What do you think of this?

[nicky n]

Hey guys

Ive just told the lady who i rent space off of in her salon that i iwll be leaving in about 5 months to have a baby as i wont be able to pay the rent when i am not there and i wont be able to work full time and she needs the rent covered all the time so she is going to find someone else.

This is fine but she said to me as long as you dont take any clients away from the business????!!! Now as im self employed and have never signed anything to say i couldnt take clients etc she cant say that can she?? They do treat me like a receptionist as im am the least busy as i havent been there long so i think its because in their minds they employ me!!!??

I am right to think i do have a right to take a few clients when i leave arent i??

Sorry for rant just wondering if i am thinking right here!!??

Thanx guys xx

 

[jcpark]

Do you have a rental agreement?

Do you have a separate business with it's own name? Do clients pay you (your business directly)?

I'm not a legal expert, and on the face of it, it would seem that you simply rent a room, and the business (and therefore clients) are yours. I assume you built up your clientele yourself too...

With regards to giving notice, if you don't have a rental agreement, did you have a verbal agreement on notice?

On the other hand, if the hairdressers have introduced the beauty side and simply contract you to run it and do the work then I would say it is a very grey area and you would be poaching clients. I don't think you need to sign anything in order to ascertain whether the clients belong to whom.... it will depend on how the business is set up, and you don't need to be salaried for these clients to belong to the owner.

 

[nicky n]

Do you have a rental agreement?

Do you have a separate business with it's own name? Do clients pay you (your business directly)?

I'm not a legal expert, and on the face of it, it would seem that you simply rent a room, and the business (and therefore clients) are yours. I assume you built up your clientele yourself too...

With regards to giving notice, if you don't have a rental agreement, did you have a verbal agreement on notice?

On the other hand, if the hairdressers have introduced the beauty side and simply contract you to run it and do the work then I would say it is a very grey area and you would be poaching clients. I don't think you need to sign anything in order to ascertain whether the clients belong to whom.... it will depend on how the business is set up, and you don't need to be salaried for these clients to belong to the owner.

I dont have a rental agreement as i said i have never signed anything i work in the salon which is a hair and beauty salon and dont have my own name but the money comes to me directley. had no agreement on notice but i have given her 5 months so i think thats long enough. Its a very new business it is 2 people that have joined together and when the hairdresser moved down the road to the salon we are in she took all her clients as shejust reneted a chair much in the same way i just rent my space. There is one owner of the business and the hairdresser (who is her sister in law) just rents the chair.

Hope all that makes sense lol x

 

[Katelisa]

IMO you pay rent, therefor are paying for sole access to YOUR clients.

 

[Terese]

I would ignore her.
Give her a written letter to say you intend to cease trading at ............ on the .......... 5 mths should be plenty of notice as long as you have no written agreement to the contry(i.e you signed for 12 mths and want to leave after 4 and you have agreed to pay x amount for that period of time).

As for her saying about the clients...she thinks she can replace you with another therapist as soon as you have dissapeared....If you take your own bookings via your own phone...start doing it at home....and remember to take home your record cards..You have a duty under the Data Protection Act anyhow and she should not be looking at them without permission

 

[marie111]

I had this with the lady I used to rent from, she said I couldn't take my clients either, I didn't give her notice after an almighty row in the shop one day I just packed my stuff and went taking my client cards with me. They were my clients and I still have 70% of them a year on.

 

[Lynne Baker]

It never ceases to amaze me at how unprofessional some people can be!
This is a "business", not a game, so why do you not have a written contract setting out the terms?! It would save any ambiguity or unpleasantness. It doesn't have to be expensive or complicated, but it needs to be fair and reasonable, and agreed by both parties.
I think we should raise our game in terms of professionalism.

 

[nicky n]

It never ceases to amaze me at how unprofessional some people can be!
This is a "business", not a game, so why do you not have a written contract setting out the terms?! It would save any ambiguity or unpleasantness. It doesn't have to be expensive or complicated, but it needs to be fair and reasonable, and agreed by both parties.
I think we should raise our game in terms of professionalism.

Well thanks for your opinion it is not my place to get the contract sorted really and in this particular situation it has worked well in some ways for me not having one! My thoughts were that if i didnt have a contract she cant tell me what i can and cant do when i leave with my clients was really just wondering if anyone had been in the same situation and what they have or would do in the situation, not wether or not its professional or not to have or not have a contract.

Thanks for the replies tho guys x:green:

 

[Lynne Baker]

Why is it not your place to get the contract in place? You're the tenant - and in most respects it's in your interests to have it all on a proper footing so that you have some protection.

 

[nicky n]

Why is it not your place to get the contract in place? You're the tenant - and in most respects it's in your interests to have it all on a proper footing so that you have some protection.

Like i said it has benifited me not having a contract so im not going to complain. Alot of companies or businesses dont have contracts it is a matter of opinion but how people chose to run their business is surley up to them?? The issue wasnt that i dont have a contract but ok.

 

[tog]

Hey guys


This is fine but she said to me as long as you dont take any clients away from the business????!!! Now as im self employed and have never signed anything to say i couldnt take clients etc she cant say that can she?? They do treat me like a receptionist as im am the least busy as i havent been there long so i think its because in their minds they employ me!!!??

