Justifying the price of hairdressers in Germany

This is not a rant, more of a question of how hairdressers justify their prices in Germany. I know the topic has been done to death but this is another perspective.

I went last week looking to get my hair cut in Trudering and visited three empty establishments, all of which told me I needed an appointment. I ended up making an appointment with the one that could "fit me in" the earliest and stipulated that all I required was a cut which they said was no problem. In the course of the last week I passed each of these hairdressers on several occasions, each time, each one of them was deserted apart from the staff and I wondered how they could survive. Today I found out!

When I arrived it was empty apart from the three girls that worked there. I was lead to a wash basin. I explained that I only wanted a cut but was told that the price was the same whether I had a wash or not. So the stylist washed my hair.

The other two employees pretend to be busy, but I know they are watching as I blush furiously. Next she dresses me in a number of contraptions that make me look as if I am going to play American football and asks me if I want a coffee. I accept because again it is included in the price. The only problem is that whatever she has dressed me in makes it impossible for me to move my arms to lift the cup of coffee and one of the other staff has to hand it to me. By this stage I am beginning to shake with embarrassment and cannot help but slurp as I drink the coffee, which is a great source of amusement to my attendees.

Thankfully the cut is quick but I notice that very little hair has been removed as a result of the process. At this stage I do not care and all I want to do is to get out of the place. But my ordeal is not over. The stylist insists on washing my hair once more before asking if I want a head massage which she maintains is "sehr schön". I forgo the head massage and pray that the blowdry will be quick and painless.

Eventually, it is over and the only thing I have to do to hasten my escape is pay up. "Siebenzwanzig" says the stylist and I think this is very cheap and hand her twenty saying "Zehn!" But no she repeats "Siebenundzwanzig!" and I end up paying thirty just to get out of there without further humiliation. From foot in the door to foot out the door it has been the longest twenty five minutes of my life and I have paid thirty Euro for the privilege. Not only that they have given me a stamped coupon which explains that my twelfth visit would be free. Considering I get my hair cut every six months, that would be in November 2012.

I now resemble Adolf Hitler, without the moustache. I saw a number of the neighbours making half hearted Gerrman salutes as I passed by. On closer examination one sideburn is an inch longer than the other. I knew my head was not entirely symmetrical but I did not think it was that lopsided. My German flatmate thinks it is wonderful and that I may well start a trend.

My four quid at the barbers or tenner at the hairdressers, if I really wanted to splash out, seems a lifetime away.

Sorry to laugh topcat but that was hilarious. Must admit when I first arrived in Germany it took me ages to find a decent hairdresser, they always seemed to think a trim meant short back and sides. I remember one particular time when I had my highlights and I got home and looked in the mirror and they had a green tinge to them. I went back and the first person that looked at them said she couldn't notice, so I asked her if she was colour blind. After having 5 different people look at it the last said, 'oh yes I can see it but only in the light'...what the bloody hell was I meant to do, only go out after dark, dozy mare. I got them to repair it but obviously never went their again.

welcome to germany... I have yet to get a decent haircut here. oh how I miss the $10, walk-ins only, barbers of home!

Topcat its a shame you dont live near me. I am a hairdresser and i only charge €15 for a cut and blowdry and i will also give you a free coffee, but better still as i Do hair at home, a glass of wine is even better.

Chicago, there's a new place in Munich on Schellingstr., about 2 blocks from Üniversität U-bahn. €10 for a wash and cut, walk-ins welcome. Open from early morning until 8pm I believe.

There is also a hair cutting place in the Munich Riem Arcadien (Not to far from Truderring) They have won many contests in DE/EU for there cuts and quality.. Check'em out there on the top floor...

In the area around the Munich Hauptbahnhof you can get a haircut for around €5 in some turkish barber shops... not sure on the coffee though and it looks more like you tripped into some lawn-mower.

go to Munich HBF and pay 6 euros.

why were you embarassed? sounds to me like they should be the embarassed ones.

at Munich-Harras there is a place where you can get a cut for 8€. However dont expect quality.

