I recently had a new client come into the salon who was having her hair coloured professionally for the first time in her life after years of home colouring. I asked her why she’d always chosen the DIY approach before and why she’d decided to come to the salon this time. Her answers were enlightening.

You see, I’d always assumed clients who coloured their own hair did it because it was cheaper for them, but for her, cost was not a factor. She explained that after watching a few Youtube tutorials, she was confident she could do an all-over colour just as well as her stylist, and she said she’d been very happy with her results. But now she wanted a different technique, something a little more complicated, and came to the salon as she felt she didn’t have the knowledge or the skills to achieve that look at home.

You can bet that people who rely on their looks for a living, like actress Emma Stone (left), would never dream of taking the home colour option, but it’s difficult to argue with someone who has been doing it her way for years and is happy with the results. It’s true, this client’s hair looked just about ok, though not fantastic, and she’d never had the kind of home colour disaster that is the other main reason die-hard home colourists call us asking for an emergency appointment. But as professional stylists and colour technicians, we have the knowledge and skills to make sure every client leaves the salon looking amazing, every time, even if they’ve had something as ‘simple’ as an all-over colour. We are inspired by current trends; education from manufacturers gives us the knowledge and confidence to know what products will be best suited for each individual client; continued investment in seminars and training courses gives us a strong foundation to develop new looks for our clients, allowing us to create bespoke colour to suit our clients’ individual needs.

So I had to disagree that this client’s home colour regime was as good as anything we can provide. I hope she can see that there is a difference and that this experience was as enlightening for her as it was for me. It is our skills and knowledge that keep our clients interested and loyal to our salon, so I also hope this first appointment will be the start of a long and beautiful relationship.