Have you been to this barber?
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extracted from straits times forum.
Brother, you ask me to shave, I give you a shave
I went to a barber shop at Tiong Bahru Plaza for my hair cut on Tuesday.
The barber didn't ask me what hair style I wanted, so I said: ''Sorry sir, but can you shorten my hair and just flatten the sides slightly. As for the fringe sir, can you leave it at the same length and just layer it? Thanks.''
He heard me but I saw no reason why he sulked and gave me a cold stare. Before I knew it, he drove the shaver high up on one side of my head. I was stunned.
Only a thin layer of hair was left on the side of my face. On seeing this, I asked him politely, ''Sir, sorry but do you have to shave off so much? I said I want to flatten it slightly.''
The barber replied like a gangster. Tapping me rudely with the back of his hand on my shoulder, he shot back: ''Brother, there is no such thing as shave half flat. You ask me to shave, I give you a shave.'' With that, he smirked and continued to shave the other side of my hair. I knew it was too late to stop him, so I just sat there silently and stared into the mirror. As I heard the shaver near my ear, I felt rather ticklish and shivered a little.
The barber pushed my head down, tapped me and said sarcastically: ''Brother, stop moving. Do you know how difficult it is to cut if you move? A little scared?''
The other barbers laughed at me. I felt so humiliated. I couldn't control myself and felt like crying. I just looked down sadly and let him finish the haircut. Unexpectedly, the ticklish feeling came again and I shivered once more.
This time the barber said loudly: ''Brother, talking to you is like talking to a pile of rubbish, you know. Cannot get it one.'' Then he mumbled something like ''So stupid'', if I didn't hear him wrongly.
I was fuming. The other barbers just laughed their heads off.
When the barber worked on my fringe, he just trimmed it a little bit and said, ''There, you wanted me to leave it alone, so I don't touch lor.'
He did that on purpose. I had told him to leave it at the same length, but layer it. He didn't care and said his job was done. Unhappy at the incomplete job, I told him to cut my fringe. It didn't match the ugly sides because the barber had just ''styled'' it for me.
Tapping me rudely, harder this time, he said coolly: ''Brother, next time you want to cut, let others think for you. See, you don't trust me, I cannot help you. Your hair is cut already. I also cannot do anything about it.''
He didn't want to help me with my ugly haircut now. I said: ''Sir, can you just end the hair cut here? I don't want to trim it any further.''
I don't know why he suddenly changed his mind. He said: ''Since you want to change, okay I'll do for you; it's my job, I have to finish it.'' He picked up the scissors again and snipped away quickly at my hair and said even more sacarstically, ''There, new Armani hairstyle!''
The wide grin on his face told me that he did it on purpose. I could see his colleagues laughing again. When I mentioned that I needed an acceptable hairstyle for my upcoming O level examination, he laughed and said: ''Your hair not important; results more important, you know brother.'' Then he added: ''Why? Scared your girlfriend don't want you?' He laughed haughtily, tapping on my shoulder again.
Tolerating his rudeness and giving him some respect as an adult, I didn't complain much about it. He smirked and demanded $9 from me for the poor service and hair cut.
After I paid him, he said very rudely: ''If you want a haircut, go elsewhere lah. We don't need you, this kind of customer. So fussy.'' He glared at me.
I did not voice my dissatisfaction and yet the barber went overboard and asked me not to visit his shop again.
I want to tell you readers my story but I'm not trying to defame the shop. But if anyone can tolerate such poor customer service and rude behaviour such as 'shoulder tapping', please go ahead and give it a try.
My advice is, don't risk it. He could leave you in tears.
Lee Jian Hao -
if what he said is true then bad service is an understatement.
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If it's the 1 beside the Nail shop..
foga go there cut quite few times
so far no such treatment leh..the people there quite okie -
A complaint is no use if the shop isn't named. I think the writer has grounds for "defaming".Originally posted by dragg:I want to tell you readers my story but I'm not trying to defame the shop.
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what service standards!
he was the one who did wrong yet he blamed it on the customer -
Firstly both side are wrong.
wah lao eh,he is visiting a $9 barber,and i would assume it is the first time too.
He expect the barber to immediately know what he want?
Shorten my hair? Shorten by how much,want to say,say it in full mah.The barber shave until left 1 mm length also shorten right?
Flatten the side? he assume immediately the the barber know what that means?
Fringe,layer it? he also assume barber will know?
Common lah you are visiting a barber not a hair saloon stylist,you talk so chim of course you will be creating a chance for misunderstanding and result in the barber not being happy as he cannot understand it and maybe too embarassed to ask what does those stuff he just said means.
The barber is in the wrong too for such callous behavior just because he cannot understand the customer and do not bother to maybe even ask something first to clarify the situation. -
Just to add that service quality sometimes also depends on the customer.Do not everytime blame it on the service provider if you make it hard for him to do his job.
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True this barber is a "budget" shop and may not know fancy hairstyles.
