How stupid can a beauty salon owner be to create this setup?

It’s pretty common for beauticians to have phones and get calls for appointments. I don’t have a problem with that unless they are chatting with the callers rather than just making the appointments and returning to you. If it is continually during your haircut rather than just once or twice, I can see how it would be annoying.

I go to barber shops, not beauty shops, but where I go the barber will often stop cutting my hair, walk over to the phone, answer it, etc. I am convinced that he is a bookie and he is writing down bets.

But what can I do? He steps away – I can’t very well leave.

Where i go, (an expensive place), there is a receptionist. There is also an answering machine in case the receptionist is busy. I would not be happy if the hairdresser stopped what he was doing to schedule appointments. Maybe I got spoiled in this expensive place, I don’t know.

@jca I was accustomed to a receptionist making appointments for the hairstylists but didn’t notice this phone thing was going on to save money by not having to pay a receptionist.

@Aster: I understand. However, if it means the hairdresser has to lose concentration to answer the phone at the risk of forgetting where they were in regards to the cutting aspect, then I’d rather pay a bit more and have someone else answer the phone or have it go to voicemail (which is always an option).

Yes; having a receptionist is very common here. The phone at the chair thing was new to me.

My hair stylist takes calls while cutting my hair. The Barber shop I sued to go to has phones and the barbers would take calls while cutting hair. I am surprised by your statement “how stupid…” since it is apparently common practice.

I hate everything about salons from the inane chatter to the smell of the disinfectants and product, and think the phone thing is rude if it’s your ‘time’. Ugh, same at the nail salon.

I’ve never experienced this. At the price paid for a haircut these days, I expect their undivided attention for the short period of time it takes to cut my hair. If they can’t do that, then I would take my business elsewhere. Why do you put up with it?

In many beauty shops (and barber shops) the beauticians / barbers are not technically “employees” of the shop. That is, they are independent contractors who rent the chairs / stations. As such, how they conduct business is, within pretty wide latitude, up to them.

@CWOTUS Yes, that is my understanding of it too.

@CWOTUS: Yes, how they conduct their business is up to them, like you said, but like any consumer of a service, whether or not people choose to accept that will determine if the employer changes their way of delivering that service. If people stop going to the hairdresser because they don’t like something, then the hairdresser will have to re-evaluate their business.

I can see how this would be annoying to customers, as i would not go back .
The salon should have enough staff to rotate reception.

@Espiritus_Corvus I don’t put up with it. I went once.