More fool her for not getting you to sign a contract - I'd say you're entitled to take all your clients with you.
But on the flip side of the coin, if you upset her, what's to stop her telling you to leave at the drop of a hat? Sounds like she has no obligation to give you any notice at all or let you stay on for the next 5 months, as like you say, you have no contract.

 

[Cloud Nine-Emzy]

Hiya!
I don't have a contract either and like u say it can work both ways and be good for you in some ways!!! She has got absolutely no right to say you can't take your clients with you if nothing is in writing! Youve built up that client base and if you want them to they will continue coming to you whether you choose to go mobile or whatever after the baby is born! Em XXX

 

[tonilee]

Just wanted to make a small point...just as the way I see it so take from it what you will but contract or no contract .....clients can not be MADE to go to one person or another can they? It the clients choice where they go to for their treatments.....me personally I would have smiled sweetly and said " of course I wont " to the owners so its nice and sweet for 5 months, all the while I would continue to be the best therapist the clients ever had, gradually start telling the clients you will be leaving, you WILL be doing mobile/working from home (whatever the case may be) and as far as you know the salon will be getting another therapist....should the client say anything you simply say "you have my number" and continue to be top notch in your service.

This way you keep the peace and your clients CHOOSE to come to you, so contract or not you will be doing it all gracefully!!:green:

 

[nicky n]

Just wanted to make a small point...just as the way I see it so take from it what you will but contract or no contract .....clients can not be MADE to go to one person or another can they? It the clients choice where they go to for their treatments.....me personally I would have smiled sweetly and said " of course I wont " to the owners so its nice and sweet for 5 months, all the while I would continue to be the best therapist the clients ever had, gradually start telling the clients you will be leaving, you WILL be doing mobile/working from home (whatever the case may be) and as far as you know the salon will be getting another therapist....should the client say anything you simply say "you have my number" and continue to be top notch in your service.

This way you keep the peace and your clients CHOOSE to come to you, so contract or not you will be doing it all gracefully!!:green:

Hi there this is a good plan my dad also told me to do exactley that and like you say if i say im leaving and that they have my number it is totally up to them and wouldnt be to blame if some of them decided to stick with me. Its down to the client at the end of the day i guess xx

 

[tonilee]

It absolutely is, keep the salon owners sweet, smile lots and continue doing a great job chuck xxxx:hug:

 

[Sassy Hassy]

Just be aware that the salon owner will do what is best for her. You state you have no contract and you may have done the good thing and given plenty of notice ... but she can do the same back to you! She may find a replacement before 5 months are up and give you your marching orders! Don't want to panic you as it may not happen but I think you gave notice waaay too early!

As for the clients, if you are self employed then they are yours! But as already stated, you don't EVER own clients and ultimately it is up to them where they go in the end!

 

[jcpark]

From what you have said it sounds like the clients are yours, but there is such a thing in law as non-competition. There is a time limit (usually 6 months), when a former employee cannot do any business with clients they say at their previous employment. It can also apply to self-employed people, and even though you have no contract, the courts would actually look at how you worked from day to day to determine if you are really a separate business.

To be honest, with the cost of taking you to court being prehibitive you are probably safe, but I do think it's always good to leave on good terms, not tread on anyone's toes - what comes around, goes around...;-)

 

[Maya Diaz]

Hell yes, Woman!
Take those clients with you, ESPECIALLY your "bread and butters"!!!!.
Start getting the contact information of anyone who sits or has sat in your chair, including their email and write them on an index card with their formulas.
Does she think you aspired to build a clientele, just for her and then bend over a barrel when you needed some time off to handle family matters?! Are you F-ing kidding me?
It's not like your pregnency was a surprise. She should have thought about renting your station long ago preparing for now and it's not your problem she failed to do that.
I am a salon owner and there is a way to remain tactful. I'm just pissed for you, that she would say that. Kinda like a slap in the face.
If you leave a salon there are the people who will follow you and there are those who won't. Sometimes it is unpleasantly surprising who you thought was loyal and who really is, but that aside...There is nothing wrong with retaining the clientele you've built, even if the salon owner helped facilitate your growth.
The world doesn't end when you have a baby.
Blessings and good luck!

 

[nicky n]

ok so yesterday on the phone i could of cried coz she phones me and said she had been thinking that i should bring my client cards in incase i ever didnt come in and she could contact them! (i take them home coz i was told there was no space for me 2 keep my own there!! ) And i knew she was only saying it so they were there and i didnt have them when i left as she then said i think they sould be there anyway because its only fair that they will be passed on to the person who takes over from you!

I dont know where i stand and im such a wimp there are so many things i need 2 bring up with her but i am one of the most emotional people ever and as soon as i say something that i feel akward about i just cry so i know i have 2 do it but i dont want to! Im just very confused that she is treating me like i am employed!:cry:

Sorry all thats a bit long and moanish i know!!!Thanks for your help! :green:x

 

[weezie]

Maybe seek some legal advise and don't hand the cards over until you get it. I would say that you cannot share the information on the cards without the clients permission and you are researching the legal implications. It sounds like she is panicking "it's only fair" does not mean it is a legal obligation as you are self employed, these clients are your clients. :hug: You are renting the room and can take the clients with you where you like.