Are you a new client to our salon or have you been coming to us for years but want a bit of a change up? Well, one of the first things you’ll hear us mention is coming in for a consultation. Consultations are a HUGE part of how we do things here at S&S and play a crucial role in helping us, help you achieve the hair of your dreams in the healthiest and safest way possible! Already have your consultation booked in? This blog will give you a little bit more insight on what to expect on the day.
Once you have booked in your consultation we will send you a form to complete prior to your appointment (if you don’t receive a form or don’t have time to fill it out - don’t stress! We will allow time when you arrive). This form helps us to understand a little more about you and the history of your hair. Basically we want to know how you look after your hair on a day-to-day basis. Once you have filled out your form, one of our stylists will read over it before they begin your consultation.
When your consultation begins your stylist will take you over to one of our stations and start to ask you questions about your hair and your desired look. You can expect questions like:
What do you currently dislike about your hair?
Do you have any inspo pics to show us?
How regularly do you like to visit a salon?
Once we have gotten to know each other a little better we will be able to make a plan for what services you would need to achieve your dream hair. Sometimes, we can have unrealistic expectations of how we want our hair to look and it isn’t always achievable on the first appointment based on your hair. Our stylists will be as real as possible with you about achievability and give you insight into how long it may take.
Depending on what services we recommend we often take a test strand of your hair (if we are lightening) or a test patch of colour on your neck if you have had previous reactions. When taking a test strand your stylist will take a small amount of your hair from an area that isn’t visible so that we can apply lightener to it and see the condition and colour your hair ends up in if we put lightener on it.
Whilst your stylist is completing your test strand, one of our friendly front of house staff will chat to you a bit more about an appointment and provide you with a rough quote. Once we have completed your consultation we will be in contact with you within the next 24 hours to confirm your upcoming appointment and take your new client deposit!
But Why?
Why do I need to come for a consultation? Is something we get asked regularly as consultations aren’t the usual in every salon.
Consultations became an absolute must for us after the first covid-19 lockdown when we saw one too many bad test strands… and when we mean bad, we mean we have seen breakage like no other, and it would break our hearts to have that happen to a client in our chair. When we complete a consultation our aim is to make sure we can help you achieve your goals whilst also maintaining the integrity of your hair. Sometimes, this may mean that we say no to lightening services, but will work with you to get to the bottom of why your hair is in the condition it is and make a plan to get you on your way to healthy hair.
We also use our consultations with you as our first opportunity to get to know each other before we dive into our relationship. We want to make sure that, depending on your goal, we can allocate enough time to complete the services and pair you with the stylist we believe is the best for the job!
Interested in visiting our salon? Book in your consultation now via our contact us page.
For our top tips on healthy hair, check out our healthy hair blog.