Rev. Billy's Chop Shop — Attraction in Jefferson Township

Cool name, but WARNING WARNING WARNING (Seriously: big warning) READ THE REVIEWS on Chop Shop. Don't let this happen to you.

This salon is in my 70-some-year-old mother's Ravenswood neighborhood, and I heard my mother talking about how excited she was to try them out. So I called them up and left a credit under my mother's name, so she could treat herself to a birthday visit.

When my mother went in for her birthday appointment, even though she'd had a consultation and confirmed what she wanted done over the phone, the stylist Marisha couldn't understand what my mother wanted, and when my mother asked for help from the receptionist who set up the appointment, she didn't want to get involved. Marisha then said she was cancelling the appointment, and that my mother needed another consultation, even though she had already had one, and just wanted what was decided, with the exception of the haircut. My mother was told that the salon was keeping all the money on her account, "because the appointment was cancelled without notice."

My mother didn't want the appointment cancelled, and when she protested, she was kicked out of the salon and told she was banned.

What??? My mother is a gorgeous and super smart person, a retired university professor with all her wits about her. She had a rough morning that day, but there was obviously a misunderstanding here that the salon couldn't or wouldn't work out, treating my mother like some irrational person, fully gaslighting her. The salon owner even phoned me afterwards, saying he was calling because he was "concerned" about my mother, that she'd entered the salon "wobbly," been "nasty" to his stylists, and to confirm that he was keeping the gift money I'd put on her account.

The salon says in their response to other disgruntled customers in google reviews: "We won't ever stop exploring options to make you happy unless you will not extend us that courtesy."

...They didn't extend my mother that courtesy. She wasn't drunk, she wasn't abusive. The salon owner came in at the end of the situation and didn't try to diffuse anything. My mother's happiness was not a consideration. She says she was even trying to apologise for whatever they thought she'd done, as things got more out of hand.

The salon also says: "Confrontation, and anger are the antithesis."

If a customer is feeling misunderstood and starting to get frustrated and even a little angry, and this is viewed as confrontation and simply not tolerated at Rev. Billy's, then I wonder how many more customers have experienced this kind of thing?

This sounds like it was a very frustrating situation for everyone, but ended up in my mother being gaslighted by the salon and theft of the gift money I sent to her. I've reported this to my credit card company as a failure to provide services.

Absolute lowest rating for this salon, for their abhorrent communication skills, poor customer practices, as well as the bad haircut my mother got from Marisha at her previous appointment. ...

• Response to management*

To be called a liar on how long I have visited your facility shows the integrity of this establishment.

Yes, I moved back to Chicago in the fall of 2022 and started seeing Rachel again at your new location on Montrose earlier this year. I moved away from Chicago in 2015 and had visited your old location in Lincoln Square on Lincoln Ave south of Montrose, not Eastwood as I had thought earlier. (Regardless, you are going to dig in your heels and continue to be a bully and call me a liar so I will leave it at that.)

In fact when I first returned to your salon earlier this year your receptionist and Rachel said I looked familiar and I noted everything above on how it had been awhile since I had been to the salon.

Yes. I was upset and while I was hanging up vented my frustrations by name calling with $110 being taken from me and no respect for the fact your stylist cancelled on me after waiting three months for an appointment the week before.

I apologize for that and to your receptionist. I had food poisoning and wasn’t feeling well and let my anger get the better of me in that moment, but I made no verbal threats to any of your employees over the phone or on social media. That is an unfair and untrue accusation.

I also hope your facility finds a positive path forward by treating your clients with respect and understanding and by not bullying them as well. You made no effort to resolve this issue other than taking my money and writing a long response making assumptions without the facts.

Have been going here to see Rachel on and off for over a decade, I lived out of state for awhile. Rachel is awesome, this review is not about her. Last week I had an appointment I waited 3 months for and was called a couple of hours beforehand by the salon to reschedule because Rachel had to go home sick. My appointment was rescheduled for today and I woke up this morning not feeling well so I called to reschedule. I understand their cancellation policy but thought they'd let me reschedule at least without being charged $110. I was not straight up cancelling the appointment just rescheduling. With their still strict Covid policies one would think they'd be understanding and not want someone to come into their salon not feeling well, but evidently they prefer to do a money grab and lose...

I’ve been to Rev Billy’s Chop Shop a dozen times and loved the stylists, but the management is a mess. They’ve canceled on me multiple tomes (three or four?), often within 24 hours, and I’ve always been understanding—stylists were sick, things happen, no biggie. But when I had to cancel with more than 24 hours’ notice because my kid was sick, they hit me with a cancellation fee. Turns out, they’d updated their policy to require 36 hours’ notice—fine, their prerogative—but they never communicated this change.

Fees are no big deal. It’s part of running a business, and policies are policies. But given the fact that I had been cancelled on by them a few times, I felt it was reasonable to ask for some flexibility. Again fees are totally fair, but how management handles moments when a client asks about flexibility speaks volumes about you as a business. In this case, what it said was “bad management.”

Instead of addressing the issue, they told me they wouldn’t work with me anymore. Apparently, offering feedback on their poorly executed policies crossed the line for them. I wasn’t rude, but I was direct—because honestly, if your cancellation policy is about respecting time, shouldn’t that respect go both ways?

It’s disappointing because I love to support small businesses, but this level of client-unfriendly behavior and inability to take constructive criticism is hard to overlook. If you value fair and professional treatment, I’d suggest taking your...