I have a pile of m&h loyalty credit and yet I find myself, for the first time in 5 years, broadening my search to other salons for my next hair appointment.Last month I went in to get my roots beached... Read More
I have a pile of m&h loyalty credit and yet I find myself, for the first time in 5 years, broadening my search to other salons for my next hair appointment.Last month I went in to get my roots beached + toned. This is a $200 service after my friends & family discount. I sat in the chair after greetings, and my stylist pointed out another stylist who had cool, ashy-grey hair. She voiced her goal to get me to that color. Awesome, let's get to it! I was more excited to get my roots cleaned up, but the grey was an unexpected and happy bonus. I stated my preference for a subtler light ashy-blonde - the color we've been working up to since this July. She foiled me and sat me under a lamp (without turning it on? - oh well, she's the expert), then after around 45 minutes she walked me to the bowl. Her assistant toned my hair for 15 minutes, then walked me back to the chair. While my stylist blew out my hair, I never got the impression that she was pleased with her work. She kept moving strands around with her eyebrows furrowed, saying things like "you like dimension, right?" Dimension is great...but my roots were still black, almost like they hadn't been touched by bleach. On top of that, there were subtle streaks of orange in my hair...definitely a bad tone job!I was disappointed. As a conflict-avoidant type when it comes to services, I tipped and thanked my stylist, then waited until the next day to call back and discuss my concerns with a manager. Now this is pretty standard when it comes to hair services - you get a sub-par service, the salon offers a free one to make up for it. This isn't any different for Milk & Honey in my personal experience. For example, during one of my earlier appointments with this same stylist, the bleach and toner didn't take. Sound familiar? She told me she wouldn't be happy with the results if she were me, and insisted I come in the next day for a do-over. So with that in mind I didn't think twice about asking for a complimentary service. The concierge on the phone apparently didn't either. She set me up with a "do-over" appointment for the very next day, no questions asked.This is where it gets sticky.I show up to my appointment, excited to get finally get the hair I want! When my stylist greets me, I notice the manager standing behind her. I'm thinking this must be a new manager learning how things are done in the salon. Great, I'm fine with a +1. They sit me down in a chair, both looking down at me. It feels heavy and a little uncomfortable. My stylist asks what I don't like about my hair, and I tell her the obvious: it's streaky and the roots are still black. She says, "Hmm I don't think it's streaky," and spends the next 5 minutes touching my hair and making excuses for why it looks bad. Okay I'm getting the picture - they're slowly feeding me hints that I'm not getting my hair done and that my money is gone. The manager is here as a buffer in case I start raging. Right. Got it. They knew I came expecting a service, and they gave me an ambush consultation. I was turned out the door, completely crushed to the point of speechlessness, without so much as an offer for parking validation. Just to be clear here I have a job and I'm a full-time student. The time I lost during this "do-over" appointment was about an hour total, + $7 parking and gas. I still can't believe that neither of the professionals felt it necessary to call and save me the trip.I felt sad and defeated walking back to my car. It's silly, it's just hair. But $200 is a lot of money, and my time is valuable. Whether or not this is the case, I felt that my accepting disposition and quiet demeanor were taken advantage of. I felt certain that a more demanding client would have gotten her way.So the next day I called back and the manager received my call. The ENTIRE 30 minute call was spent politely struggling to convince her that I was justified in my disappointment! When she ran out of arguments for me to refute - and trust me there were a lot - she was reduced to "mhmmm yeaaahhh yeah I hear you mhmmmm," which was insulting on a number of levels. She grew tired of me and we set up a phone appointment for the following day at 4pm. She called the next day. At 2pm. While I was in class. She did not call back at the appointed time.At that point it was excruciatingly clear that Milk & Honey did not see me as a person worth valuing. Me, someone who worked several years under their employ, and who has been using their services ever since I left in good standing. My loyalty is (was?) arguably beyond that of the typical client. I wish it were possible to calculate the amount of capital I've generated for this company, but that's beside the point. A company that does not respect its clients is not a company I want to stand behind.I did not reach out to them a third time, and frankly I never should have had to in the first place. Read Less