However I believe a customer has a right to make requests or state his preference. There is no standard cut, no one-style-fits-all when it comes to hair. It's not like you're buying a book, select, pay and go.
If the barber was unable to understand the customer's preference, or unhappy about direction given, he should just tell the customer that he cannot cut for him, or doesn't want to cut for him, and not do his business. Rather than resort to rude behavior.
When it comes to service, there's always a risk of miscommunication and you may not get what you asked for. E.g. how short is short? How close is a close shave? However rudeness and bullying is entirely uncalled for.
As for this specific customer's attitude, it seems that he was polite throughout the transaction but we may never know if he gave a biased account. -
yes a customer always has the right to make requests and states preferences but the customer also has to do it in a way to try as much as possible to make it easy for the service provider to understand as he is the one who is in risk of being given a bad service.Here you do not see him doing that,so partly the fault lies in him tooOriginally posted by choco B:True this barber is a "budget" shop and may not know fancy hairstyles.
However I believe a customer has a right to make requests or state his preference. There is no standard cut, no one-style-fits-all when it comes to hair. It's not like you're buying a book, select, pay and go.
If the barber was unable to understand the customer's preference, or unhappy about direction given, he should just tell the customer that he cannot cut for him, or doesn't want to cut for him, and not do his business. Rather than resort to rude behavior.
When it comes to service, there's always a risk of miscommunication and you may not get what you asked for. E.g. how short is short? How close is a close shave? However rudeness and bullying is entirely uncalled for.
As for this specific customer's attitude, it seems that he was polite throughout the transaction but we may never know if he gave a biased account. -
the barber seems a bit billegerent.
wonder if there is any truth to it - the sarcastic remarks and insults. -
thats why i rather pay 30 bucks for a haircut even though my hairdresser is gay..
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I would have elbowed his face, luckily i did not go there
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perhaps an isolated case
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Damnit~ I definately hate this kinda service
If i'm the one who's there, i'm gonna make him pay for what he did! Especially for a guy who wants to prepare his hairstyle for 'O' levels!
Although i'll nver stepped into a barber and i think it's definately not for me coz my hair is the MOST important~.
But btw, if u wanna do ur hair nice, dun go to a barber, go for a hair stylist instead. Saving abit of money means paying ur pride + look now~ -
this one like zhong yi qi sian liddat with ru hua
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There are both sides to a coin.
Now, we've only heard one side of the story. It does sound like truly appalling service!
Wonder what the other side has to say though.
Hard to pass judgement based on just a one-sided account. -
That is true.
Usually service people do not resort to such hooligan behavior unless they are really pissed off with the person and can't control it. -
who say one.. the uncle ah beng barber shop near my neighbourhood quite nice hor, and not so chim chai. all like gangster like dat oso better than this moron.Originally posted by Aveme:Firstly both side are wrong.
wah lao eh,he is visiting a $9 barber,and i would assume it is the first time too.
He expect the barber to immediately know what he want?
Shorten my hair? Shorten by how much,want to say,say it in full mah.The barber shave until left 1 mm length also shorten right?
Flatten the side? he assume immediately the the barber know what that means?
Fringe,layer it? he also assume barber will know?
Common lah you are visiting a barber not a hair saloon stylist,you talk so chim of course you will be creating a chance for misunderstanding and result in the barber not being happy as he cannot understand it and maybe too embarassed to ask what does those stuff he just said means.
The barber is in the wrong too for such callous behavior just because he cannot understand the customer and do not bother to maybe even ask something first to clarify the situation.
and dats $7 only!! -
you already said your uncle ah beng barber is quite nice.Maybe he had learnt to control his temper well already?Originally posted by Ito_^:who say one.. the uncle ah beng barber shop near my neighbourhood quite nice hor, and not so chim chai. all like gangster like dat oso better than this moron.
and dats $7 only!!
Maybe in this case,this particular barber did not? Also this particular case,the customer did not speak in simple english enough for the barber to understand fully but is using hair stylist jargons.
Also like what Rhonda had said,this is a one side accusation,we do not know what really happen and whether this customer did anything else to provoke the barber until he is given such a treatment that even his fellow barber approve of it. -
than is it quite obvious his temper will get him into trouble any ways.Originally posted by Aveme:you already said your uncle ah beng barber is quite nice.Maybe he had learnt to control his temper well already?
Maybe in this case,this particular barber did not? Also this particular case,the customer did not speak in simple english enough for the barber to understand fully but is using hair stylist jargons.
Also like what Rhonda had said,this is a one side accusation,we do not know what really happen and whether this customer did anything else to provoke the barber until he is given such a treatment that even his fellow barber approve of it. -
ermm firstly we do not know if the barber has a bad temper or maybe he was pushed so hard that he really cannot stand it even if normally he had a nice temper and took it out on the customer.Originally posted by Ito_^:than is it quite obvious his temper will get him into trouble any ways.
I am sure you have seen case of nice people who suddenly just explode at some situation
we do not know the actual situation anyway so would not be good to judge him as a moron.