I visited Establish Salon in Lake Elmo, MN today for blonde highlights, as I was looking to go much brighter for summer. After 3 hours in the chair, I noticed the stylist dried my hair while I was facing away from the mirror which should have been my first red flag.
I left the salon with darker hair than when I walked in, after paying $140. When I brought my concerns to the staff, they offered me the option to come back to the same girl to fix it or book with another girl online. Why would I go back to the same stylist who already left my hair darker than when I walked in?
The results were nowhere close to the photo I discussed with the stylist before she began. Not even close. The stylist even had me look at my hair in the sunlight outside to assess the color. Still darker.
I walked out of that salon in tears.
I am now home and my hair is still darker than when I walked through their door. I just spent $140 and 3 hours of my day to walk out more disappointed than I have ever been at a salon. I should not have to return and spend more time to fix a result that was never agreed upon or discussed.
To my fellow blondes, please be very cautious booking here if brightness is your goal for summer. Always make sure your desired result is fully understood before your stylist begins.
UPDATE TO OWNERS REPLY:
While I appreciate the thoughtful response, words alone don't address what happened. A genuine effort to make this right would have included a refund or an offer to remedy the situation at no additional cost, not simply a suggestion to rebook and hope for a better outcome.
Instead, I am now left to find and pay another stylist to correct work that should have been done correctly the first time. That financial burden should not fall on the customer after a failed service.
I also want to clarify that this wasn't a case of trying something new that didn't go as hoped. I came in with a clear reference photo, had a consultation before the service began, and still left with hair darker than when I arrived. That is a service failure, not a matter of preference.
True customer care means standing behind your work. I hope this feedback leads to meaningful changes in how the salon handles situations like this in the future.