Stylists’ Corner: Addressing the “Natural Hair Tax”
We often hear from many individuals that visiting the salon costs too much. We’ve heard more times than we can count that some stylists charge more money if you have natural hair—especially dense natural hair. The concept of “affordability” is subjective and people will pay for what they find value in. What you’re finding may be “too expensive” for you may simply be out of your budget range and that’s totally fine.
This blog post will explore the claim behind a “natural hair tax” and the value partnering with a stylist well versed in tight curls actually brings to you.
The Condition of a Client’s Hair Matters
Truthfully, many clients visit a stylist for the first time when their hair isn’t in the best condition. Oftentimes as stylists we hear clients say “I’m doing everything right but my hair is still dry/tangled/breaking/struggling.” The first question we like to ask are what are the “right” things that they were doing with their hair.
Somehow the conversation would inevitably turn to a method or person on YouTube that they were following. From the Greenhouse Method, to Cherry Lola treatments, to all-day henna sessions, clients have brought the aftermath of pretty much everything you can think of into the salon. Baking soda & apple cider vinegar cleanses, mayo and egg conditioners, onion juice, you name it we’ve seen it and sometimes smelled it.
There are a few appointments where we’re able to implement a positive change in one session, but many times the client and stylists are crafting a 6-18 month game plan of collaborative home care and salon care to nurse their hair back to health.
Unfortunately, some clients desperately needed to big chop as the hair was so compromised, there wasn’t a level of treatment that made sense for them to waste their money on. We’ve (Aeleise & Aishia) never been in the business of selling false hopes and dreams.
Curl Artists vs. Natural Hair Specialists
Specializing in natural hair and tight curls are two entirely different specialities. A stylist specializing in natural hair exclusively may not be well versed in cutting and styling tight curls, but are likely skilled in locs to twists, weave and crochet.
Cosmetology school teaches basic fundamental hair theory. It is up to the individual to decide on a specific specialization area post graduation and invest in continued education whether that be tight curl cutting classes, loc classes, color classes, etc to perfect their craft. And let us to be the first to tell you that investing in continued education to better serve your clientele isn’t cheap.
Present day, we have many individuals ready to wear their curls but are unable to find a skilled curl artist in their immediate area. You may be wondering why there aren’t more tight curl cutting specialists? The answer is because of the natural hair community.
Up until very recently, a stylist who was interested in working with tight curly + natural hair clients had a hard time understanding the exact ROI (return on investment) they would receive from doing advanced training and study in the field. This is why there are so few curl artists.
The tide is turning now as “texture” aka curls have swept the greater beauty industry and consumers are seeking specialists that can help them. As the market of clients grows, so will the market of professionals passionate about serving them. This also explains why you’re suddenly starting to see a fierce demand for curl artists, but may be unable to find one in your immediate area or they’re always booked months at a time.
Black Girl Curls has also curated our own curl stylist directory comprised of independent stylists across the U.S. (even, some abroad) who have formally taken education with our professional arm—Cut It Kinky.
Stylist Overhead Costs
Hair stylists, especially black stylists, are often entrepreneurs. We are our own businesses. This means we are supporting both a business venture with rent, bills, and other expenses as well as supporting our home lives as parents, caregivers, spouses, and single folks.
These expenses don’t even begin to address the amount of taxes that are paid back to the government as independent stylists in addition to amenities provided in the salon to make your experience more enjoyable such as decor, high quality products/tools, wifi, music, light snacks and even backend costs of booking systems/payment processors.
Also, there’s a huge convenience factor added in. You no longer have to pain through overbooked stylists and sit and wait in the salon all day to get your hair done like the old days.
Stylists are now able to carefully craft their schedules to only see maybe 2 to 3 clients per day for a more seamless and stress-free salon experience due to more advanced systems/processes. Remember, stylists work for money just like you, not feel goods.
Let’s Do the Math Breakdown
“Let’s say for example a stylist charges $250 for a cut and wash and go styling. Depending on your hair length and desired look (ex: short cuts, density, color touch ups, etc) on average, you’ll need to visit the salon every 12 to 16 weeks for routine cut maintenance. This breaks down to about every 3 to 4 months, so you’re only visiting the salon about 3 to 4 times a year. Although this varies depending on the individual, you’re roughly looking at < $1,000 a year to maintain the overall health of your hair.”
