Ulta Beauty — Local services in Grand Rapids

Update June 4th, Conclusion: Do not trust Ulta Salon with your hair for coloring or hair cut! My hair had extentensive damage. As for cutting hair very poor. Ulta holds my confidence with knowing make up and skin care, only. The follow up care To the credit of Ulta Ivanrest and 44th Street just had gone above and beyond to save my hair and truly stepped up to do right by me even more so when the manager of the CentePointe Mall location failed in all regards. The CentPointe Mall manager Brandi was very disrespectful towards the Ivanrest crew who stepped up to restore my hair. More time wasted with Brandi not conveying to the Ivanrest appointment was for comped restoritive treatment for the chemical damage to my hair that caused disruption and confusion for the Ivanrest location. More so, I am appalled Brandi implying I was sent to Ivanrest with suggestion I would not be welcome back to the Ulta Salon CenterPointe Mall as being on me. I was pleasant but advocated for myself. The Ulta Salon CenterPointe salon destroyed my hair. Only right they remedy and restore. I was scheduled with a unprepared unqualified stylist for the color appointment. Proven with what played out that day, duration of the appointment and damage to my hair. I specifically asked for highly skilled and fast stylist. I mistakenly trusted that is what I would recieve.The stylist admittedly not familiar with the color products or processing with color chemicals. I was completely in my right and very much respectful even with my hair being destroyed! Special call out to Christian of Ivanrest for his expertise, care and products! For stepping up and taking the lead in ensuring right was done by me. And for his having to deal with a very unprofessional manager Brandi from the other location while cleaning up her mess. Also shame on Brandy for gaslighting me with the Ulta Salon as if I was a difficult client. My hair was destroyed. I never was rude or disrespectful. But I absolutely was not going to dismiss. Only right for Ulta to whatever it takes to restore my hair at very least. It's at the expense of my hair and my time. I am physical disadvantage as someone who had sever accident post broken neck complications and this has caused me much pain! Hopefully, with restoritive treatments and provided products will save my hair. It's still questionable after so much damage from the eight hours plus of chemical processing. Christian fowards high-end customer service and high ended management and resolutions skill and knowledge. Do want to mention it was my experience with Troy the salon manager at Centerline as having good customer service and management skills. Unfortunately, in my opinion was hindered with having to cope with a unprofessional store manager who is nasty towards the clients and toxic towards the Ulta employees. I witnessed as I sat watching for the eight hours this manager forwarding a hostile and toxic work environment. Update, May 28, manager has me scheduled for color correction and restoritive treatment next week with highest level stylist. Conversation went ok. Suggestion for manager for future reference, try not to offer inept alternatives to save a buck. Make available what would be needed to correct the salon mistake. Try not gas lighting the client especially when I am being understanding and accommodating. Just seeking my hair to have decent outcome. I am the one put in a bad position. I will update with results. Hoping for good results. The problem May 27 Simple gray touch up and all over low/hi lights took over 8.5 hours. The exhausting amount of time flaired my neck cervicagia. My hair was chemically over processed resulting in fuzzy orange hair. I am allowing Ulta Salon an opportunity to hopefully color correct and restore hair next week. I was promised restoritive hair treatments and color correction at no cost to me, except for significant amount of my time and my hair. If Ulta Salon does right by me I will be sure to post. If they get petty...

This is my local Ulta and I would say for the most part about 90% of the time (which is amazing considering I feel as though we are in a real slump regarding customer service for at a minimum of 4 years) I get better than average service from the employees here. The store stays pretty clean and organized although I would like to mention the three or so other Ultas near me or loved ones I've visited are usually markedly cleaner and more organized. I was told that there are "large Ultas" and "small Ultas" mine being a small one. I guess this accounts for the lack of a few top brands that I woukd very much like to have near.

Like i said I do travel to a few different Ulta locations and this, my local one, is the least impressive. Major brands are missing from this location such as:

The ordinary Colourpop Holika Holika Nature's Republic Skinfood Sleek And a few more that are escaping my mind currently.

