ComplaintsforDe'Jour Styles

• Initial Complaint

  02/25/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  She is an unlicensed nail tech charging astronomical prices with very low quality service. I contacted her multiple times because my nails keep popping off & she has not responded. I got my nails done exactly 7 days ago & 4 have popped off. 1 popped off literally 2 days after my appointment. She also has a no refund policy which is asinine considering she is not licensed, her nails are low ******** ***** prices are extremely high. I would like my $95 back in full. I have contacted her via text ******************** where I am met with a nonchalant attitude & a lack of options to rectify the situation. Also, she is working out of a home which is unsanitary. Just to reiterate - she does not have a *********** was not made aware of that until recently. I have been getting my nails done since I was a child & this is the first time I have experienced something like this.

  Business response

  03/03/2022

  The complaint presented is fabricated in an effort to slander me and the services I provide with unsubstantiated and exaggerated claims. I am honestly disappointed that a fellow black woman chose to go this route. I am a 24-year-old, recent college graduate at ***************************** with my BA in **** ******** &Visual Merchandising and I take pride in any and everything that I do. A part of that is how I run my business and how I treat those who support it. 
   
  The claimant was a new client., With that being the case, I do not know if she read the terms and conditions on my appointment booking site before making her appointment, however, upon entering my site the very first text sentence reads "Self-taught Nail Enthusiast, unlicensed FOR NOW. Thank you for considering me along my journey ?PLEASE READ IN FULL, you are responsible." The claim made that she is only now finding out that I am unlicensed isn't any fault on my behalf nor did I mislead, withhold that information, or lie in any way as it is portrayed in the complaint. Receiving a license isn't an overnight process and as I stated, I was pursuing my degree. Reading before booking any service or purchasing anything should be a persons first instinct, but even still, I instruct  all to read the page in its entirety in bold print. 
    
   The claim made of my work environment being unsanitary in any form or fashion is a terrifyingly false claim! Upon entering my establishment, masks are required. She was then instructed to wash her hands and I washed mine immediately after. She complimented my establishment as well as my separate nail room suite that is dedicated solely to my nail art clients, fully equipped with all new furniture, amenities for my clients, as well as the  proper tools that are soaked and sterilized for at least 15 minutes prior to all clients arriving. These are the standard procedures for every one of my clients,among other protocols that are taken throughout the service. Once I returned to the nail suite, I began her service. During her appointment we watched T.V.,conversed, laughed and I ended the service at about a 3-hour **** with a happy customer on February 12th. 
  At 1:59 pm I posted a video of her nails and tagged her with the text "Thank you?" from my nail service page on Instagram. She reposted it to her own Instagram page, as can be seen by the response "Mentioned you in their story in the photos that I have included for your review. I also texted the client at 2:01 pm thanking her again for her support and provided a coupon code for her next service that we had actually already discussed. I am providing this information to show that the claimant was initially satisfied with her nails and the condition of my establishment after her services were complete in order to negate the claim of an unsanitary environment because that is a very strong and damaging allegation.
  None of these are the actions of a customer who had an unprofessional experience or had been in an unsanitary environment.  Unlicensed doesn't equal unsanitary or ignorance and I believe that was only added to strengthen the negative light that she is trying to shed on my behalf. Numerous licensed service providers choose to work from their own establishments as opposed to a traditional nail salon.
  Two days later on February 14th, the claimant was out for a night of fun and posted pictures on her Instagram page during her night out which displayed the nail art I had done. At 10: 01, pm, from my nail service page on Instagram, I shared her photos to my page and complimented her. She responded by thanking me, as can be seen in the attached photos. Two hours later, at exactly 12:35 am in the morning of her night out, (February 15th now) the claimant texted my nail service phone line stating "Hey girl, my nail literally just popped off like I haven't bumped anything & I was scratching my leg & it popped off." The likelihood that, in fact, she damaged her nails while out having a fun time is far greater than a recently done nail that is attached and secured with acrylic simply popping off with very light pressure from simply scratching her leg.  Of course implementing me as the cause so that she would not have to pay for me to repair her nails as she would if she were at fault for the damage. Because she is a new client, she is not even aware that I often make these repairs for my clients at no charge.
  Also seen in her message, she states the nail chipped first in a very specific area before coming off. That is a clear indication that the nail had to have encountered some form of impact and was clearly damaged by the claimant prior to coming off as opposed to no damage occurring and it just popping off on its own while scratching her leg.
  
