AIO????? LOST A CLIENT due to coworker’s client’s screaming baby for 20+ minutes as I was doing a facial.

[u/slimeyditto]

For some context, these are screenshots from my work group chat. The little kid was screaming for around 20 minutes at this point when I finally texted because my client voiced her discomfort. it went on for a few more minutes after I texted, but there was no response until said coworker left the building. One of our other suite mates texted me, and told me that the client she was working on had black hair, which does not need to be put under a dryer. And that KJ had overbooked herself and had another client in her room that she was working on while the client with the child sat in the common area where the hairdryers are. I could tell that it was at the other end of the salon, but you could still very loud and clearly hear it consistently for the duration of her facial. This is a constant problem in the salon, not with this specific person, but just with kids in general. It is a Salon suites, and spa. It’s not marketed as a family salon whatsoever, but obviously kiddos are welcome. I just feel like she jumped down my throat and didn’t even read my message. I feel like I was super polite, especially since I lost out on future money and a client. Also, the person texting me back is always preaching in the group chat about how she prays for our small businesses to flourish, and that we gain clientele and that she loves us (? weird) like family. But when I lose a client due to her letting her client scream in the common area for 20+ minutes then this is her response/the way she approaches things. I’m super bothered about the whole thing. The first three screenshots are my work group chat, and the last screenshot is the owner’s response to the whole situation.

EDIT: owner has texted multiple times in group chat saying that if you have a client with a child that is upset or screaming, to close your door and turn up ambient music in the hallway to be courteous of others

[u/slimeyditto]

KJ had overbooked herself, so the client with the screaming baby was in the common area, letting her color process while she worked on the overbooked client. There was no door to shut— of course I find that out hours later. I suppose I could’ve walked down there to check out the situation mid facial with my client, but then what? Ask the mother to get her child to stop crying? As if I’m sure she hasn’t tried that? I just feel like it’s a rock and a hard place. Either way I come off as rude haha so I guess it just is what it is

[u/ju-ju_bee → u/slimeyditto]

No actually your coworker does...She overbooked herself to try and get more money, thereby compromising a shared space that otherwise would have been a non-issue. If she had booked properly, then she'd have been able to close the door like the owner HAS ALREADY ASKED Y'ALL TOO. That's actually ridiculous af

[u/Emotional_Emotion113 → u/slimeyditto]

I don’t think you came off as rude necessarily, but passive aggressive at times for sure and I do think YOR about the tone of your coworker’s text. Obviously you know her better than us, so maybe she regularly uses emojis and exclamation marks and these texts are a totally different tone for her. From an outsider’s perspective, though, her texts seem very straightforward and professional. The client and her kid were probably out in the common area longer than they needed to be, but at the end of the day, the issue is that a spa like this allows children at all. This was kind of a no-win situation and you could have brought the issue to your coworker without making it sound like you blame her for potentially losing a client. For all you know, your client could have a problem with you for not doing anything yourself to handle the problem and instead you’re offloading the responsibility like you couldn’t have turned up the music or at least gone and checked to see if you could close the door yourself. If I complained to an employee about something and they proceeded to do nothing about it except send one text, my problem would be with the employee and salon policies, not the crying baby. The thumbs up at the end is also like “the” passive aggressive emoji haha, so I don’t think that helped matters. Running to your boss to ask about your texts is also really unprofessional and you don’t need to talk about your “hurt feelings” - that just comes off as drama-seeking.