Yesterday, at my weekly airbrush tanning appointment, my tanning guru Amanda was having one of those days. Right when I got to the salon, I could tell things weren't going well. She had a cut on her leg that was bleeding, two people were waiting in the reception area, and the airbrush machine was disassembled on the counter while she was trying to unclog it. I didn't mind that she was running late; Wednesdays are the salon's busiest days because they offer $10 airbrush tanning, a discount off the normally $30 service and they're ALWAYS booked solid on Wednesdays. 

Time passes, and Amanda was eventually able to unclog the machine. Finally, it's my turn to go. I undress as Amanda is asking about me, my day, my life. I fill her in on the details as she preps the machine. 

She starts to spray me, beginning with my arm, when all of a sudden KABOOM!!!!!!!!!!!! The lid comes flying off the bottle of solution and all the air

from the airbrusher starts pumping out the brown solution like a brown Old Faithful geyser, ALL OVER AMANDA! Her face, the walls, the floor, the furniture, the white cabinets, EVERYTHING gets completely splatter-painted in the explosion of tanning solution.Seriously, poor Amanda had liquid dripping form her cheeks, and I'm standing there, just completely shocked. (Remember in the movie Carrie, right after all the pig's blood gets dumped on her, how she just stands there, shocked, and all you hear is the drip-drop of the liquid hitting the stage? Yeah, that's what it was like. Only, I wasn't dressed, and it was brown, not red.) 

I'm not joking, the VERY FIRST THING Amanda does is turn to me, and go, "Oh no! Did I splash you?" WHAT?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! She doesn't at all worry about her cute sweater that was soaked, or her face that's covered in tanning solution, or the rugs or furniture, she asks ME, the naked one who actually went to the salon to be covered in tanning solution, if she got me with the spill. She stayed completely calm and immediately grabbed a different machine to spray me. She didn't worry about the mess, or the spill or anything. She was worried about me.

Talk about customer service! After she was done spraying me, we couldn't help but laugh at the crazy mess that was all over. 

Here's a pic snapped from my cell phone after the service. It doesn't even begin to reflect the mess that was made from Old Faithful.

The point is, when disaster strikes, remain calm. Your clients will take their cues from you.

Last October in Salon Today, Modern Salon Media's business publication, I asked salon owners across the country, "What was your biggest spa disaster?" Here are some of my favorite responses: 

"One time, when I was doing an eyebrow wax on a client, I accidentally dribbled a bit of wax into her hair. When I went to clean it up, I pulled off her wig."

Janet Rabig

Salon 37 & Day Spa

Algonquin, Illinois

"One of my booth renters hung up a calendar in one of my rooms. When she left, I went to take the nail out of the wall and realized that she had drilled a hole into the water line! Water came gushing out and I totally freaked! I had to call a friend in to screw it back in! To this day, that screw is still there and it brings back a painful memory."

Michelle Smith
Rejuve Salon Spa

Raleigh, North Carolina

"One time in our spa, a guest fell asleep with a mask on so the skin care specialist stepped out for a moment. When she went back in, she startled the woman who thought she was an intruder! With the green mask on, and her hair standing straight up, the client began running after our staff member. She ran right out the door and startled the rest of us!"

April Lyn Graffeo

Indra Salon and City Spa

Andover, Massachusetts

"The water was accidentally left on at the pedicure chair and the entire nail area flooded!"

Lacy Shirley

Hair Tech

Lewisville, Texas

"Hiring someone who was an absolute nightmare. After I had spent lots of money on advertising to help promote her business, I found out that she wasn't even "qualified" to do the work-and she was an independent contractor! I learned a great lesson."

Lynn Hammond

Harbor Hair Design

Kingston, Washington

"One time, the water pipes under our building busted and we didn't have hot water for morethan six hours."

Laurie Popover

Oz the Salon

Scottsdale, Arizona