You likely spent more money faithfully visiting the salon every 2 weeks when you had relaxed hair. Or even on products when you first went natural, seeking something that would “work” on your tight curls + natural hair.
Partnering with a skilled curl artist is an investment that actually ends up being less money out of your pocket a year, a more reliant routine salon schedule, and less overall maintenance.
Let’s also not neglect to mention the amount of hair care education you’ll receive during your salon appointment that is specifically tailored to you and your individual hair needs.
A Cut Is a Cut
We know cutting can be a cutting can be a very touchy subject when it comes to black women and our hair. We have a multitude of horror stories as it relates to sitting in a stylist’s chair and not getting what we want. Many of us have had the experience of going in for just a slight “trim” and leaving feeling like the stylist scalped us.
Behind the chair, it’s not unusual for us to see folks who have gone three to five years without a haircut. This results in reduced length retention, breakage, split ends, which can lead to the need for a drastic big chop.
“Now why as naturals do we still need regular haircuts when we’re not doing a ton of manipulation or heat styling the hair? The reason why is because hair is a fabric. Your hair may be more like wool or may be more like silk but it’s all fabric. ”
The ends are the oldest part of the hair, so it is imperative that we are doing maintenance cuts to thwart any frayed ends from spreading up the hair strand.
We’re going to put this out there to set things straight. A cut is the cut is a cut. There is no such thing as a trim. Fight us if you want to. Now as a consumer, you may see the word trim as a service offered by some stylists. This is because some stylists make a distinction of the amount of hair being cut either trying to help you to be comfortable with getting a cut or they are devaluing the services they provide.
When seen on a salon/stylist menu a “trim” is often described at under two inches of hair removed. Regardless of the amount of hair being removed, a proper cut is done using the same techniques whether you’re taking off a half an inch or 12 inches.
Choosing a Professional Stylist
In years past we have heavily relied on the recommendations shared with us by close friends, family, associates or a stranger with stunning hair. These days, with the help of technology, finding a stylist has become a little bit easier. With the availability of smartphones, tablets and laptops our accessibility to recommendations has expanded. Our smart phones and devices can be used to google or even do a hashtag search inside of apps like Instagram or Tik Tok.
With the available options and choices, we now have the task of choosing someone to partner with. Partnering with the right professional can make or break the overall state and condition of your hair. This is precisely why choosing the appropriate professional for the job of taking care of your hair is so important!
When choosing a professional stylist it’s important that you:
Narrow down how you would like to show up in the world. This is where you decide how you would like to wear your hair. We must point out if you’re someone who likes to switch it up, you may not be able to find a stylist who does it all. For the girl who likes to switch it up it this may mean having 2-3 different stylists for the styles you may like to rock. For example, you may find a stylist who can cut but doesn’t color or who colors but doesn’t cut. There are a number of different scenarios that would require you to visit a different stylist for a specific hairstyle, but you get the point?
Research, research, research. Once you have narrowed down a few options you then must comb their social pages and websites to assure that their work resonates with how you want to see yourself. We have access to far too much technology to miss this important step.
Treat your first appointment like a first date. Give yourself, your hair and the stylist you have decided to work with grace. First time appointments are the very first time you all are getting together. It’s also the very first time this stylist and their hands are getting into your hair.
Communicate; Using your words. Stylists are not mind readers and are unable to anticipate your every need, want or desire. Remember this is a partnership and it’s also your hair and your money. Please, please, please be open to expressing when something about your service was less than pleasing. Again, we have far too much technology available to skip over sharing our disappointments with our stylists.
Be Patient! Be realistic about the hair you brought to the salon. Remember how long you’ve been natural, along with how long you’ve been holding it down all on your own. Give your stylist time to get you through this leg of your journey and refer back to #4 as often as needed.
Want to be able to seamlessly manage your natural hair and find well versed professionals to help you care for it? We cover all the natural hair care fundamentals and more in our consumer education platform, The SeeSomeCurls Visual Library.
Our 1.1K+ community of tight curl + naturals are shaving more than 50% of time off their wash day, being showered left and right with hair compliments, and are receiving direct support of a very encouraging community of tight curlies + naturals who have been exactly where you are.
