Nightmare client with toddler - So Mad

[bralynstudio]

this is how my friend does it, and i am thinking of doing the same.

during the initial consultation with a new client she has them sign a policy form that clearly states children are not allowed and that if they show up with a child for the appointment it will be cancelled.
yet they ignore this policy way too often when she could be filing the time with other clients on a cancelation wait list (she is only open a few days a week that are booked full and is available by appointment only during 3 other days a week).
she is now started charging $100 (double her price for a full set) for each time they show up with a child on top of rescheduling the appointment. since this went into policy she has not had a problem with ladies showing up with children.
also added to policy is NO CELL PHONE use during appointments, they are to shut them off. if they are not turned off, they are collected and returned at the end of the appointment.
does anyone think this is too much or fair policy for relaxing appointment, not just for the client but the tech as well?????

 

[tips_n_toes]

OMG! I have been thinking of putting up a sign in my salon about kids. Honestly it isn't all of them, just some of them but I have one nail client that beings atleast 3 kids with her every time!! they are 3 months (this one just new) but usually it is a 3 year old boy (bad to the bone) a 18 month old girl and a 20 month old girl... and now we added this baby to the mix... It is a total nightmare.

She is my neighbor too, so it is almost like she feels that she has the right to do this, or so she thinks.

She is a "good" client every 3 weeks for infills and every 5 weeks for gel toes, every 6 weeks for hair... so I don't really want to lose her as a client but I would like to lose the kids.

Sometimes it is hard to tell someone that the kids aren't welcome, especially if they are taking a spot that can be hard to fill...

Sit down... relax with a glass of wine...you deserve it!

 

[spn01]

Sometimes Mums just get caught out and do bring their children to the salon, running in saying "I'm sorry but I have xxx with me today.
I greet them with a smile as always. I explain to the mother "as you are aware this is a professional salon that has many products and equipment that are not child friendly, I also bribe the young child and say, if you are good today and sit over hear while mum is having her nails done I will have a special treat for you when we have finished. - I have some pencils and colouring books and a little table that I pull out from the cupboard. Then I get to it and work as quickly and efficiently as possible. As a treat I give the child a couple of stickers and a little squirt of hand cream, just like mummy got.

This doesn't happen often as most clients respect the salon is not for children. If I have a troublesome child I ask the client to sort her child, as my focus is on her nails and I can't multitask. (of course I put it to her very nicely, with no mistaking what I am trying to say).

Well when your client brings her dog to the salon, now that's another story:green:, just as well I am a dog lover:lol:

 

[tigi]

your daughter deserves a medal! i hate it when clients bring kids in the salon and we are curretnly looking at ways to deter them from bringing them in under a certain age (am a mum to 4 , so i do sympathise, but i have my heart in my mouth when they come in in case they hurt themselves )

I think we may put a sign up asking them to refrain from bringing them in.

tigi

 

[sams.nails]

What a nightmare!!!! i would of never had your patience lol, that happened to me last year , a client brought her 2 children aged about 2 and 5 and said they would sit quiet in the corner!!! the 2 year old wanted up on my clients knee which i refused cos of the products and the client would keep moving her hands, of course the 2 year old started screaming, i then politely said that next time she would need to arrange childcare, the next time she arrived with the 2 year old and said she thought 1 child would be ok, i politely reiterated what i had said last time and refused to do her nails, yes it cost me 30 quid but the look on her face was a picture, and i didnt want to be seen as a pushover and get stressed cos of her kid, needless to say she hasnt returned but i knew that when i made my decision not to do her nails, harsh arnt i? lol

sam

 

[mollylolly]

It's good to know that it's not just me this has happened to. It seems that I got off fairly lightly reading some of your experiences. At least I didn't have a mamouth cleaning up session when she went and nothing was ruined.:lol::lol::lol:

Sally x

 

[High Hopes]

as a parent my children would never behave like this!! and if they did i would be horrified!!!!
imagine what these peoples own houses must look like!!!!

