Deciding on now much to charge a client is always a tricky thing. Some people are always trying to get something for nothing while others are willing to spend whatever necessary to get the results they are looking for. Every year or so depending on the economy, I raise my salon prices. Always in small increments, but steadily they need to be raised to be able to keep up with rising costs. These costs include my taxes and rent and supply cost. Utilities, insurances etc. not to mention employee salaries. As much as I try to keep it slow and sometimes non existent, my landlord, insurance agents and utility companies feel the need to increase my payments no matter what the economical climate. So to keep up, I have to also have my increases.
When I worked in Manhattan, I pretty much got double what I am charging on long island. If at the time I was charging $40 for a woman’s wash, cut, and blow dry on long island, then in manhattan I was charging $80. People in the city were comfortable and frankly just used to paying a premium price for services rendered. They felt like it was worth their money and it left me feeling my time and training was worth that much. That being said, I can’t comfortably charge that much in a salon on long island. Not in my town anyway. I try to stay at a fair but reasonable price point.
Some days I hear a little disappointment when I give a new client my prices but just explain to them that I’ve been doing hair for over 25 years and that I am the owner of the salon and my prices are higher than my employees. They’re welcome to go to them and I encourage it. I don’t take new clients unless they specifically ask for me. I’d rather see my employees build up their following of clients. I am blessed to already be quite busy with my own.
Then occasionally I get a client that surprises me. They willingly over tip me, or plain out tell me that they’re paying me more than I’m asking because they feel I’m charging too low. They actually will sometimes add to the bill, and a lot at times, because they feel their service exceeded the price they were charged. That was a hard one to swallow the first few times it happened. Now I accept graciously. I’m blessed to have such great clients in my life. Not to mention how great they take care of me and my staff at holiday time. I can easily put on 10-20 pounds just eating all the goodies they bring in day after day.
I try to explain to my staff that they’re doing a bad thing when they don’t charge enough or steadily increase their fees. They all do amazing work and it’s normal to increase when everything around us is increasing also. If they’re proud of their work, it’s a disadvantage to not ask for the amount that their work is valued at and makes the client think they are getting what they’re paying for. For that same reason I don’t like offering coupons to bring in new clients. I do it at times for advertising reasons, but the best way of getting new business is by word of mouth.
I expect a lot for the things I pay for in life and give back nothing but the best in service! I hope you agree.