Now that more of those blow-dry-yourself places are opening, maybe the prices in the salons will come down.

I personally would not recommend that you spend 6 euro on a bad haircut, though. Maybe it's just me, but I think a good haircut is more important than what you're wearing. You can change your clothes, but you've got to wear that haircut every day till it grows out.

Hopefully you'll be able to find a happy medium. I would recommend my stylist, but she charges men 25% more than the place you went.

nice story, topcat.

I hate those places that charge you according to the lenth of your hair. Surely long hair can't be THAT much more difficult to cut than short hair. We were out once and saw a sign for a salon that had three price categories: small, medium and large.

It's mostly to do with the hair products JennyL - they have to use much more shampoo, conditioner and styling (shine spray, hairspray whatever) if your hair's longer, and these professional hair products don't come cheap, it just adds up.

funny story, enjoyed it!

three price categories: small, medium and large... is that for different sized heads?

But there seem to be loads of 10 Euro a cut hairdressers opening, theres a chain of them around, at least here in Rhein-Main region.

And alot of places still charge for the mousse, spray and such- I got charged 1.50 per at a salon last year, after I paid 48 Euro for the cut!
Sorry, but that is just not right, they use the same amount of shampoo on short or long hair- one or 2 squirts, maybe more conditioner, but to justify a 10 Euro difference.

I've never heard of that Carm, that's silly! I hope you complained

I never pay more than about 13 Euros (as I did on monday) and that included washing. The cheapest haircut I ever had was 8 Australian dollars including washing, but it´s not worth flying to Australia just for a haircut.

Well, you are almost a slap-head, arent you?

Yep, went in for a cut and colour, came out with a 120 Euro bill, I did tell them my displeasure, and I have never gone back- just goes to show you cannot trust anything in the South (the shop was in Fürstenried).

Good grief... You guys need to look around. That's like shopping for food at Harrods and complaining that those costs are typical for the UK. There are plenty of places where you can walk in and wait for a cut without making an appointment (at least up here). A decent dry cut costs me €10 and most places are open 08:00-20:00, 6 days a week. There are also plenty of freelancers who will come to your home and they're usually also pretty cheap - certainly much cheaper than a 'Salon'. Quick rule of thumb - if you see the word 'Salon' anywhere on the premises you know it's going to cost €€€€s.

ok here is my story. i went to the place at the hauptbahnhof right beside the bayern munich fan shop and the first question i asked the lady was english? thank god she spoke english and she said you will have to wait. so i took a seat and was watching this old guy cutting someone's hair. He cut the back side and the sides really short and kept the top comparatively much longer. i thought ok maybe the guy wanted it like that. after he was done with him, the person waiting before me went and sat down. AND HE STARTED DOING THE SAME THING TO HIM!!! i got scared shitless and went to the lady and said i have an appointment at marienplatz with someone. i will be right back and got my ass out of there ASAP!!! bottom line, i am too damn scared to get a haircut here and i might just let it grow till i go back home. even some of the hairdresser's hairdos scare the living daylight out of me.

If they spoke English why didn't you just tell them want you wanted? The other guys may have been regulars and liked their hair like that.

I have a local hairdresser just around the corner from where I live and although the old chap who owns the place does a reasonable job, he is also quite expensive at €20 a time.
OK, so this includes wash and blow dry, but I still find that rather on the expensive side.
The result; I go there far less frequently than I used to in the UK.

the woman at the counter spoke english, i never got a chance to talk to the barber. i ran away before i could. hehe.

@Adi: Munich is an entirely different kettle of fish from Hamburg.

I know some guys from Hamburg who are always complaining about hair cuts/prices in Munich.

