petitefrancaise

Went to the hairdresser today - he has moved from previous salon where he was an employee and is now self-employed.

So when I paid, the software he uses gave me the option to add a tip with varying amounts suggested. I was a bit nonplussed tbh but added what would have been the normal tip had he been an employee.

what's the normal thing to do in these circumstances?

Nutmegger

I was always used to the "you don't tip the owner" maxim, but it doesn't seem to work that way here. I used to go to a self-employed person and saw that the client before me always tipped, so I followed suit.

Pulaski

Same here - I kept going to the same lady that cuts my hair when she bought out the owner, and it seems a bit churlish to arbitrarily stop tipping, expecially when she was only charging $12 for a wash and cut in the first place. I used to round up to $15, then I rounded up to $20. Now I usually leave $25 on the counter, but I no longer know why the basic charge is! .... I suspect it is around $13-$14.

Rete

I never tipped the owner. My former hairdresser would refuse a tip stating she was the owner. The owner gets all charges and a portion of all the rest of the hairdressers in the shop.

My current hairdresser rents a chair from someone so I leave a tip for her. Has never been refused.

Nutmegger

It was a one-woman operation, so we are probably in agreement!

Pulaski

Mine is too, now. When she took over the business she had one other chair, and I was paying $15 for a $12 cut. It is since she sold the premises but retained the clients, that my tip went up.

petitefrancaise

Yes, this is a "rent the chair" set up as well.

He has maintained the pricing of his previous salon which I think is a bit much. The other place was a fairly high end one and this place is nice but .... not as nice. It's still the same guy doing the same thing so I kind of reconciled myself to paying the same price, just paying a hefty tip on top seemed a bit much to me.

Pulaski

If you don't think he's worth the money, including tip, then go elsewhere, if you do think he's worth the money then I am not sure why you would give him a pay cut.

Rete

My former hairdresser was a two chair establishment. Owner did my hair when my regular girl was on one of her twice yearly trips back to Ireland.

The new hairdresser is also a two chair establishment but she pays a percentage to the owner to rent the chair.

Rete

You are tipping on the service not really on the ambience.

petitefrancaise

well that's the thing.... as an owner then he will have (should have) built in his profit into the pricing. As an employee his salary will have included the expectation of tips.

If a business owner has to expect tips in order to make a profit then there's something wrong with the business plan.

Also, you expect to pay more for a nicer environment. I suspect that his pricing is based more on lack of business knowledge than anything else.

He has done a good job though!

Redwing

My wife and I both use the same hairdresser, and always tipped her when she worked for someone else. When she went solo 5 years ago, we continue to tip her.

scrubbedexpat091

Tipping in general is out of control in the US and Canada. If I am already paying for a service (in this thread a haircut on a set and agreed upon price) then why should I as the customer have to provide additional funds above and beyond the agreed upon price?

Pulaski

I thought you would have been more sympathetic to the poorly paid employees waiting tables and in the beauty business who benefit from the largesse of their customers.

I was more than happy to give our cheerful waitress a $6 tip on a $25 bill when Mrs P, little Miss P and I had breakfast last Sunday at a local diner.

Anian

Why are the employees so poorly paid in the first place that the customer is expected to supply a portion of their income? So many states have such slack labour laws that you can easily sack underperformers, so it's not like they aren't already well motivated to provide a good service.