mental_floss magazine
SUBSCRIBE >
GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS >
DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTIONS >
subscriber services >
Not sure how many of you caught this article in the Quad-City Times (what??? You mean you don’t read it daily???? What’s wrong with you people!), but apparently, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards spent $400 for a haircut recently, which had barbers in Quad-City – where a haircut costs $10 or $12 – in a tizzy. “If I charged $400 for a haircut, they’d come after me with white coats,” said Leo Fier, who has been cutting hair for 49 years at his shop in Dewitt, Iowa.”
Edwards’ campaign committee filed a financial report with the Federal Election Commission noting that the White House hopeful paid $400 for haircuts in California and New Hampshire, and $248 for salon services in Dubuque, Iowa.
I’ll admit this: some years ago, I actually spent close to $80 for a haircut (with tip!), but now only go to SuperCuts, where the grand total is more like $20. My question to you is: what’s the most you’ve ever spent on a haircut, and, more interestingly, what do you THINK the most anyone should spend on a haircut is? Remember, barbers need to eat, too! (men and women are likely to have different answers to the question, I’m certain.)
Comments (33)
Comment
- Follow mental_floss
It’s pocket change to an ambulance-chaser who made zillions shaking down tobacco companies with class action lawsuits.
He lives in a different world from most of the rest of us.
posted by Sid on 4-26-2007 at 7:24 am
Men and women will most definitely have different answers. My dad started going to this place that charged $12 for a hair cut and wash, hot towel treatment, and neck rub. I’d love to go! I’d tip well, I swear! But, no. Men only. *sigh*
posted by Tru on 4-26-2007 at 7:25 am
The barbershop I use charges 6$ for a basic men’s haircut. I’ve always been satisfied with the service.
posted by Phil on 4-26-2007 at 7:59 am
I’ve never paid more than $20 for a haircut. Salon services, what are they? Is that one of these oriental massage places where you get a little extra with your massage?
posted by Miguel on 4-26-2007 at 8:21 am
$72 with tip every few months. I’m not rich, but this is the last thing I would ever give up before filing bankruptcy. My hair is hard to deal with, and finding someone who can make it look good without needing any product was a godsend.
Oddly enough, I asked my stylist yesterday while he was cutting my hair about this exact issue, the $400 Edwards haircut. I asked him “What the hell is a $400 haircut?” He hemmed and hawed, but said it comes down to a few things:
– reputation: “My stylist is so-and-so.”
– added services: flexibility, travel, etc.
I think the Edwards thing falls into the latter. The stylist probably came to his hotel room, probably in a very inconvenient window of time between appearances, and perhaps even had to wait around for an hour or more while Edwards finished a meeting or two.
Think about it: if my stylist charges $60 (and that is rather low as stylists go) but can do 8-10 cuts in a day, imagine if he could only do say 2… or even just 1!
I would NEVER pay $400 for a haircut, but it’s really not that far out considering what the circumstances may have been.
posted by dancemonkey on 4-26-2007 at 8:37 am
Oh, and don’t forget the shampoo. Treat yourself to a $60 haircut at least once so you can have the best head massage in your life. If you’re in the SF area, I recommend Bladerunners on Haight Street.
posted by dancemonkey on 4-26-2007 at 8:47 am
It says “haircuts,” not haircut. How many and are people who are replying living in a city or a rural area? Makes a difference.
posted by bee on 4-26-2007 at 8:56 am
Nothing.
I’m a 21-year-old woman and I haven’t paid to have my hair cut since I moved out of my parents’ house two years ago. Why pay to have someone else do something I can do perfectly well myself?
posted by Anji on 4-26-2007 at 8:59 am
Good point, Bee. Maybe he got his hair trimmed just before each appearance or interview? Maybe the stylist travelled with him? This $400 haircut(s) thing really isn’t out of the realm of reason.
I don’t pay $400 for haircuts in 18 months, but I’m not running for President.
posted by dancemonkey on 4-26-2007 at 10:05 am
Hot topic.
I couldn’t get in to see my stylist one time and really needed my haircut, so I went to a Supercuts.
