So, I spent the day still actively purging last night's negative energy encounter. This interaction has thrown me for a loop worse than I can ever recall having happened before. I will be happy when the last dregs of this misery soup have been rinsed away.
One of the things most stylists have had experience with is the 'let's make a deal' routine. After years of dancing around saying what I think with these particular clients, I've finally started standing up for myself and my work. Prices are as stated. I'm fairly certain these people's employers aren't negotiating their pay on a daily basis, so why should I?
Now don't get me wrong, I am all for bartering and for paying it forward here and there. The whole 'money's tight right now' even though in an hour your facebook is going to broadcast your new tattoo, night out drinking top shelf with friends and fantastic new Michael Kors outfit while rocking a sweet new 'do you couldn't pay the quoted price for is beyond old. Time, talent, and product aren't really negotiable and anyone who thinks so, might want to take a look at some of the individuals walking around with jacked up colors because they had their friends try to replicate a look at home. Want to negotiate my prices, the quality of what I use and the care in how I apply it will be negotiable as well.
Nearly eighty percent of the stylists I know are UNDERpricing their services. The products and tools we use every day have increased in cost, and overhead continues to rise, yet we have been charging virtually the same prices for almost ten years. Given the economy, raises in the workplace aren't common, but I'm willing to bet most of our clients have seen at least one cost of living increase in the last decade. Stylists (and honestly most people working in personal services) are actually making LESS money due to cost of business increases.
Don't get me wrong, I love my job. I chose to do what I do, and there are benefits I couldn't get working for someone else. At the end of the day, however, those things don't pay the bills. If I don't believe in my work and assert my worth enough by standing firm in my prices, it's time to take a hard look at the future. I'm not offering last season's styles, and I don't work in a bargain basement.
Most clients understand and appreciate their stylists. I love that I have the flexibility to donate services, gift someone I know with the occasional freebie, I just don't enjoy being expected to do these things because 'it's just me' or 'because hair isn't really work'. I've seen far too many stylists belittled, taken advantage of, and struggle to survive because apparently setting a fair price and believing their work earns it is egotistical.
In all, what I'm attempting to convey is that stylists should stand by their work and believe it is worth the price they set, and clients should understand the fee for service isn't 100% profit.
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