Home Salons - Do your clients remove their shoes ?

[bombini]

May seem a bit of an odd question but I was just wondering for those of you that work from home do you request clients remove their shoes as they enter the house ?

I know this may not be a problem for therapists that have laminate flooring or a room that is straight off the hallway but my clients have to come through the hallway up the stairs and into the treatment room. I have a carpet protector the length of the hallway but obviously nothing to cover the stairs or in my treatment room.

Im finding that now its getting colder and wetter shoes are not exactly clean when they come in ! A lot of my clients take them off without being asked but others don't.

A few months ago I bought a very expensive rug for my lounge and insisted everyone I knew took their shoes off if they were in the room and I have had some pretty weird responses and even some people refuse so I don't want to offend any of my clients which is why im wondering what others do ?

 

[angel fingers]

one of mine insists every time. but really i would rather she didnt.
i think its safer for my clients to wear shoes, what if theres something on the floor that i am unaware of and they stand on it. and i certainly wouldnt expect to go in to a business and have to remove my shoes, so i would not expect my clients to either.

maybe a door mat on the step and another inside the house for them to wipe their feet on will work for you.

 

[Zo Zo]

There is a home based therapist near to me and she has a basket of slippers for clients to wear, so when you arrive you sit down, take off your shoes and pop on a pair of slippers. They are washable ones.

 

[mizzy_dizzy]

dosent wear and tear of flooring come as part of running a buissness?
you could prob even name it in taxs lol

 

[devonsdreamer]

I have laminate flooring at home so it isn't an issue- although I can relate to the rug- I roll mine up when it is very wet outside of if friends with very small children are coming over as I hate seeing it get destroyed- spends more time rolled than out so not sure why we spent so much on it.

The slipper idea is a lovely one

 

[bombini]

There is a home based therapist near to me and she has a basket of slippers for clients to wear, so when you arrive you sit down, take off your shoes and pop on a pair of slippers. They are washable ones.

That is a fab idea ! May have to give that one a go !

I do have mats inside and out. I agree with the removing shoes in a high street business I can't imagine everyone walking around Tesco with no shoes on lol

 

[wallpap]

I have to walk through my dining room & lounge to get to my treatment room and also have a crawling baby on carpet only laid 18 months ago so i always ask clients to take shoes off...
Homebased therefore it is my home too ...
Loving the slipper idea though! Fab

 

[smooth]

I don't think you can expect clients to take off their shoes even if it is your home. I like the slipper idea though and also you can get one of those magic mats which attract dirt.

 

[TweezerHappy]

I don't mind taking my shoes off when I go to friends houses but if I was asked to remove them at someones home salon I don't think I'd like it.

 

[rachael204]

I work from home and most of my vlients do offer to take their shoes off.
We normally take our own shoes off in the hallway and put slippers on so there are usually shoes in the hallway already, that may prompt them to offer.
I don't mind either way as we have a dark carpet (recently replaced the cream one that was a very bad idea) and laminate flooring in the hallway!!

 

[mizzy_dizzy]

I keep thinking of the episode of sex and the city where they go to a friends kids party and Carries shoes get nicked LOL

 

[weezie]

I've been to a high street salon where they made me swap to slippers, it felt very strange! But in someones home it would feel more normal. How about putting a long cheap rug by the front door that is not expensive e.g from Argos so they will be cleaning their shoes as they walk in. When it is wet my clients seem to automatically remove their shoes!

 

[daniella]

in the pool i wear plastic shoe bags over my shoes.So wen i open my homebased salon.That wath every client will wear if it,s in the house.

 

[MissConfused]

from your side i can certainly see why you would want to and i don't blame you at all! but i personally would feel a bit odd taking my shoes off. especially if i wasn't wearing any socks, which i guess is most of the time because i wear lots of pump type shoes which of course you can't wear socks with without looking silly. oh godjust thinking that would be the least of my worries actually!! if it was wet outside then clearly my trousers at the bottom would be wet so i'd have to roll them up and surely i'm not the only person in the world who doesn't have time every other day to shave! :o gosh that would be so embarrassing! haha i'd just about die on the spot! wow, i've just practically confessed that i walk around with yeti legs under my trousers! LOL! :|

x

 

[Martigirl]

It would put me off visiting a home salon.

I also wouldn't be happy wearing slippers that someone else had worn (even if they were washable).

I wouldn't dream of telling a client who puts their wet brolly on my floor not to. I just clean it up after.

I wouldn't dream of telling a client not to give their child a drink or crisps to keep them occupied, not to do it. again I just clean it after.

Of course there are certain client practices which could be deemed entirely unacceptable but keeping their shoes on imho isn't one of them.

 

[Oldtimer]

Get rid of the carpet protector and put a cheap plain rug down so they are cleaning their shoes before they get to the stairs. Or put a little sign up, 'please remove your shoes if muddy! x' That might help!

 

[TweezerHappy]

I think he plastic shoe covers would be a good idea. In our office a lot of industrial staff come in and they have to wear shoe protectors in the office. Also, I remember going to view a show home and it was raining. They had a basket at the front door full of shoe covers and asked everyone to put them on.

I definitely think that's a better idea than asking clients to take their shoes off.

 

[heatherp]

I did as weezie suggested.

I went to Argos and paid £30 for a decent looking dark shaggy rug.

Does the trick and when its past its best I won't feel that I have spent and lost a small fortune.

H x

 

[lancashirelass]

I have a home salon fitting hair extensions and a few ask if I want them to remove there shoes, I just say no and then they follow me upstairs. My stair carpet is looking a bit battered and does need cleaning a lot more often.

If I was a client going into someones home and they asked me to removed my shoes I wouldnt feel comfortable doing it and would state I prefer not to and if they insisted I would just cancel my appointment and go elsewhere.

I dont walk around my own house without anything on my feet and am not doing it in anyone else's house.

 

[jacqueline]

I also don't think you should be asking clients to take their shoes off when they come for a treatment, it is just part of it when you run a business from home. I wouldn't want to or wear slippers someone else had laundered or not.