  The entire week prior to her appointment, I had been posting reminders on my nail service page stating that for the week of Valentines day I would be on vacation and would not be available so it was not until later in the day  that I saw her texts and calls,the most recent on asking if I had seen her reaching out. I responded with informing her that  I was on vacation if she had missed the announcements and even still, with this being my nail service line, I still needed the courtesy of a decent response time. She responded "I was contacting you early today & on Instagram. I have missed the post about your vacation & I was hoping you could at least respond regarding whether you'd be able to fix my nail." I replied "Yes ma'am." So that she didn't feel ignored, I further explained "I'll always get back to you at my earliest convenience with calling and texting, I can still only respond when I have the time is all. I hope that's understandable. I do return Monday. Contact me Sunday/Monday regarding ************ scheduling and the soonest availability that works for you."  I use a separate line than my personal line for my nail services, so whilst vacationing, I wouldn't be attentive to the work line. This is why I made sure to be clear that I was on vacation and would not be able to respond fast during this week and specifically asked for us to finalize everything that weekend. There was nothing I could do at the moment, or that week for that matter, and I shared that.
  
  Within 3 days, February 18th through the 19th, the claimant texted and called my nail service line numerous times sharing that she was having more nail breaks at once. She expressed her frustrations and stated she did not wish to return for my initial offer of resolution which was me doing what I can to better her experience when I returned. She asked if I could refund her deposit at least. February 19th, I became aware of these texts and responded at 4:52pm, 2 hours after her most recent text. I could tell from the texts she was frustrated but I simply hadn't seen them yet.  Once I did see them, I responded immediately even though I was on vacation. I also informed her it could be a number of things causing this including the products, as she mentioned my products could be the cause in her texts. I didn't want her to feel as though I am rejecting the possibility of it being my doing but again expressed there are a number of things that can contribute, as well as client causes.
  
  
  My exact text read, "There are a number of things that could cause something such as this and as I shared before, I wouldve for sure tended to you when I returned Monday. I am always willing to fix an unsatisfactory experience with my work. Sometimes things can be out of the nail techs control as well or any service provider for that matter, for any number of reasons. However, I do apologize you had an unsatisfactory experience, truly. You have expressed you do not wish to return for the opportunity of an improved experience as a resolve so a partial refund will be issued directly to the initial payment method. I wish you all the best. Have a blessed week and stay safe!"  I never received a response thanking me for the refund, refuting this resolve or otherwise. I proceeded to refund the deposit amount and thought that was the end of the situation being that I never received a response after that. None of this was included in the clients complaint.
  
  I can't refund a client in full based solely off of text messages after I've done the physical work, used my products, and my time. Just like any other service business, the client would need to come in. The initial step I usually take is to bring the client in to examine the nails and go from there because just taking someones word for it isn't how a business is ran and it also gives me no opportunity to defend and or redeem myself. When something like this happens, I have to reach out to all the other customers within that time frame who received the same services and products. If no other clients are having these issues, which they weren't in this case, adding more importance to be able to examine the client's complaints in person and do what I can to better the experience from there. This is why I offered to resolve the issue upon my return and asked her to contact me on Sunday or Monday to schedule her appointment because of
  
  Revisiting my earlier theory of the likelihood that  she damaged her nails while out having a fun time, . clients don't have knowledge of how nail adhesion works and that there are certain things that just usually don't occur. When a nail experiences any trauma, bump, or anything of the sort, sometimes the nail can be knocked and damaged but the enhancement appears intact and may not break until a few days later. The wearer will automatically assume they did nothing at the time to cause that break but the original trauma actually created a hairline crack in the nail causing a weakness. This information is directly from ***********************, a internationally renowned, multi award-winning nail professional, educator, and brand owner with over 15 years industry experience. This experts explanation strengthens the possibility of this theory. They were broken in half as you can see in the pictures I shared. That does not usually occur without  force of some kind. And even still, regardless of fault, I am never opposed to redoing a service simply because my name is attached and I want to satisfy all. In reality, satisfying everyone just isn't possible.
  
  I can't automatically refund someone's full service once they refuse to return in person with so many potential causes. The nail bed and remaining structure usually leaves evidence of the cause and couldve been helpful for us both to get a better understanding and come to a  resolution, however, she declined and she did receive a partial refund just as she requested which can be seen in the attached photos. I was more than willing to fully accommodate a new and better experience so I do not deserve this narrative of an unprofessional, rude,unclean, and scamming black service provider.
  
  
  

  Customer response

  03/03/2022

   
  Complaint: 16787122
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  
  Having unprofessional & lack of thoroughness in an Instagram link does not equate to providing proper indication of the quality of your services. As a professional, quality should remain a top priority and it was indicates by the business owner that she was aware of how low quality her products were and continued to use them on clients. It should have been communicated PRIOR to my service that the products being used were low quality & what to expect. Additionally, if one is offering services despite being unlicensed there should be even closer attention to quality considering the nature of legalities concerning their services. 
  I did reach out to the business owner several times before receiving a response & was told she was on "vacation." However, this was not formally communicated before or during my appointment. Also, posting on instagram that one is on vacation does not suffice as a proper notice to clients. It is imperative to lead a business with a business mindset & remain communicative with customers, especially when concern is raised.
  
  Considering I had to seek out services from another nail technician, I am requesting a FULL refund as noted in my initial report. I did not receive quality services and I lost 4 nails in less than 7 days. A full refund is the only acceptable
  Sincerely,
  
  *****************************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