It seems like a dream, or maybe a nightmare, but many of us have spent the last 5 months living in an alternate reality of closed salons, PPE, and doing what we can to stay afloat amidst an unprecedented pandemic.
The first round of closures took us all by surprise and most, if not all, complied with the requests of our government to close our businesses while they got a hold of the situation. We banded together and made funny videos, shared #throwback hair pictures, took up hobbies we never had the time for, baked more banana bread than we needed, and finally knew what it felt like to be home on a Saturday.
As the opening dates were delayed, the government sent aid in the form of stimulus checks, unemployment for self-employed workers and independent contractors, low-interest loans, and grants. Unfortunately, not everyone had access to these things. With complicated applications, outdated interfaces, and a misunderstanding for the income of independent contractors, aid was delayed and for some, 5 months later, has yet to show up.
Industry professionals began to do what they do best - innovate and improvise. We saw bang trim demos, touch up color kits, product delivery, and house calls. As time went on, our industry began to divide. We heard reports of rogue openings and of fines being given for mobile services. Clients begged for appointments and while some stylists begged to open their doors, others urged the government to send more aid to keep us #saferathome. Campaigns were started that urged states to allow salons to open, citing our experience with sanitation and licensing. They were combated with the clarification that while a small portion of logged hours was dedicated to sanitation that this did not make us experts in disease control.
Individual states began to release their opening plans and in some areas, hair salons fell into later and later categories. Stylists began to question how a grocery store was safer than a salon and as essential as we may feel to our clients, it proved that we are not as essential as a food supply or medical services. As salons were finally allowed to open we saw masks and shields, thermometers and release forms, hand sanitizer and disinfectant. Salons changed their booking policies, staggering stylists and client appointments, budgeting time in for ‘mask breaks,’ and waiving cancellation fees. Salons not only had to invest more after being closed for 2-3 months but now they had to limit their earning potential. However, despite all that, stylists went back ready to foil, cut, and correct their clients’ quarantine hair.
In 49 states, salons are still open.hey are operating under COVID guidelines, but they are open. In California, on July 12th we were ordered to once again close our doors after having been open for just over a month. At first, we were told it would be a two-week closure due to high numbers, however, two weeks has turned into over a month. PPP and SBA loans have run out, the additional unemployment PUA of $600 a week has ended, and many of us were kicked off unemployment when we went back to work in the first place. We were told we could work outside (in California) during the height of summer but only doing non-chemical services and no hair washing. I don’t know about you, but my business cannot survive on outdoor haircuts alone. Our industry has gone rogue, housecalls are the new normal, hushed talk of salons blacking out their windows and taking clients through back doors, cash only payments, and kitchen sink highlights. Organizations have banded together and formed protests fighting to #saveoursalons. On August 17th a group of beauty industry professionals took matters into their own hands and proudly opened their doors defying orders from Governor Newsom and individual counties.
No one could have predicted the way 2020 would have gone, there was no handbook for maneuvering through a pandemic. As stylists, we have been heavily impacted by the closures and new policies, and as stylists in California, we run the risk of shuttering our businesses if we remain closed much longer. Does defying orders to mean we solve the problem or does it mean businesses will be fined and stylists will lose licenses? Will staying closed and campaigning for more aid actually work? How do we stay united as an industry when politics have taken hold of our livelihood?
I do not have all the answers. What I do know is that beauty industry professionals need support. The landscape of the beauty industry will be changed for years to come - from salon protocol to hair shows, to mobile services, and at-home hair color. Product companies will pivot, but as stylists’ our in-person interaction is what makes us who we are. We need support to keep our doors open and our families fed or we need to be allowed to work.
Written by: Nicoletta