 

[Pebbles#1]

This brings back memories!! I used to have a couple of clients that would bring children. It would always start off okay, mum would bring toys, food, drink, it was a little stressful but tollerable. But the more they came the mums wouldn`t bother making much effort for the child, hence the child got bored. I would have some appointments when the contents of the fruit bowl would be eaten, I would be making drinks every ten minutes, having to give them my childrens toys to keep them occupied, the little darlings would keep on and on and on until they got what ever they wanted. Mums would say `no, you had a drink` or food etc, but when the child is then having a tantrum and throwing your nail varnishes on the floor, you give in, or I did! I would feel like I needed valium...The icing on the cake was when I was asked to wipe a childs bum because the treatment was at a stage where mum couldn`t do it. That was the END.
When a new client phones for an appointment I ask if they have children, and explain it is unfair to bring the child and expect them to sit for 2 hours, apart from the boredom the nauture of the job involves chemicals etc. The angle I take is the mum is being unkind to the child by bringing them rather than I am! I also point out they will be able to chill out for a couple of hours. If they do not have a friend/relative to look after the child for a couple of hours then no appointment. If I wanted to be a child minder I would.....but I don`t. The money is not worth the stress.
Make it clear at the booking, and stick to your guns

 

[Tracey Roberts]

I really know how u feel....I had a friend a few weeks back come round to have her nails done...she turns up with 2 year old boy and 4 year old girl.....and boyfriend (ok I thought...not great but maybe the boyfriends here to entertain the kids) WELL....where do I start the little girl was good throughout...the little boy had the devil in him that day...I was constantly up and down to start with cos they wanted a drink, or a biscuit..they wanted tele turning over....they wanted to watch a dvd...they wanted to draw.....my friend was up and down tending to them, changing nappies etc..... or shed be turning and twisting herself round to see what they are doing...or they would either be launching themselves at her or wanting to sit on her knee!....2 hours pass by...im still nowhere near done....my friends now talking about the kids needing tea...can i ask my boyfriend to pick chips up after work cos they need tea...so I have to stop again to faff around making phone calls to arrange chips etc....the little boy is getting more and more unruly as time goes on ....absolutely nobody is looking after him or entertaining him...he is allowed to do what he wants because mums having her nails done and stepdads too busy playing on the computer.....so the little boy had already thrown my pot pourri ALL OVER the room sometime ago....nobody has told him to pick it up.......my cd rack had been tossed over ...cds all over the floor being trampled on and cases broken....dvds pulled out the cupboard....still nobodies told him off or picked anything up.....another hour goes by....im really close to a nervous breakdown as I have also watched the little boy running round with a felt tip pen most of the day trying to draw on my lovely feature wallpaper....hes still allowed the pen even tho he keeps scribbling on my flat screen, furniture and carpet! my friend and boyfriend are now starting to take the p out of my also because im taking so long...comments such as ''what are we all having for breakfast''.......finally my boyfriend arrives home knackered from work with the chips....he dishes up and mum leaves them sat on my sofa eating...at last they are quiet for a while.....but not for long!....im nearly done....but in the mean time the little boy decides it would be fun to keep hitting and biting my boyfriend! finally im done and they all leave.....i earnt a tenner to cover the cost! for about 4 hours work! and i can honestly say i really felt like hitting the bottle because I was THAT stressed out by the whols saga....and so was my boyfriend who only had the pleasure of it for about half hour...saying that he also had the pleasure of having to help me scrub chips out of the carpet that had been trampled in everywhere...pick up all the mess, the cds, the dvds, wipe off pen marks...and strip cushion covers covered in greasey chip finger marks! phew!

NEVER NEVER NEVER AGAIN!! (I had told this person before that I cant do it with kids about....but obviously she just chose to ignore that! but next time I definately wont let her no way..ive learnt my lesson the hard way )

This was a nightmare to read , let alone have to go through it, what concerns me most of all, is the boyfriend of the client, you say he was on the computer ? I really hope it wasn't yours ?, surely he should of been taking care of the kids? otherwise whats the point of him being there, as for trashing your stuff, I would of gone mad, friend or not, I'm possesive of my items.
You deserve a medal and dont ever let her blag you into the same situation again lol :hug:

 

[trusim]

Put a sign up that states due to new insurance policy rules no children are allowed on the premises, as you will be in breach of your terms. I use this and it used to work a treat in my shop or if a child is near my stuff when I am mobile. Its far easier to lay the blame at someones door so people do not think its personal. If she asks why its suddenly changed just say you had a 13 year old after a set of nails and you called your insurance provider to see if it was ok and they mentioned that no children under xx age should be allowed on the premises due to health and safety risks.

Kate

You poor girls. So unfair and disrespectful of these ladies to do this to you. The above post I agree with.