Biggest mistake of my life. Crazy woman butchered me.
posted by dancemonkey on 4-26-2007 at 10:07 am
What? Nobody is going to bring up Clinton’s ‘93 haircut on the LAX tarmac?
The amount was never disclosed, but the stylist’s usual fee was $200 in his shop; no word on his travel fee. Clinton took a bunch of heat for holding up air traffic, but the plain truth is that no fights were delayed while Slick Willy was getting his trim.
It is funny that both of these guys advertise themselves as representatives of the poor, but then spend as much on a shampoo and style as some of those people make in a week.
BTW, What do you tip for a multiple-hundred dollar hair cut? Or, is the tip included with the price?
posted by n2y2 on 4-26-2007 at 10:21 am
Miguel: it was a SportCuts.
posted by Tru on 4-26-2007 at 10:36 am
Don’t miss the video on you tube of John Edwards primping his hair like a high-school girl on prom night.
Just go to you tube and search for “John Edwards Feeling Pretty”
TOO FUNNY!
posted by Colonel on 4-26-2007 at 10:55 am
I grew up getting $7 hair cuts from a woman with a hair salon set up in her basement. My parents still go there. I’ve gotten one or two $50 wash-and-cuts, and although I looked fabulous right after, I found it wasn’t really worth it in the long run. Supercuts and the like, I’ve had mixed experiences with – some perfectly decent cuts and some awful ones. I’ve decided to dodge the issue all together by not getting haircuts anymore!
posted by Sara on 4-26-2007 at 10:59 am
I’ve paid $27-33 for a haircut and have been satisfied with the outcomes. Considering what some people will pay to have their lawns manicured, I think spending money on haircuts is sometimes justifiable.
First off, I don’t care what he spends on his hair. Secondly, Edwards has money and that does not mean he cannot fight for his poorer constiuents. All presidents have had more money than the poor their fight for or against.
posted by Amber on 4-26-2007 at 11:55 am
Ha, I read the Quad City times daily (when I’m home from college)! So to give a little insight- as a woman I paid around $25-30 including tip to get my hair washed and cut at the fabulous Barbie Shoppe in Davenport, and I think that was about or just above average. In Iowa City, I pay only a little more although there are a couple more high-end salons that go up to around $65 for a cut.
posted by Amber J. on 4-26-2007 at 12:19 pm
OK. So I’m a woman, and I live in San Francisco. My stylist charges $60. But I spend about $115 on color every few months. I used to spend $120 on haircuts before I switched to a stylist that was cheaper and more ambitious with my cut. The most I paid was $240 for a deep conditioning treatment and cut, but that was in a pretty well-known and specialized salon in mid-town Manhattan.
posted by Kellie on 4-26-2007 at 12:26 pm
It depends on where you go I guess…
I go to a barber in a barbershop. My haircut costs me $10, including tip. I go once a month, which is $120 yearly.
My wife goes to a stylist in a salon. Her trip costs from $65-$90, depending on what she gets done. Assuming once a month (I’m not sure how often she goes) that’s $780-$1080 per year.
Hmm… I’ve never done the math before… it hurts just thinking about it.
posted by Jason! on 4-26-2007 at 1:30 pm
I pay $14, and leave a tip, so its about $18 twice a year. My husband used to cut it for free, and it was worth every penny. Then I pay $10 for color a bit more often. But after the Edwards story hit, I read about Lara Bush paying $700 for a salon style.
posted by Miss Cellania on 4-26-2007 at 2:01 pm
Amber Says:
April 26th, 2007 at 11:55 am
Amber, are you one of the hairstylists in question? You’re pretty darn defensive to not be! Go get ‘em, grrl!
posted by Michael on 4-26-2007 at 2:35 pm
Well, I couldn’t say the most I’ve ever spent on a hair cut, but the least is $8, because a student cut it. They didn’t do a bad job, either…
posted by Rosalie on 4-26-2007 at 3:06 pm
I’m a guy and the most expensive cut I’ve gotten was about $40, including tip. It was the most relaxing haircut ever. The seats were leather and stuffed with what felt like baby pandas. After the cut I did not a single hair on my shirt, neck, or ears. Now I usually pay $30 including tip because I don’t really care for sitting on baby panda’s.
posted by ajadoniz on 4-26-2007 at 4:13 pm
I am a cosmetologist (that is our title thankyouverymuch) and I normally charge between $20 to $30 depending on the amount of time it takes. If it’s just a normal cut $20( my cuts include that shampoo… I ain’t cutting dirty hair dude.)
