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The cost of a haircut can be a surprisingly controversial subject. Years after John Edwards was skewered for his $400+ haircut (you’d think world leaders would have learned their lesson), it was recently reported that French president François Hollande pays his hairstylist more than $10,000 each month. But what can a $10,000 haircut get you that a $100 one can’t? And, more importantly, how much should all of us common-folk, whose grooming habits are not funded by taxpayers, shell out for a trip to the salon?
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IT’S ALL RELATIVE
It really depends on your priorities and what you can afford. A better way of looking at it is what value do you get from a haircut? If you pay $50 for a bad cut that’s not shaped properly for your features and that you have to wrestle with every morning, then that cut is not worth the money you paid for it. Conversely, if you pay $500 for a haircut that you love and that you only have to get three or four times per year, you’re getting a better value than you would from a mediocre $150 cut that doesn’t look as good on you and that you have to get eight times a year because the hair doesn’t grow out as well. So, much like any other type of expenditure, it’s about weighing cost versus benefit when it comes to your hair.
IT SHOULDN’T BE ABOUT YOUR HAIR TYPE
Some people have fine hair. Some people have thick hair. But while styling and cutting those two different hair textures may require different appointment lengths, that shouldn’t dictate the price. It’s never reasonable to expect to have to pay more for a haircut because you have ‘difficult’ hair. Whether it’s a light trim on a fine-hair pixie or a head full of waist-long curls, you should be treated equally.
WHAT YOU SHOULD EXPECT FROM A GOOD HAIRCUT
A good cut should enhance your bone structure, strengthen your features and make you feel sexier and prettier. It should also fall into a good shape when air-dried and last three-to-four months (unless you like to keep your hair short).
WHAT ABOUT THOSE REALLY, REALLY EXPENSIVE HAIRCUTS?
There are expensive haircuts that cost a couple hundred dollars, and then there are expensive haircuts that reach into four-digit territory. What gives? In most cases, when an owner prices his or her haircuts that high, it’s a marketing strategy to create buzz while getting clients into the chairs of other, more reasonably priced, stylists at their salon. Let’s face it, would you expect for a stylist charging a thousand dollars for a cut to have a full book of clients? They mostly work on celebrities (which they usually cut for free) and on shoots, and maybe at their salons a few days per month, if that.
In short, those very, very expensive haircuts may be backed up by true talent; but it’s also a whole lot of marketing and brand philosophy. That being said, if a woman is fortunate enough to be able to afford a $1,000 haircut and it makes her happy, then go for it! And you know what? In the end, a haircut is about one thing, and one thing only: feeling confident and badass and like the best possible version of yourself. So if you find a hairstylist that can get you there — whether they charge $50 or $500 — it is money well spent.
