MOSSEL BAY NEWS - The lockdown is inconvenient for women - and also men - who are used to having regular hair and grooming appointments and beauty treatments.
Those who could not squeeze in an appointment for a haircut have had to resort to cutting their hair themselves or getting a family member or someone locked down in the same house to do it. Otherwise, one has to let one's hair grow until when the lockdown ends.
There are instructions on facebook and the internet for cutting one's own hair. Hair colouring and styling has to be done at home now.
For women and men who adhere to strict laser hair removal or waxing routines, the lockdown is an inconvenience.
Also, women with gel nails could have been forced to soak off their nails themselves or simply let them grow out if they didn't manage to secure an appointment before the start of the lockdown. The extended lockdown has come as an additional disappointment.
The Mossel Bay Advertiser spoke to two salon owners about their experience of the lockdown.
Lettie Janse van Rensburg said: "It's very difficult. People are calling me for appointments for 1 May, when the lockdown ends. I am not sure if it will be 1 May. They call about having their gel nails done and say they miss me and ask how I am. So, I am fully booked for quite a period after the lockdown. I'm not sure where to begin.
"Also, I was set to move the salon to a premises in Da Nova, but the lockdown came and we could not move."
Lettie was based in the town centre, off Marsh Street.
'Do everything at home'
"I had to think of plan B," Lettie said. "Now I am going to do everything at home when the lockdown ends. I have made space in our garage. People are so desperate they will come to my house in Dana Bay now for their pedicures, manicures, waxes and lash extensions."
Lettie also has beauty therapy students. She is authorised to give courses and provide recognised certificates. "My students were busy with their portfolios, so the interruption affects them," she points out.
"There is a whole circle of people who are affected. If you don't provide a service, you get no money. "When we open again, will my clients have money for beauty therapy? Everyone is living on the breadline. People will need money for food.
"I think people will take time to adjust. Some people cannot even afford to pay their home loans."
Lettie said: "I'm worried." She said some clients would probably only want to pay for services at the end of the month, but she probably would not be able to accommodate this. "We are all in the same boat," she said.
'Not making single cent'
The owner of a health and beauty salon which incorporates a hair salon, Hennie Schröder, said: "We are not making a single cent. Nothing. The lockdown has a huge impact on me.
Hennie Schröder. Photo: Supplied
"Every salon gets a daily income. For me it is really serious. I can't buy anything either. I understand the lockdown, but for salons we offer many services that were really necessary for a woman. My response when the lockdown started was to switch off my work phone, because it was no use taking calls. I would be shut down if I disregarded lockdown rules."
Because of the bottleneck in orders before the lockdown, Hennie's stock order did not arrive in time before the lockdown and it has still not arrived. "I ordered a lot, so I do not have stock now. Skincare stock is important. You have to look at an individual's specific skin type.
"I still have to pay rent for the month and my rent is high. Financially it is a disaster. I am scared and worried, I admit. But I understand the reason for the lockdown. I paid staff their full salaries and now there is the lockdown."
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