Photo: HairdresserReview By Peter Hanami, CEO, JapaneseCustomer.com
1000 yen haircuts what is all the buzz about? The first thing is the price. After the melt down in the eighties, consumers began to draw their purse strings and have kept them shut ever since. Anxious about the fate of their jobs, the ability to provide for themselves and their families. Resulting in economic uncertainty in their daily lives. To address these changed shopping conditions companies had to think of new ways to engage consumers. Lower prices and value for money became a strategy for a brave few. A number of smart entrepreneur's realized that consumers were not spending and decided to do something about it. We have seen the spread of cheaper prices across a number of industries and we will continue to see it gain momentum.
Supermarkets are introducing their own generic brands in competition with discount stores like Shop 99. Shop 99 revolutionized food shopping by taking the 100 yen idea and applying it to food and hit pay dirt. At Shop 99 everything is 99 yen plus 5% consumption tax making the total price 104 yen. Shop 99 has a wide range of items including cured salami, business shirts, black ties for funerals, chocolate bars and drip coffee.
1000 yen hair cuts are good value as some hairdressers charge 4000 yen plus for a cut.
There are a number of haircut salons in the market and they vary in terms of what they provide. A wander through any local neighbourhood shopping precinct will reveal a range of haircut options. The 1000 yen shops from my observations do a brisk trade. Customers always coming and going throughout the day. Making it one of the busier shops in a precinct and they cater to both sexes.
You can get a standard haircut for just 1000 yen. No appointment necessary, just walk in off the street and wait your turn. It is that easy.
For this review I road tested QB House which promotes a 1000 yen haircut. The store is well marked and has a distinct blue and white livery. As I approached the store I peered through the frosted glass windows to gauge how busy they were. There is a traffic light outside the store showing how busy the store is. On reaching the entrance the automatic door open and stood facing an automated ticket machine. I slipped a 1000 yen note from my wallet and watched as the machine took it. Soon after it dispensed a printed docket with a number. I took a seat on a stool with three others, a high school student, a kindergarten student and a salary man. We all watched the grace and style of the hairdressers as they did their best work. As each customer was called up for their cut we all shuffled over one seat & one step closer to the barbers chair. On finishing a cut, the hairdresser cleans up the work station and when ready calls the next customer who hands in their ticket.Hangs up their jacket and takes a seat in the chair. The hairdresser asks in Japanese what type of cut you would like and the customer replies. For example: If you want your head shaved, you would say barikan, itchi milli, zenbu de, onegaishimasu
Further reading: Japan: A Modern Retail Superpower
Each hairdresser has their own work station and chair. Customers before getting in the chair can hang their coats which are placed in a cupboard behind the mirror. The hairdresser asked what style I wanted and I said crew cut, with a height of 3 millimetres : In Japanese "barrikin de san milli onegaishimasu" with his instructions he went to work making my long flowing locks fall slowly to the floor as the buzzing of the clippers echoed through the small white lino tiled store.
The work stations have really been well designed and had a a lot of thought go into them. All the equipment the hairdresser needs is at hand. I received my own smock and a white towel placed between my neck and the smock to stop any loose cuttings.
The novelty factor was at the end of the cut when the hairdresser used a long black hose like a vacuum nozzle and used it to suck up all the hair cuttings from clothing. It is a great system and is easy to see why it is so successful.
Before I know it I'm out of the chair, thanking the hairdresser and shuffling backwards out of the store bowing as I say goodbye. Received a good haircut with no loose hair for a great price, quickly and with great personal service. 1000 yen haircuts are leading the way in the new drive for lower priced goods & services.
Further reading: Japan: A Modern Retail Superpower
Want to learn more about Japanese Customers? Visit PeterHanami.com
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