Not so Fantastic Sams 7/13/2015
 

I am really upset about how I was treated at Fantastic Sams on Monday morning.

I had an appointment at 9:00 a.m. I arrive at 8:50ish. I open the doors to the establishment and smile and say, Wow it feels good in here. I have an appointment with Chelsea at 9:00 a.m. It is hot already outside and I am about to sit down in the lobby. When I am told by Paula, the receptionist, that unfortunately, they are not open yet and I must wait outside......... Really?????????

If they are not open yet, maybe the doors should remain locked.

I hesitantly walk outside, walk back to my car and turn on the engine and turn on the air conditioner and look at my cell phone time. I am surprised to see that it is 8:57 a.m. and by the time I walk back to the door, it will be 9:00 a.m. Okay, now I walk back to the establishment and walk back in.

What is wrong with this picture? I really wanted to get my hair done that day, or I would have just walked out and kept going after being treated in such a way. I really like my hair stylist, so I feel bad for her, if I would just up and leave.

After two days, I am finally able to reach the manager, Ramona, and she tells me, this is their policy and has been their policy for five years. Their insurance company will not allow the public in their premises until they open.

Okay, this does not sound reasonable to me. They allow the public to come in and sign in for a service and then they must leave. Wouldn't the insurance company pay a claim if someone signing in slipped and fell on the floor before they opened at 9 a.m. ????? If you are having the public come in and sign in for a service aren't you technically open??????

Something does not seem right here. But the most important goal of Fantastic Sams is to have you looking and feeling fantastic.

Well.....after being treated with that sort of welcome, I wasn't feeling that feeling.

I asked the manager to have the owners call me, but have yet to receive a call.

I am assuming they do not care about their valued customer. I will be looking for a new place to have my hair done, one that treats their customers like a valued person.

How hard would it be to let your valued customer sit in the lobby for five or ten minutes to wait for their appointment. After all doctors' offices do it, and so do many other businesses.

It seems to me, they would want their customers to arrive in a timely manner, to keep the schedules moving efficiently.

I am surprised that for five years they have been operating this way and getting away with it. Do other people feel that they are not being treated like a valued customer? Just wondering? I am actually a pretty laid back, not hard to please type of a person. I just want some basic respect.

Rules are rules, I guess. Rather than look for someplace new - if you like your hairdresser so much - why not just make your appts for after 9am? I'm surprised that in 5 yrs you have never had that happen at a 9am appt. Have your appts for 5 years always been later than 9am? When I find a hairdresser that I like, I wouldn't let someone's rules separate us! :)

I always see women waiting outside of Sam's when I go to pick up my bagels a couple doors away and wondered why - I thought the door was locked! Now I know.

Sounds like a power thing or they could keep the doors locked. Surprised you did not receive a phone call which suggest your message was necer turned in. The owners info should be public info and easy to get. Then you could contact them.

That happened to me once. OK, I now know how they work. When I have a first of the day appointment I arrive on time. Not a big deal.

Someone should have kept the door locked until 9:00. In a place of business the employees are not all at their stations before opening time which is 9:00 a.m. That way they can keep an eye on customers as they normally do. If they let in customers before opening time something could happen. You could go back to use the restroom or walk in on something you are not supposed to see like them taking money out of the safe or an employee meeting. Sounds like they didn't handle the situation in the best way.

Rules are rules. I assume the door was unlocked for the employees to come in. They are trying to set up for the day and are not ready to be watching anyone. They may be getting the register ready for business. Make your appts. for 9:30, problem solved.

It doesn't sound like anyone was deliberately rude to you and the manager did exolain it was an insurance issue rather than just saying it's a rule. Sorry, I really don't think you were treated badly, just not quite like you wanted to be.

I also tried to come in early and sit down but was told the same thing you were. They were very nice about it. No big deal--and I window shopped until 9:00. On the positive side you had options on how to spend the 10 minutes -- sit in your car or go to the coffee/bagel shop next door. Or, as Bonnie commented, don't make 9:00 appointments. It seems unfortunate to give up your stylist over this incident.

Nope...I will find another place to do business. Customer service is important to me. Some rules just do not make common sense.

So they allow people to sign up but not stay? If so, the insurance excuse doesn't work. If they're not allowing customers in for insurance purposes the front door should be locked.

You received Customer Service. They have rules they go by and you choose not to go by them. What does that have to do with Customer Service.

I would not have taken it personally.

I think I would have seen that they were just trying to do their jobs. Getting set up for their workday. -- I don't know why the door was unlocked, but maybe having somebody stand there to let others in is not an efficient use of work time. Besides, whoever was on the door still would have had to tell the customers they had to wait.

It would take a lot more than an insurance company rule that I did not want applied to me to cause me to give up a hairstylist I really like. -- But after all this, I guess that ship has sailed and you will be choosing a different hairstylist in a different salon. Good luck. Sometimes that is not easy.

After two days, I am finally able to reach the manager, Ramona, and she tells me, this is their policy and has been their policy for five years. Their insurance company will not allow the public in their premises until they open.

What do thy do when an appointment runs past closing time ?
Have them return the next business day

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Makes me think about having a garage sale and announce a 8 AM opening, and then have someone show up at 7:30 AM as you were setting up.

As this "early bird" was trying to get the best buy, they are disrupting your process and our feeling is that they are rude. If you say something about not being open yet, they think you are being rude.

So who is right? Two points of view.