Tips about tipping? (Particularly in a hair salon.)

April 18, 2004 1:36 PM

Who do you tip in a hair salon? I know that in normal salons, you tip the person providing the service. But, I go to a place where the owner does my hair, am I supposed to tip her as well? Seems to me that I've heard that you don't tip the owners. And how much are you supposed to tip?
posted by Juicylicious to Shopping (23 answers total)

I'd tip her, and the shampooer. Even if she's the owner, she's still working for you. How much would depend on how expensive the place is, and how much you love what she does.
posted by amberglow at 1:39 PM on April 18, 2004

Etiquette says that you don't tip owners. Some owners disagree. But then, owners have a little more self-interest than etiquette mavens on this one, so figure out who you believe. 10-20% the cost of services is a usual tip, geography dependent, but usually in line with whatever you tip waiters in your area.
posted by jacquilynne at 2:18 PM on April 18, 2004

My wife is a stylist and she says you shouldn't tip the owner. That's the usual setup in most salons. Tip everyone else, but not the owner. And as far as tips, it really depends on what you're asking the stylist to do. For a $30 hair cut, no less than $5. And if you're getting color, you better tip accordingly.
posted by mkelley at 2:20 PM on April 18, 2004

i usually get my hair cut and colored for around $70 in my hometown. at school though i went to a place that slightly resembled a whole in the wall and requested the same service but instead the woman only colored some of my hair. i usually get all of my hair colored in foils the way highlights are done only all of my hair gets put in foils, it takes a few hours sometime. so anyway this new place does it highlight style not coloring all my hair and charges me about the same. so i go there again months later because they were the only place i knew and did ok, this time the woman who is the owner put all of my hair in foils. it took a long long time but stillll... i went to pay and the bill was $190. she did do my eyebrows too but i included that in that home cost of $70. i was like omg i dont want to pay that much but i dont want to say anything about it. on top of that the bill had a recommended tip amount which was somewhere around $20. i didnt want to pay 190 let alone tip this rip off 20 dollars. on top of that i was insulted by the bill telling me how much i should tip. what she did was charge me by how many dishes of color she used. she used 3 times the normal so charged me like 3 times more. in general even if i spend 70-90 dollars the tip is going to be 5 for ok and ten for really great.
i could see being charged that much in a classy salon with a reputation but not this place i was at.
i would tip the owner based on the job in a different situation. if it was just ok she doesnt need tipped. if she did something extra special or spent a ton of time on my hair then i would tip.
i heard in india you could get a decent haircut for less than 2 dollars.
posted by Recockulous at 2:23 PM on April 18, 2004

An independent taxi driver gets tips. It is his car he is the owner.

This came up on MeFi years ago and I keep hearing "Etiquette says.." but no one is explaining why
posted by stbalbach at 2:25 PM on April 18, 2004

Response by poster: Thanks everyone. I probably should have explained that the salon that I go to is maybe a bit different. There are two owners and several stylists. The stylists just rent space from the owners. Apparently they're all self-employed. I guess in that sense they're all owners. Does this make a difference in whether I should tip? I just had my hair done and it cost $138. I gave her a $10 tip. Should I have given her more?
posted by Juicylicious at 2:26 PM on April 18, 2004

Response by poster: In reply to Recockulous - I got an all-over foil in three colors, plus a cut for $138. She normally only colors and does extensions, so the cut was a special favor to me. She did a great job. Now I feel like a heel and I'll tip more next time.
posted by Juicylicious at 2:30 PM on April 18, 2004

Recockulous: If you're tipping only $5 or $10 for a $90 job, then if they remember you, you probably won't get good service next time.

This isn't India and you're paying for a licensed person to style or color your hair using chemicals that are a little more touchy than what you buy in the store. It's a skill, either pay for it or go to Fantastic Sams.

Juicylicious: shouldn't matter. Owner Stylists don't get tipped, the stylist (booth rental or not) do.
posted by mkelley at 2:33 PM on April 18, 2004

Offer a usual tip, or whatever the spirit moves you to feel like leaving. If the owner is insulted by or otherwise objects to this, he or she will politely decline the tip with an explanation that you don't tip owners. If the tip is accepted, you can be sure it's also appreciated as a kindness or a statement of good service, which is the point.

This came up on MeFi years ago and I keep hearing "Etiquette says.." but no one is explaining why

Indeed; this rule makes no sense to me. Many times I've been to restaurants where I've been served by, or had my food dropped off by, or otherwise taken care of personally by an owner. I can't see why that would magically mean that I shouldn't leave a tip on the table as I leave.

Don't worry about it. If you're looking for an excuse not to leave a tip, you don't need one. If you feel like leaving a tip, the recipient will decline it if they actually object.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 2:42 PM on April 18, 2004

My ex was a nail tech. Paraphrasing what she told me years ago:

"Offer the tip. First, most customers don't even know who the owner is. Second, s/he DID perform a service for you, and third, these businesses are as likely to fail as any other, so chances are good, the owner isn't making all that much anyway." YMMV
posted by mischief at 2:49 PM on April 18, 2004

You could also ask the person working the front desk, or the shampoo tech, since they will let you know whether most people tip the owner. This has worked for me many times, and saved me from looking like a heel a few times as well.
posted by nprigoda at 3:36 PM on April 18, 2004

My mom owned a salon, and people did tip her all the time anyway, though some wouldn't because she was the owner. She was doing the same work as everyone else, after all.

