Kiwi Beauty Salon — Local services in North Island

I have been a loyal customer since August 2017, visiting the salon every 3-4 weeks for SNS - maybe 5 weeks if I just had a full schedule but usually 3-4. Unfortunately, after today, I’ve realised this salon doesn’t value customer loyalty (and may not even know my name, which one might assume, after visiting regularly for over a year, they would know by now - however, many customers in and out so ok could understand named not being known, but surely they could see that I have been visiting regularly since 2017).

I understand and appreciate the new booking system, a $15 deposit due to customers who cancel last minute, hopefully it deters the practice of last minute cancellations as there is a financial consequence. What I do not appreciate is no consideration for a customer who has visited monthly since August 2017 to have even just one smidge of compassionate consideration.

I received news of an ill friend the night before my appointment the following day. I needed to help my ill friend the next day so immediately contacted the salon by FB messages (as was 9pm too late to call out of courtesy) to alert them that I needed to cancel due to an emergency and would like to reschedule. Besides the messaging I received being strangely worded - being told I couldn’t get a refund (at no point did I want a refund, I was hoping to transfer this deposit to a soonly booked appointment) it wasn’t 100 clear and I went to my email booking receipt to see if the policy was there and it wasn’t so I thought right, I’ll just mention this in the salon and see what they say).

Fast forward to today, after being asked what my name was when I went to go pay, I tried to explain the situation and showed them my messages from FB. They then said I could bring in a medical certificate. I’m sorry but asking a friend to get their hospital medical certificate to prove there was a legitimate emergency is a bit too far, actually I believe the entire medical certificate (even if it was just my own) as proof to a nail salon is a bit too far but that is not the issue I am complaining about. This is a friends medical certificate I would need to acquire and that sounds incompassionate and rude. While I do have the text messages from my friend contacting me about the emergency on the evening before my appointment, I wouldn’t even want to share those details with the business as that is an invasion of privacy to the other person and is just not ok.

The $15 loss is not a big loss to me, that isn’t my issue. What is upsetting and disappointing is the lack of awareness of being a loyal customer. It doesn’t seem that this salon values returning customers who have been with them for well over a year, and who has recommended many friends (and random women who have complemented me on my nails) to this salon.

While I do appreciate this business would like to mitigate potential financial loss due to last minute cancellations, as a loyal customer who has visited once a month since August 2017, I am disappointed in your staffs treatment of this particular circumstance. Due to this, I will no longer be returning to this salon and will stop recommending this business to friends.

UPDATE 24 Feb: have messaged them on Facebook after their reply, about 3 weeks ago, still no reply from the business to resolve the issue - just the response to this initial review with no action, just words....

I implore you not to get your lash extensions done here. Fabulash brows on Manners street or The Hi-lash lounge on Lambton Quay are a similar price point but far more trustworthy IMO. I get lash extensions semi-routinely and I can say for certain I’ve never had an experience like I did at Kiwi Beauty Salon. The process was painful. I’m certain something went wrong but the lash tech didn’t tell me she just kept apologising and saying this might hurt a bit before doing something I obviously couldn’t see. I think there must have been an issue with the glue as I understand sometimes there might have to be a lash unstuck but I experienced about 15 minutes of scraping and tugging. At points my right eye was held almost open as the tech kept using the little metal tool to try and scrape the glue. This is evidently the case as my right eye came out far more bloodshot than the left. This couldn’t have been from an allergic reaction as it’s localised to the part of the eye that was exposed. I’ve also never had reactions in the past. At the end of the service I couldn’t open my right eye as it was stuck shut. There was a further 5 minutes of pulling and scraping after this. I’ve never had an experience where after a set is done there has to be this much unsticking. My eyes watered so much from the tugging that I was full on crying when I finally opened my eyes for good. Again something that has never happened to me. Post appointment the glue build up is to the point where a different salon said they wouldn’t be comfortable removing these for me. It hurts to blink due to all the glue in the roots of my lashes and I can physically feel a hard line of glue on my right eye above the roots stuck to my actual eyelid. My god sister is a beautician and when I came home to ask her if I should be upset about the result she agreed I absolutely should be. It’s likely I will sustain damage to my natural lashes due to the glue at the roots. This was corroborated by the lash tech who I visited to try and get this set removed. Unless you’re a returning customer who’s had a positive experience here I really think you should consider going elsewhere. This isn’t about me not loving the set, it’s that I’ve likely sustained damage to my natural lashes. It’s too much money to spend at a place that has the capacity to be so careless. When I texted the salon to express my discomfort I asked that we discuss a refund. If this kind of outcome weren’t emblematic of their usual services I think they just would’ve said yes tbh as this is a pretty out there outcome. I can’t stress enough that this was a real issue. I’m not the type to complain and certainly not to leave a cranky review but I think people really should be aware of this. It’s so much money wasted and my natural lashes are likely pretty effed...

I've been to this salon before and have never had any problems so I was very excited to make a booking for my mum on Mothers Day for SNS extensions and lash/brow tints.

I was upset by the experience my mum had. What should have been a relaxing, pleasant experience for my mum turned into one where the staff were hostile, rude, gave my mum the silent treatment and my mum couldn't wait to get out of there.

I arrived with my mum to her appointment and confirmed that she was to get SNS extensions and a lash/brow tint. This is what I had booked online, and I had an email confirmation.

I left my mum at the salon and she then text me to say that they had just put SNS polish on and no extensions. She said to the technician that she meant to get extensions and was made to feel like it was all her fault. My mum has never had extensions before (this was such an exciting treat for her) so wasn't aware of the techniques or process.

When I asked one of the staff about it they keep saying "well SHE didn't tell me". . My biggest annoyance was that they were trying to blame it (very rudely) on my mum when in fact, I had said to the nail technician that she was getting SNS extensions AND it was what I booked - they made a mistake and didn't apologize and tried to shift the blame.

I would still recommended this salon but they messed up and shouldn't take it out on their customers. I know that their staff may be working long hours and be tired, but that is no way to treat a customer - they shouldn't leave...