Fringe Salon of Huntsville putting together safety plan for reopening

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF)- Have you seen the pictures of at home hair cuts and dye jobs gone wrong? It’s enough to make any stylist cringe.

For those of you who have been patiently holding out for the pros to take over, your time could come very soon.

But hair salons are considered a “close contact” business, meaning there’s just no way to do it without some physical contact between you and the stylist.

We went to Fringe Salon on Clinton Avenue in Huntsville to see how they’re planning to protect themselves and their customers.

The owner, Sandy Jaqubino, tells us it’s been a rough few months.

Jaqubino rents out each station, but she says she hasn’t made stylists pay their booth fees.

So she’s been covering the rent on her own. Jaqubino says the plan is to reopen on May 1, unless Governor Ivey says otherwise.

She’s taken half of the chairs out of the salon to space things out, so only eight stylists will be able to see clients at a time..

But that also means a potential cut in revenue.

We’re told there will be special hours for people at high risk for the virus.

Jaqubino says all clients will be asked to bring a mask with them to their appointments as well.

“Be prepared to wait in your car to receive a text, be prepared to have a mask. Be prepared not to have your children or any other guests to your appointment. Come alone. I have 185 people eagerly waiting to get in,” Jaqubino said.

But even thought things will look very different, stylist Abigail Brown tells me she's eagerly awaiting the day to get behind her chair.

Brown has been cutting hair at Fringe for a little over three years, so she’s built up a loyal client base.

But the last month has been challenging for her.

Brown, a mother of two says there’s no money coming in as her husband is also out of work due to the pandemic.

She says she and other fellow stylists have applied for unemployment but were denied.

She tells me she has applied for the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, but has yet to see any money.

But there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

She’s booked around 100 appointments starting May 1.

“I’ve gotten a lot of calls of desperation, I’ve gotten texts from clients that have decided to at home color their hair. some it’s went ok, some it’s not. so I’m going to have my work cut out for me when I get back,” Brown said.

Brown says she’s expecting long days ahead of her to catch up with all her clients.

So if you’re wanting to get your hair cut, you may want to consider making an appointment soon.

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