Hair Salons, Barbershops Prepare To Reopen With New Guidelines
ROSEVILLE (CBS13) — A fresh cut feels a lot different for Ondra Pyles after waiting for months to step into a barbershop. Pyles was one of Gentleman's Barbershop's first customers, just hours after Governor Newsom announced hair salons and barbershops.
"It feels good," he said. "We are used to being around each other for so long and then it is taken away. Coming back, it feels weird."
Gentleman's Barbershop in Roseville opened Tuesday with Placer County's permission for the first time since March. Co-Owner Grant Cortez said the minute he heard the news, he was excited to get back to work.
"(I) just took off and tried to come over here to get this place ready," he explained.
The barbershop plans to require clients to wait outside if social distancing is not possible and hire someone to clean constantly throughout the day. Cortez expects to book out in a day and is confident the new guidelines will be manageable for everyone.
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"I think if everybody does their part, keep your distance, don't cough on people. I think it is simple," Cortez said.
Smaller salons like Details in Sacramento are already booking a week out, as they prepare to open Wednesday.
"One client at a time. I have a lifetime supply of sanitizer and masks for my clients if they don't have them," said owner Briana Burster.
Cleaning will not only be more frequent but also much more visible at Details Salon, according to Burster.
"Before you would've done it so your clients don't see it when they are not around. Now, you do it while they are around, so they understand you are going that extra step to be clean," she explained.
Burster has been stocking up on cleaning supplies and PPE equipment for months and is ready to reopen Wednesday. She also decided to downsize to accommodate the new guidelines that include social distancing, wearing face masks for both customers and employees, frequent sanitation and temperature checks for staff.
"That's why I chose to come to a single suite, so I could just concentrate on my one client and there is not too many people in the space at one time," she said.
Preparations are much different for Colour Bar Salon which has 16 stylists and twenty-two staff members in total. Owner Lorena Martinez is waiting to reopen until she can get her staff trained on their new normal. She also plans to stock the salon with sneeze guards at the reception counter, dividers at hair bowls, and has also decided to stop using hair dryers out of an abundance of caution.
"The main thing is logistics. How are we going to split the staff working, the chairs, the layout of the salon. We have to put in safety protocols, we have to train our staff," she explained.
According to Martinez, it will be a couple of weeks before the salon reopens. She hopes to use the extra time to make sure the salon will not have to close their doors again.
"Everything that we are doing is to ensure that we can open but stay open," Martinez said.
Counties including Placer and San Joaquin started to allow salons and barbershops to reopen Tuesday. Hair salons in Sacramento county can reopen under new state guidelines at midnight Tuesday.