There is a new haridresser by my flat in Swabbing on Hohenzollerstr. Think that is the spelling. Anyhow, chain from the north of Germany. The cuts of the people who work there is a bit off-putting as it is Urban Hair Design. But the place is fantastic. They are a new shop and I got my hair, cut, colored, washed and styled for $40 Euro. The cut itself is only 5 euro due to the special they have for their opening. And they do a really good job. The show they put on while cutting your hair is quite impressive, flinging the scissors round their fingers like they are in a western film. I came out of there quite impressed and releived that my hair wasnt in 4 different colors with half a mullet on one side and shaved on the other side as the hairdressers was. They are first come first serve. So when you walk in they tell you when they can cut your hair. Defintely that day though. The earlier you get in there the better as they are busy.

I was 16 and went to the local hairdressers in my home town. As I was waiting, Julie, a girl I fancied (and who new it) walked past me wearing a barbers apron. 'Hey Julie', I said. 'What are you doing here?'
'Hiya! I've just started my apprenticeship as a hairdresser. Started two weeks ago.' She smiled.
'Ah, cool. You gonna do my hair?'
'Sure, if Tony lets me. I can start at least.'
My turn comes around and I sit in the chair. Julie wraps the apron thingy around me and I stare at the price list.
'So what do you want doing then?' She says, poised to squirt my head with a squirty bottle.
'Yeah, uh - a blow job please.'
Quiet.
'Sorry. What did you say?'
Tony's hairdrier goes still.
'A blow job please.'
I notice the look on her face; glance over at Tony. He has a sentence on his lips but says nothing. The old guy in front of tony stares at me with an eyebrow raised. Whats wrong? The penny drops.
Shit!
'Blow and cut! I meant a blow and cut...'

Have to laugh... sorry!! But if it's any consolation my first time here was similar.

Had arrived in Germany with little German and a few months had passed. At this stage my hair was crazy, almost affro - I would usually have it trimmed on the back with a blade 2 or 3 and short on top! The only reason I hadn't gone sooner was I was afraid of coming out looking like a disaster, especially when you just look around at some the Germans displays!

So myself and my friend plucked up the courage to go after one of our German classes. We picked somewhere that was close by and looked OK which just happened to be across from the Haupbahnhof in Frankfurt ah, hindsight! With my poor German I tried to explain that I would like a blade 3 around the sides and back and blend it up, short on top and thin it out a bit --- really should have kept it simple and just said short all over! What a disaster, can't even describe what I looked like but it was worse than anything you would ever see a German with. It was short on top and uneven around the sides and back and there was even a step in it. 40DM--- bloody hell I thought, but at least my friends looked just as bad.

So off home we went on the s-bahn with our heads bowed in shame, blushing to all the snickering and finger pointing. Our mates burst out laughing when they saw us. It was so bad that we couldn't do anything with it so we borrowed a friends razor and shaved our heads!

Many years later and I'm now in Hamburg and still looking for a good hairdresser. I'm always shi**in it every time I have to go. Don't know what the obsession is with hairdressers here is but it looks like anyone can open one. I walk 6 mins to the u-bahn every morning/evening to work and I pass 6 hairdressers!! Not easy find a good one!

Now that takes some doing!

The last German I let near my hair must have trained on one of those meat blocks you get kebabs off. Never again. I just wait until I go home, now, and get it done there.

Hi all

I know how all of you are feeling about hairdressers, I have lived in Frankfurt for nearly 3 months now and back in the UK I could get a haircut for £7-9 but a couple of weeks after i got here my hair needed cutting again soooo... I went on my own a non German speaker only halo, danke and Bitte into frankfurt city and looking for a hairdresser that spoke english and wasnt expensive like toni & guy, I found 2, one of which the lady didnt speak english but her assistant did but she got nasty when I couldnt explain how many inches I wanted of so she showed me the door and the other just shut the door in my face.:-0

I came back home quiet upset and there is a hairdresses around the corner from where I live, I took my partner who speaks a little German and managed to get a appointment, again like all the hairdressers a Wash, cut and blow dry and with a coffee available, and it cost me 38 euros i was very pleased with what she had done and wouldnt mind going back there when i feel i need pampering but 38 euros is a bit steep.

