avoid a similar situation in the future?

Criticism is a gift. It allows you to know exactly how a particular customer has been disappointed by your service. You can choose to use this information to your advantage, and become a better professional and better business person by it.

On the other hand, you can take the criticism personally, get all hot and bothered, and demonstrate to the entire world, by posting inane unreasonable comments, that you basically don’t understand how the real world works and are unwilling to even think about it.

If you are interested in a successful career and the potential of ever starting or running your own business, start listening to criticism and taking it seriously.

If, however, you are only interested in living day-to-day, getting whatever job you can get just scraping by, and never even having the possibility of getting out of your home town much less accomplishing any significant goals in life… Well, then you’re doing a great job with the way you’re acting.

–Naomi, small business owner .

I have been threatened with physical harm and ostracism by the town’s businesses and residents. The comments have been so ugly that I deleted most of them.

Not one person has refuted what occurred at the beauty salon. They have just objected to my publicizing it. Anonymous says I should have said something to Leslie. I did complain to her but my complaint was invalidated. I was very clear that I wouldn’t talk with Leslie but that I would tell Tobie what the problem was, but Tobie never asked.

Leslie’s friends were so embarrassed for Leslie that instead of just ignoring the blog post and ending it there, they forwarded it to all their friends to read.

Leslie is an employee in a business serving customers in a very personal, hands-on profession. If there’s something I wrote about her behavior that her friends find embarrassing, perhaps she should amend such behavior instead of encouraging her friends to attack me.

The salon owner should realize that her shop and her employees are liable to scrutiny and public review. She should decide if the criticism is valid and do something about it or not; if the criticism is invalid, then she should ignore it or professionally refute it. But what she shouldn’t do is attack me and have her husband post that I’m a drunk.

Perhaps I should have posted my review of the Veneta beauty shop in more public forums, such as search engines and directories. I think I have an even better understanding now of the ethics and mentality involved with this shop. And I definitely have first-hand knowledge of how they deal with complaints.

If I have lied or slandered someone (stating an untruth with intent to harm), please show me where and I will apologize and remove the comment. But if you’re just embarrassed and lashing out under the anonymity of a computer, then you owe me an apology.

Whether I be a bitch or drunk or whatever, there is nothing in my blog that could compare to the juvenile invective some of you have posted. You have threatened my physical well-being, and your ISPs are on record.

Apparently, Veneta hosts a contingent who despise the first amendment and long for the days of public beatings and lynchings. Long live the tyranny of the crowd!