I'm still shaking my head......Some people just dont care..

You girls sure do have patience, I would of said "ok, enough is enough".

Good Luck.......Have few drinks, you deserve that..

 

[Warwick Wendy]

AAAARGGHHHHH!!!! I read this earlier today and thought how vile!!!! then my 4pm shows up with 1 yr old in her arms for her Brazilian wax!!! (would have turned her away but as she was due to fly off on holiday tomorrow I didn't have the heart)
No car seat to strap her in so she's laying on the couch, kid sitting across her chest screaming and I'm trying to wax!!
Usually I don't allow any kids in, stupidly I thought she knew this being a personal friend! ....but no!! So have had to remind her that my Insurance Policy doesn't allow me to permit children in the treatment room at any time!

 

[VHunter]

I feel for you, honestly.:hug:

But you certainly have more patience than I.
From the get-go, I likely would have said that children, no matter how good they truly are, are disruptive and will interupt the service causing you to be delayed for your next client (she needn't know that you may not have one after her), and we will reschedule.
Had someone asked my daughter to change a nappy or fetch her son, I would have politely said that my daughter doesn't baby-sit for free (in other words, she should have hired a sitter if her hubby wasn't available) but if she requires her services, it's an additional 7$ an hour.:wink2:

I would also have charged a bit extra for the nails that were applied and pinged off cause she couldn't sit still, and for the extra hour she had you sit because of the interuptions etc.

I make no exceptions to the rules for anyone. It causes too many headaches and simply is NOT worth the aggravation.

As for the texting, I am also considering posting a sign asking clients to refrain from texting/chatting during services. It's becoming VERY tedious. I don't expect them to talk to me BUT I do expect them to sit still. Hardly possible with a cell phone ringing off the hook.

I'm a mother also. So I am sympathetic to the difficulties in getting a sitter when one needs their hair done or whatever (be it the cost or the availability of one)... BUT it's NOT impossible to make arrangements, some way, some how, once every 2wks. Where there is a will, there is a way. They could trade 'play dates' with another mom who needs time alone for whatever.... There's always a way.

Best of luck and hope you don't suffer this aggravation again.

 

[gemmat]

I had a situation today in the salon where i work. I was doing nails at the nailbar in reception, when a couple of ladies came in, one with a young boy about 2. One lady went on the sunbed and the other was waiting. Her son then started screaming! dont know what was wrong but he didnt stop. My client started moaning, and i knew that one of the other therapists was doing a facial. So what do i do, i wonder?? i offered the wee boy a drink of juice, he didnt want one. in all he was crying for about 5 mins, so i asked the mum if he could take him outside until he calmed down (said very politely). My boss was not happy i did this! she said she would have dealt with it differently. What was i supposed to do?? so never again, i will let all kids scream and let them get on with it. Its not my salon!!

 

[Zo Zo]

I hate clients like this. And I think a 'no children' policy is a good idea. With hindsight, if you had turned her away, and lost the money and possibly lost the client too, maybe it wouldn't have been such a bad thing? Like I said, with hindsight.

Something else though... you need to be stricter with your clients... never mind the kid, what was she doing, trashing the uncured gel??? When you've finished applying it, surely the hand should go straight in the lamp?

I also think you could reasonably ask the client not to use their phone during an appointment.

 

[mollylolly]

I hate clients like this. And I think a 'no children' policy is a good idea. With hindsight, if you had turned her away, and lost the money and possibly lost the client too, maybe it wouldn't have been such a bad thing? Like I said, with hindsight.

Something else though... you need to be stricter with your clients... never mind the kid, what was she doing, trashing the uncured gel??? When you've finished applying it, surely the hand should go straight in the lamp?

I also think you could reasonably ask the client not to use their phone during an appointment.

With regards to the gel, one hand was in the lamp curing and I had just applied the coloured gel to the other hand ready to go straight in the lamp when the first hand was cured when she run her fingers through her hair.

I totally agree that I should have been stricter with the client and will be in future, as this is not going to set a president for future appointments.

Sally X

 

[Zo Zo]

I go to a really bossy nail tech (sorry if you're reading this sweetie LOL) but I seriously WOULDN'T DARE do anything to trash her work midway through an appointment. I have occasionally knocked a nail as I went into the lamp and she gives me evils (best Vicky Pollard accent required here!)