The THREE primary elements that make my local Ulta even worth the drive (because let's face it I could just wait until I visit a loved one and check out their Ulta or go online) are:

A. They carry two of my FAVORITE European brands: Essence and Catrice B. They provide me with the most extensive list of products from one of my all time favorite drugstore brands Physicians Formula C. Because they are local, smaller, and I am a skincare and makeup obsessed lady who finds these two things to be a creative outlet to help me maintain my sanity, they really do get to know their local customer base.

One note of caution: the very first time I went to this Ulta when first moving into the area I asked I sales associate (yes, given on the high end side of store) for some DRUGSTORE recommendations for some pretty basic cosmetics such as primer, foundation, consealer, ect.

The sales lady then legit directed me to one of their MOST EXPENSIVE foundation in the store (at this store it is Lancome, which I am positive is FABULOUS, but honey I asked for drugstore for a good reason!) Which did not sit well with me.

I then explained to the employee that I was recently divorced and a single mother and as nice as the product was the math was like this: ONE product that I needed and neglecting the others that make a full face for job interviews OR drugstore full face of needs which I....well...needed!

AGAIN! I was directed to ANOTHER high end product. Frustrated with the service I became more stern, dug in deep and let her know that I will not be talked into a product I cannot afford and would like a DRUGSTORE recommendation.

She then said to me she didn't know a lot about drugstore products and literally shrugged me off because I was no longer worth her time.

Since that initial interaction I will say although I did not say anything to the management I never saw her there again, but I cannot be certain if it was this isolated incident or of she was trained to direct me to products I specifically said I did not want and could not afford and then make me feel like I wasn't worth her time when I did not buy her upsell.

If you made it this far then congratulations! You are a true blue skincare and makeup obsessed human being and I can almost say with certainty that we would be best friends and would talk for hours upon hours of new releases, influencers, favorites, and dish recommendations to one another and spill tried and true makeup secrets we thought we would take to the grave with gorgeous painted faces :)

But seriously, I know this long, ridiculously long, long, review will not matter to most but to the few it does I hope this review finds you well and I'll see you in the aisles of Ulta searching and swatching for the next...

You could not pay me enough to ever have my hair cut at this location again! I went in hoping to get a a very simple a-line bob cut. I brought pictures of what I was hoping for but asked if the stylist thought it was a style that would work with my hair. (Which was just below the shoulder, straight hair) In retrospect, my first red flag should have been how briefly she actually looked at the pictures but it was a simple cut so I figured she really didn’t need to study it.

I have had my hair cut like this before so when she started sectioning and cutting my hair, I got a little worried. She acted like she had never cut hair before! No comparing the two sides, she cut my entire head by combing the hair straight down. Never pulling it up, cutting at different angles or any other typical things you see stylist do. When the front came out very uneven all she said was…”well that’s weird?” 😳 I asked her to bring together the two front pieces to check it rather than eyeballing it. After that, she turned the chair around so I wasn’t facing the mirror. That when I knew I was in trouble! When she was done she asked me if I wanted curls put in it before I even saw the finished product! I’m pretty confident she was trying to hide her mistake. When I finally was turned back around she had butchered my hair. There was no blending so I had 1-2in shelves cut into the hair, the bottom edge isn’t cut in a straight line along the cut. I specifically said I did not want a heavily stack bob, or any layers/face framing in the front. It’s practically a pixie in the back so even if I wanted to get it fixed I can’t because she chopped some of the sections up to the mid back of my head. (On only one side.) Neither side matches in layering or length. She didn’t check for long pieces tucked in. As soon I pointed out the horrendously blended cuts, she was going to keep cutting! I stopped her and told her no more but the damage is done. I’ve had better cuts by students than what she did. I knew I was about to cry and I couldn’t get out there fast enough so I paid as fast as I could and left. (I’m not the type to not pay but I will never step foot in that salon again!) I understand that one bad apple doesn’t represent the whole, however the other stylist who check me out was quite snarky when I refused to tip 20%. The whole experience was truly a nightmare. I may not be an unruly demanding client but there is no way she couldn’t tell I was struggling to hold back tears so it was unnecessary to act disgusted about a tip. DO NOT GO to...