Salon 554 — Local services in Salem

In response to the owners reply:

I’m disappointed but not surprised by this defensive and misleading response. I stand by every word of my review because it reflects my experience I struggle with confrontation due to a real and documented disability, which is why I had an advocate on the call with me. Your staff was not shouted at until Sara became hostile the moment she joined, refused to listen, and ultimately hung up when I tried to calmly explain my concerns. That’s not professionalism—that’s avoidance and deflection. Second, to publicly diminish and dismiss someone’s disability as a “lack of emotional regulation” is not only inappropriate—it’s ableist, cruel, and discriminatory. You are not a medical professional, and that statement speaks volumes about the culture of your business. I did not “refuse” your offer—I explained that paying more to correct a service that was done incorrectly the first time is unacceptable. Your stylist admitted she misunderstood my request and didn’t clarify key details. The resulting color was nearly black, not the dimensional blue I was quoted $490 for. Your tone doesn't change the fact that I left your salon in tears, breaking out in a rash, and feeling deeply disrespected. You can try to rewrite the story all you want, but my review speaks for itself—and so do the photos of the final result and the physical reaction I had. Your aggressive public response only proves why I felt so unsafe speaking directly with you.

One of the most emotionally exhausting and disappointing salon experiences I’ve ever had. After 20+ years of avoiding salons due to bad experiences, I gave Salon 554 a chance. I brought a clear photo of the bold, dimensional dark blue I wanted. I was upfront about my sensitive skin, previous trauma at salons, and how nervous I was. The stylist was kind, and I hold no ill will toward her—but the result was nothing like what I asked for. She was juggling three haircut clients during my appointment, leaving me sitting for long periods with product in my hair. I was there from 2:21 PM to 5:45 PM. The color turned out nearly black, flat, and lacked any vibrancy. The stylist later admitted she misunderstood my request and failed to clarify my vision. I was quoted $490 for the look in the photo—what I got didn’t even come close. I was still charged $488.59, including an unexplained surcharge, with no breakdown provided. I was offered to come back—but would still need to pay more to fix it. That alone was frustrating, but what happened next made it worse. After the appointment, I was in tears. Because of my disability and difficulty handling conflict, my friend (who recommended the salon) helped advocate for me during a follow-up call. The stylist acknowledged the miscommunication. But when the owner, Sara, joined the call, everything unraveled. Sara was immediately hostile, dismissive, and accused us of “playing games.” When I mentioned my disability, she said, “You came in and talked to us just fine.” That was beyond unprofessional—it was ableist and cruel. She then hung up on us. I didn’t come in angry. I wasn’t even asking for a refund at first. I just wanted to feel heard and maybe find a solution. But instead, I left feeling dismissed, disrespected, and physically unwell—I'm now breaking out in a rash on my ears and hairline from the products used, despite telling them about my sensitive skin. If you’re disabled, neurodivergent, or sensitive in any way, please be cautious. What should’ve been a healing self-care experience became a nightmare. There was no accountability, no empathy, and zero care for client trust or comfort.

Photos 1: A side-by-side collage showing what I asked for vs. what I received. Photos 2: A comparison of how this stylist did color on another client versus how mine turned out—it looks more like a “before” photo than the vibrant result I paid for. Photos 3: Images of the rash and hives I developed after the appointment, despite telling the salon I have very...

I was charged $85 for a trim that took 15 minutes. Woman at the front was rude, I got the vibe that for whatever reason I was not welcome here

Edit: wow I am genuinely disgusted with the manner in which my complaint was addressed, so I’m going to provide a more in depth review.

I walked in the door and was greeted awkwardly by the woman at the front who seemed to be eyeing me up and down and proceeded to hand me a sticky note to write my name down on and stand around with no further instruction

When I got to my chair I told my stylist (Michelle) how I wanted my hair trimmed. She did a decent job aside from cutting my neck while hacking away at my hair with an electric razor (that I was told she “hasn’t used before?) and even skimming down the hair on the back of my neck to which I now have a stubble lol. It was an okay haircut and I’m not very picky. I like the way my trim turned out although I’ve received better service from the teenage students at aveda institute in Portland for $15. Michelle was friendly and got the job done, but with a few bumps in the road that I’m not very pleased about.

I maintained a polite and kind composure and even tipped generously although I was not very satisfied with the professionalism of the business and I felt uncomfortable and unwelcome as someone from out of town who does not frequent this salon. I think it’s both odd and a bit pathetic to attempt to gaslight their customers by saying I was “never in the salon”. I was in fact in the salon and paid for service. I was never emailed my promised receipt but I do have the charge on my card history.

I was never quoted a price, I called ahead and asked if they could slide me in for a trim. I do not think it was worth $80 but it is what it is. I think that the responder of my review assumed that it was written by my mother, which is odd considering my name is attached to it. Maybe they assumed that me, a 21 year old girl would not stand up for myself. As someone who has worked in the service industry, a complaint is typically handled more professionally than this with a “what can we do to fix this?” point of view. I’m disgusted with the immaturity of this establishment and I certainly would not recommend getting your hair cut here. I’ve heard of various stylists leaving this business because of the rudeness and unprofessionalism exhibited here by grown women.

If you’re looking for a good salon in Salem I recommend Red Door...

Absolutely incredible group of people that work here! Let me share my experience...It's important to know first I have very very long hair and also The stylist I saw the first time does not work there anymore!! I'm only sharing the bad because it emphasizes the good so much more. She attempted and said she was capable of what i wanted but clearly wasnt...It was not even close to what I wanted, it was the wrong color, it was patchy color, fully unfinished job. It was rushed through and corners cut. I left feeling miserable and crying...my fiance paid good money for it as a birthday present to me and it was worse then when I went in. I received a call the next day from the salon wanting to check in, I debated if should call back or just ignore. I sent an email explaining what had happened and let me say this... The salon owner and employees took hold of it immediately and made it more then right! I didn't want actions of 1 to determine my view on the entire place. They called me and got me in asap to fix it, they listened, asked questions and understood that a woman's hair is such an important part of us. They took pride in their salon and showing what they really are about. First of all Katie is a magician with color, talented, precise and she made sure to really understand what I wanted and she did a perfect job! Teamwork from Jean, they worked great together, communicated and both made sure I was taken care of! Another person style it, the owner came directly to me and apologized but also showed true care and compassion for everything. Deb the receptionist had great communication with me through everything. I walked out of there with the hair I've wanted for 5 years and noone could ever do it... Salon 554 did it perfectly!! I will recommend every person here, I will be back. They are professional, kind, caring, passionate and genuinely care about you feeling the best you can! The fact that they handled my poor experience so well makes me that much more willing to recommend them because some businesses wouldn't do that, it shows a level of professionalism. I'm so grateful and happy and feel gorgeous again! I'm including pictures of my hair before I went there, another of the poor job done and 3rd the after, showing the incredible job...