Editor’s note: Wow! You sure had a lot to say about children in the salon. Due to the abundance of responses we received, Reader-to-Reader takes up more than its allotted page this month. Thank you, readers.
Our policy is: “Any children unsupervised will be sold as slaves.” This sign is on the table in my waiting area. My salon offers nail and tanning, and it has a handmade porcelain doll shop. Although most of the dolls are behind glass, some of them are not. There are also open product bottles sitting on the nail tables, so this is not a place for children.-Cassie Conn., Cassie’s Creations, Huntington, W. Va.
This is the policy we post in the salon and it works! “Your children are welcome in the salon, but we do have rules... To maintain the relaxing atmosphere of the salon, and for the safety of your children, children must be seated next to you the entire time in the salon. They cannot wander freely around the salon and must use inside voices so they do not disturb other clients. “If these rules are not followed you will be asked to remove your child or children from the salon.
“This salon is a working environment for all the nail technicians. For the safety of your children, and requirements of our insurance company, the state board of cosmetology as well as OSHA, these rules must be maintained. Thank you for your cooperation.”-Mae Hare, A Place for You, Encino, Calif.
I think the client should hire a baby-sitter to stay with her children because being at the salon should be her prime time. Children get reckless and will wreck the salon. The light on my workstation was broken by a child who became tired of waiting.-Shirley Hollis, Shear Image, Spartanburg, S.C.
I encourage clients to bring their children. I provide toys, coloring books, a television, storybooks, and Tootsie Roll pops. I also sell juice. I place an emphasis on a happy, positive atmosphere. I believe that having negative rules and signs displayed only causes negative feelings, which we certainly have enough of those days. I want my customers to feel at home in my salon and not think twice about bringing their children. My motto is: “My salon is your salon!” It works!-Shaunna Stier, Acrylics Galore & More, Louisville, Ky.