To Leave Product in Room or Not To Leave Product in Room. That is the Question...

I am not sure if this ground has been covered in this forum, and perhaps it is a delicate question... What are your thoughts on leaving product (or back bar) in room, while stepping out to allow guest to change? I am asking because I had a situation when I worked at Canyon Ranch Spa in Las Vegas. At the end of a treatment I was waiting for the client to throw her clothes on and meet me in the hall, when she did she slightly stumbled and several of my products spilled onto the floor, out from under her clothes! Any thoughts?

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I keep Back Bar products in a low cabinet.  I used to keep them in an upper cabinet.  I take them out during the facial, and tend to leave them on the counter while the client is getting dressed.  I leave them out because I have to wipe them down with a disinfectant wipe before putting away again to use on the next client.  You could conceivably keep them in a LOCKED cabinet, dispense into plastic cups (those small ones you can get at Smart-N-Final or other kitchen supply places).  You can also quickly step into the room and scan the counters while shutting the door after your client has exited...  Being a creature of habit, I would immediately know if something was missing...

 

hth,

 

Nondy

Wow, that blows me away and I'm sure it did you also at the time! I have been very blessed that in all my 24 years have never had anyone take anything from my room. Like Nondy, I am very much a creature of habit and would know immediately if something was missing. It's very sad that we have to be concerned about this.

I can say that I have never left retail product in the room, so I must have had a though about it in the back of my mind! I like Nondy's idea about the plastic cups!

I know, it is shocking, and now that I have opened my own spa, I can't help but be a little apprehensive about leaving my back bar exposed. Thanks for the input, I think I will just keep the items in a drawer, out of reach and just pull the items as needed. 

what I want to know is- HOW did you handle this?!?!
Well, Gina, the plot thickens here! When the client stumbled and the products fell on the floor, this happened in front of my co-workers as well. We were all standing in the hall, each waiting for our clients to exit the rooms (12 rooms, 12 estheticians, 12 witnesses). To be brutally honest, the moment it happened I was shocked. I had just spent the past hour with this client, having a wonderful conversation and then she did this? Incredible. However, in a split second one of the estys notified the front desk for the spa (which was a few feet away), meanwhile, I immediately grabbed the product from the floor. Security arrived quickly, luckily the hallway was empty and the other guests did not have to witness the client being ushered away. Later on, we found out she had had other services and when security checked her locker, she had stolen other items from those therapists. Awwww, the stories I could tell you, not all were bad, most were absolutely fabulous. ;) This was, after all, Las Vegas! Do we have a forum where we can kind of 'kiss and tell' ? Hehe, that would be interesting! ;)

ah - no kiss and tells on this forum.

The posts are viewable by the public and are not private.

I've only had one theft...it was when I worked at a larger spa.

It was a teenager and she slipped a pro size masque into her robe pocket.

By the time I noticed the theft, she was gone...it annoyed me because her mother was with her and must have noticed in the locker room.  Spa owner didn't do anything.  I probably would have sent a bill!

Some people will steal no matter where they are.

But it seems to happen more in the bigger spas, I guess they justify themselves by thinking it's "okay" because it's a big business and they can "afford" it.

I have never had a theft in a smaller spa or as a solo.

 

I like the idea of sending a bill!

Knock on wood, I haven't experienced this.  I do keep my backbar out (products on open shelves, peels and masks in a closed cabinet) but I also don't give clients forever to change.  Depending on the service, sometimes I have time to wipe down my backbar and equipment while they're still on the table, which is obviously my preference as it allows a quick change for the next client.

I own a boutique spa, and the same thing happened to me.  I have everything in cabinets & drawers, so the client had to actually open up the drawers to steal a pro size mask which would not have even been suitable for her skin type.  I ended up blocking her in my system. My cabinets & drawer doors are heavy and always make a little thud sound when you close them, and have actually heard other clients open & close the doors as well.  When I hear it, I'll ask them to wait a moment before checking out, and do a quick scan to see if anything is missing, then handle politely, but accordingly.  I ended up building in a margin for theft into my treatment costs.  It doesn't happen all the time, but it's unfortunate & disappointing when it does happen. I do wonder if the economy has anything to do with it though?
Products missing hasn't happened to me, but just today when I left one of my clients to change I came back to her sitting in my working stool. Not sure why, as this never happened before and she had no reason to be there. Only thing is that I keep my purse in the lower cabinet, which I had left unzipped, and my wallet was clearly exposed.  I make it a habit to always wait by the door with the it slightly ajar.  All the clients normally stay by the foot of the facial bed to change, which is near the door.  When I saw that she had moved away from there, and was also not by the mirror, I knew that she was in the area of my work space and I went back in.  I did knock before going back in, so I don't know if I missed seeing anything more. She was just looking at me when I went back in.  I will make a note to put the products away before leaving the client to change.  Just good work habits to have.
Interesting. Over the years I decided to take the mirror out of my treatment room, instead there is a bathroom very close by and I direct them toward that room instead. Mainly because it allows me to stay on schedule (as you know, clients sometimes take a while to exit the room because they may be freshening make up or hair in the mirror). Also, I think that I will need to create the habit of tucking product away before stepping out as well.

You could keep your product in a basket, and just slip the basket out when you need to use it, and right back in when done...?

Don't keep ANY valuables in your room!  My wedding rings were WELL hidden, but a bikini wax client searched until she found them...  A tryly horrible experience. 

 

--N--

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