Im pretty sure no-one can simply open one here. I believe to be a hairdresser you have to train for 2 or 3 years get your diploma, (think its one of the most popular "Berufsausbildungen" of all). Plus to set up on your own you probably need some sort of license from the chamber of commerce, or hairdressers "Innungen" (Guild) or whatever.

All the more surprising then that peoples experiences of german hairdressers are such horror.. or maybe its just a cultural difference somewhere along the line.

you have to remember that Hairdressing is in the 'berufschule', so these are the kids that took any course because they had to, and they couldn't get into Real Schule or Gymansium.
most don't want to work or learn anymore- heck they have their abschluß, so why?

I'll cut anybody's hair. No faffing around deciding on a style, you won't have much to dry afterwards and you get a free espresso.

Hats are in this summer by the way.

On a serious note I'll call bull on your post Carm. I don't think anybody who wants to avoid work picks hairdressing as a career, it's picked by people who actually wanted to do it.

That's programmers you're thinking of.

And if you want to own your own salon, you have to get a further certification as a "Meister."

I notice that so far nobody has posted that they get a great haircut for cheap.

No I don't think so, they need to pick a career, so, oh, great hairdressing, thinking all the postives, but then when they see its acutally work, standing all day, and need retraining, those are the people working in these cheap shops. Careers are never as glamourous as the thoughts of those freshly entering the field.

I did!

Ok - it was a place advertising 14 euros for women and then they did the typical nickle and dime you with 2 euros for conditioner, 2 euros for gel, (3 euros for comb rental, 50 cents for water and 50 cents for shampoo, or at least that's what it felt like ) and ended up paying 28 euros.

But I got a great cut, a new style and I get lots of complements on it (IF I straighten it - it doesn't work well with my curly hair days).

Will you go back there, DDBug?

To me, 28 euro is pretty cheap, but I doubt the others on this thread would agree.

If you want a cheap hairdresser do it yourself.

Cutting hair isn't rocket science!

Maybe not, but how do you do the back?

Yeah - I'll probably go back. Until I get bored of her hair cutting skills or the styles she gives me (or they go out of business).

After all - it's hair. It grows. I have only had one haircut that was so bad it took months to grow out because it was so short.

With a mirror. Admittedly a little dexterity is required.

funny, I will go longer between cuts, but I will not scrimp on my hair. I found a good salon, and it costs me 47 Euro for a cut, but the service is worth it IMO.

men complain about the hairdressers prices make me laugh considering they always get the cheapest haricuts on the price list ? i don't want to know how much money i had to pay extra because i have long hair.

I don't mind paying the extra if it's worth it. At the moment I'm getting my hair cut for €20, nothing spectacular but not a disaster either and an OK price by German standards. When I was in Frankfurt I was paying Tony and Guy around €45 but I think I got good value out of that. Unfortunately there is no Tony and Guy here in Hamburg but I'm on the lookout for a good hairdresser!
But I have to wonder about some of the places. For people who are supposed to be trained professionals they are very amateur in their results. My mother used to give me better haircuts when I was a kid than some of these places... ah those photos from back then

One of the many joys of being a man
Do you know any guy that would pay that amount for a little trim? We complain when we have to pay nearly €30 so it's no wonder so many of us have shaved heads - albeit some are naturally shaved

... but yeah I agree with you on that. I've seen some of my friends go in and just get the split ends trimmed off and get charged double what I get charged...

I bought a buzz clipper at Media Markt and have done my own for a few years.

My friend asked if I did it myself and I said yeah, and then we did like 7 minutes of the "no way, yes way" game, before he saw I wouldn't relent, then he caved.

Silly guy! Of course I do it myself! Carlos down the street always got it wrong, so that's when I started.

Note: After cutting, I always reward myself for the savings then afterwards with a lunch at the Thai buffet, or maybe by baking a loaf of banana bread. (Gawd! Does banana have an "e"? And if not, why?)

Anyway, Carlos, I could do a better job on you than you on me!

Just one question Menudo:

Is that an example of your work in your profile?

Ricky Martin's got a better friseur than that!!

If he cut Ricky Martin's hair, then yes...