small business owners across the Queen City are noticing an alarming Trend customers not showing up to their appointments so what might be an accident or the result of an unexpected emergency is actually costing businesses thousands of dollars a year in Lost Revenue so now many are just fed up and Queen City News Chief business correspondent Taylor young tonight explains how a wave of new policies could end up costing you walk into the William Henry Salon in Belmont On Any Given weekday mirrors
at nearly every turn will show the reflections of hair stylists and makeup artists deep in their craft I had to work at the it Salon just because the people were fabulous as the owner of one of the oldest salons in the area Jenny wood ring says their work speaks for itself over the years earning trust from clients that keep coming back and recently more new faces are looking back at themselves in chairs across the salon I've never seen the influx that we're currently seeing while bookings are co
nstant and each individual station for the most part is full more often these days a chair that should be filled is left unexpectedly empty it has always happened in our industry it's just happening more within the last year wood ring has notice a trend an uptick in customers booking an appointment only to leave their stylus high and dry in the service industry it's called a no-show and even though stylists are left waiting for their next appointment it's wasted time that's C costing them money
so it's it's it's just potentially whatever that service was is money out of the pocket and in this case it's money out of the pocket of The Stylist and that's how they live that's how we all live the exact impact of a no- show varies but say once a week a customer cancels on a $200 cut and color that's for no shows a month 48 over the span of a year adding up to $9,600 worth of missed Revenue when you have a business that is setting aside resources to prepare for and service a customer that tha
t presents a big problem for a small business Larry Shores is a marketing professor and consultant who like wood ring has spotted a rise in serial cancellations whether it's due to a change in Customer Loyalty the popularity of impersonal online booking platforms or a customer base that's simply forgetful the phenomenon is not just impacting stylus Personal Care hair salons medical appointments people cancelling the dentist people always cancel the dentist by the way because no one wants to go t
o the dentist when time is money the clock can only take so long until business owners start charging customers whether they show up or not websites for businesses across the Queen City now displaying detailed cancellation policies that vary in strictness a Charlotte Med Spa is charging customers a 50% service cost for no shows this hair salon requiring a deposit for those who Miss appointments a trauma specialist requiring a 36-hour notice for cancellations or a full service fee and so on and s
o forth it's wild I've seen it pop up more in Charlotte recently for some of the restaurants and I get it like when you think about it I mean everybody has to make money right the Better Business Bureau says even with the rise and cancellation policies across Charlotte its office has not received any consumer complaints against businesses but that doesn't mean that consumers aren't caught off guard by them some are even turning to their credit card company to dispute cancellation charges each po
licy is different and if um a business doesn't have a policy and they'd want to create one we would certainly advise them to seek legal guidance or legal counsel just to be sure that they are following any laws that their state might require so what are the legal parameters surrounding cancellation policies we spoke with several attorneys across the Queen City who say there really is no State Statute that identifies them however all agree that in order to prevent being taken to court by a consum
er who's fighting a fee business owners have to make it very clear what their policies are and how they plan to enforce them for some stylists that William Henry Salon charging a cancellation fee doesn't align with their beliefs I mean I personally think that things happen and so I would want someone to have Grace with me while Lauren eagle has had two no shows last week she chooses not to charge a deposit for bookings or a pen penalty for last minute cancellations I personally probably wouldn't
go back to that business in any aspect like whether it be nails or an esthetician or anything that I see outside of the hair world like because I just don't I would want the same thing done to me as I would do to others like the hair on her client's head she cuts her losses reporting in Belmont Taylor young Queen City [Music] news
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