Seven Salon

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/11) */
[redacted] has scheduled 4 appointments with us in the last year and never showed up. She was then banned from scheduling but was successful on 5/23/15 with an alias "[redacted]". The guest came in with over processed bleached hair with...

3 inches of dark roots. She requested an overall dark base with caramel highlights. Our color specialist [redacted], explained that her hair was fairly compromised but her request was feasible. [redacted] and her assistant [redacted], checked in with the guest quite frequently to assure quality as we do with every guest. At the end of her service, the guest complimented [redacted] and raved about how much she loved it. The visit was actually pleasant until it was time to settle the bill. Upon reaching the front desk to pay, [redacted]'s attitude completely changed and told our assistant manager [redacted] that she hated her hair and it wasn't at all what she asked for. [redacted] offered a complimentary appointment for the following week to adjust her color to her liking. Upon scheduling the follow-up appointment, we again asked for compensation for the 5 hours of services she received $225. The guest refused to pay, we explained our policy and that payment is due at the completion of services rendered but we do guarantee our service for up to 2 weeks. [redacted] then informed us that she only had 1 form of payment with her, a pre-paid visa card. We ran the card and it had $1.63 of available funds. She said that it was too bad and thats all she had. [redacted] asked for an additional form of payment and remarked that maybe she didn't have the best intentions of paying if she didn't have any other form of payment on her. [redacted] then called a friend on her mobile phone that gave [redacted] a credit card number to process payment. The guest left unhappy with the situation and asked for the owner to contact her.
I, [redacted] co-owner of 77Salon Inc contacted the guest on Tuesday 5/26/15. I wanted to hear her side and try and resolve the situation. [redacted] explained how she was unhappy with her service and that our staff were racist and rude, and requested a full refund. I asked about her hair history, what salon she usually visits, how often she maintains her color etc. I told her I would like to see her hair in person and work on a compromise. She explained to me that the resolution was simple. Her analogy was: "when you eat at a restaurant and you don't like the food, it's free." We agreed to meet on Thursday 5/28 at 3pm at our Alameda location.
After speaking with [redacted], I called Grove Salon in Albany and spoke to the owner [redacted]. This is the salon the guest told me she visits frequently. I wanted to get her history of services and background, to understand how to proceed. I was informed that she believed that guest was a scam artist and they had a similar experience with her as well.
I then called [redacted] back and explained my concern about her intentions. She then started to make threats to trash our salons and to brutalize our manager [redacted] if we did not refund her money. She was yelling obscenities and made several threats against my staff. [redacted] made a serious threat of violence and remarked that she would show up at our Alameda location on Thursday 5/28 at 3pm and would refuse to leave until we refunded her money. I was forced to call my lawyer, [redacted] of [redacted] Law and get legal advice. I was advised to contact the local authorities. We filed a police report on 5/27/15 with Officer Haley at the Oakland Police Department RD number #[redacted]. The officer spoke to [redacted] and informed her to not contact the salon with threats any longer or we would be forced to file a restraining order.
Since the incident, we got 2 terrible yelp reviews making false accusations calling us racists ( both owners are of Asian/Hispanic decent), and an online client registration with obscenities.
In closing, [redacted] booked an appointment with a false name after she was banned from the salon. According to my staff, she received beautiful hair color as requested and the guest thanked [redacted] for doing such a great job after the service. I feel that her intent was to get a free service since she showed up at the salon with $1.63 and has a history of doing this. [redacted] made a threat of violence against our establishment and staff. In addition to the ongoing childish games. I do not feel her claim is valid.