Mr. Edwards probably has some one like Guiseppi Franco or somebody like that cut his hair. Somebody who thinks they are better than us average cosmetologists.
I live in NW Iowa so generally people frown on spending more than $40 on just a wash/cut/style.
posted by Bayliss on 4-26-2007 at 7:12 pm
I once had my hair done by the a stylist from the Oprah Winfrey show. His going rate was $500. (I got it for free as a hair model.) If I could afford it, I’d have a guy like that cut my hair all the time. It would be my money and my choice, as it is Edwards choice. He can afford it. Its his business. I’m tired of hearing about it.
Now, about this 8 billion dollar a day war for which I do NOT want to pay…
posted by Allison on 4-27-2007 at 8:19 am
I did the fantastic sams route for 2 years at about 18 (incl. tip). I was never really happy with the cut but its a means to an end. I recently found a real mans barber shop that even serves beer there for customers! Cuts are 20 + 5 tip. Plus its probably one of the best ive had in years. Except in college when we payed our friend in busch light to cut hair.
posted by David on 4-27-2007 at 11:28 am
I’d bet that someone like JLo or Paris Hilton pays a lot more than $400 to get her hair done.
posted by Karen on 4-27-2007 at 2:09 pm
regardless of the logistics of the haircut, i think it would be in edwards’ best interest to avoid apparent extravagant purchases. he certainly can (and does?) advocate for the poor, etc…but it just looks bad when something like this surfaces. even if you have money, what’s wrong with living simply so others can simply live?
posted by red on 4-27-2007 at 3:29 pm
I haven’t paid for a haircut in about 20 years; my wife trained as a stylist (no longer works as one) and she cuts my hair in the kitchen or on the patio. But then again, the years haven’t been kind to my hairline, so the job isn’t difficult.
Hearing the news about Edwards spending that much on a cut put the nickname, “Breck Girl”, given to him by a conservative talkshow host, into context.
posted by Dave on 4-28-2007 at 11:12 pm
I agree with the comment that Edwards can afford it and we (as taxpayers)are not paying for it so why should anyone care – BUT we ARE paying for a war (in dollars and lives) and that should concern us more than a presidential candidate’s haircut practices. Now if we were paying for it, that would be a different story.
posted by cathie on 5-2-2007 at 8:05 am
I am on disability and make $885 per MONTH. I spend $3.00 every six weeks to get a haircut at the local vocational school. My hair grows weirdly but they always do an excellent job. I can’t imagine paying $400 for a haircut under ANY circumstances.
posted by Jill on 5-2-2007 at 9:50 am
15 bucks at most at Astor Place. Usually about 3 times a year (I let it go long, and then once in a while I get rid of most of it).
posted by JT on 5-2-2007 at 6:30 pm
My normal haircut now is just me and my razor. However when I had hair I think I paid around 25 to 30. Once paid 100 in Beverly Hills. The problem with the Edwards cut is the fact that he is trying to claim it as a campaign expense. Since he obvviously is getting it done on a regular basis, it can’t be counted as a campaign expense.
posted by Matt on 5-4-2007 at 10:23 am
i paid $75, which doesn’t seem a lot but the hair cut was HORRIBLE! i was donating to locks-of-love, the girl charged $10 extra because it was long but all she did was tie the hair and basically went straight across for the hair donation. then the hair was washed and fixed for even length; which, i realized later, wasn’t very even. the haircut took about 20 minutes, that included wash and i don’t like to blow dry so that was skipped. i was outraged!!
posted by mj on 5-4-2007 at 9:55 pm