While some owners are making lots of money, in my experience many salon owners are just getting by, so a tip is a kindness. Stylists in general do not make a lot of money even if it seems that you are paying them a lot.
posted by litlnemo at 3:46 PM on April 18, 2004

Okay I worked at a high caliber salon until I was laid off a month and a half ago --

Don't tip the owner, unless they give you a significant discount or free service or product.

Tip your stylist at least as much as you would tip a waiter at a nice restaurant - more if you are a regular. $5 for a $40 haircut is cheap. If you are getting a $40 haircut you can afford a $10 tip.

If someone else does your shampoo, tip them 5-10%.

It's complicated though, because there's a significant difference between booth rental salons and comission salons.
posted by headless at 6:03 PM on April 18, 2004

I would imagine that the reason you don't tip owners (or the reason some people believe you don't) is because the whole point of a tip is to say "I just paid a lot for this service you performed, and I know that money doesn't go to you, so here's a percentage." If it's the owner, the money for the service does go to them, at least it's assumed that it does, so a tip could be seen a superfluous, unless you feel they are undercharging.
posted by Nothing at 6:07 PM on April 18, 2004

Juicylicious: i think 10 dollars was appropriate. $138 is average to high price. I wouldnt go any less than ten though. she just got paid 148 for service and that is a lot money for one person hair.


Recockulous: If you're tipping only $5 or $10 for a $90 job, then if they remember you, you probably won't get good service next time.

This hasnt happened yet. And that is why i keep going to the same place for years and years. They would rather have me come in and get 10, expensive color jobs and buy salon shampoo from them all year than me not come in at all because one of them fucked with my hair over 5 bucks.
but really i dont think that is why they do such a good job. i trust everyone in this shop to cut my hair and they all are skilled at color. also most of them would rather be putting three colors in my hair and doing something original than a bunch of regular haircuts.
in some stuck up big city hair salon i probably couldnt get away with being a lousy tipper. but i am poor and right now i spend too much money on my hair as it is.
posted by Recockulous at 6:34 PM on April 18, 2004

the whole point of a tip is to say "I just paid a lot for this service you performed, and I know that money doesn't go to you, so here's a percentage

I thought the point of a tip was to express, in the most concrete terms possible, the appreciation of good service. Whoever gave it.

Again, I think that if you're looking for an excuse not to give a tip, you don't need one because you're only rarely required to tip.

But the gesture of a tip to the owner cannot be a bad, wicked, or immoral thing to do. You don't need to worry that your giving a tip would be a bad thing, because if the owner objects, the owner can simply decline the tip (or, probably more politely and usefully, place it into a tip pool for his/her employees).

The idea that you somehow MUST NOT tip a stylist if (s)he owns the salon seems risible on its face.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 7:07 PM on April 18, 2004

headless - A $10 tip on a $40 haircut? That's a 25% tip. I already pay 14.5% in tax on top of the price, I can't afford another 25%, even if it is a $40 cut. If that was the standard, you'd never see me getting my hair cut unless it was at a Hairmasters or MagiCuts. I won't tip 25% when eating, and I won't tip 25% on a hair cut. I keep it at about 15% since that's my usual tip for taxis and food.

I tip regardless since I rarely know who the owner is. That way I've covered my bases.
posted by Salmonberry at 7:30 PM on April 18, 2004

I'm just saying, that was what happened and $40 tips on $120 services (or $100!) weren't uncommon at all. Though that happened usually only with people who came regularly.

And you'll know who the owner is if s/he cuts your - at least where I worked. They usually don't just take new people.
posted by headless at 8:50 PM on April 18, 2004

warning: that last link is flash-y (and rather horrible).
posted by headless at 8:51 PM on April 18, 2004

Response by poster: I guess that my fear was that if I was supposed to tip that I didn't tip enough.
posted by Juicylicious at 9:54 PM on April 18, 2004

so a tip could be seen a superfluous

I still don't get it. Lots of owner/operator businesses get tips.
posted by stbalbach at 9:46 AM on April 19, 2004

Tips are not like thank-you notes; sometimes they are superfluous and inappropriate (whereas thank-you notes virtually never are). It's a huge bother to have to learn where tipping is and is not called for, and how much, but tipping indiscriminately isn't a wise shortcut. It is quite possible to offend someone by offering a tip where it is not appropriate.

Having said that, I'm sure there are many owners that are either unaware of, or indifferent to, these customs.

I tip about $20 on an $80 visit, usually, and will earmark $5 of it for a shampooer, if I have one. On a $120 visit, I'll tip $30, but the shampoo girl still gets $5 (assuming the service is similar). I consider the stylist's tips to be slightly higher than necessary; I just tend to round up the total.

One doesn't tip owners. Chair renters should not be considered owners.
posted by obloquy at 7:21 PM on April 19, 2004

Miss Manners agrees that one doesn't tip owners (in restaurants as well), but suggests that in a salon, if you have several people working on you (shampooer, blow-dryer, manicurist, whatever), you should just add 20% to the bill and ask to have it distributed as is appropriate.
posted by obloquy at 7:28 PM on April 19, 2004