Haircuts an early priority
Many locals were up early last Friday morning to get a trim when hairdressers opened, and restrictions eased.
About 10 people were queueing outside of The Cutting Lounge in Warragul before their 9am opening.
Warragul resident Rhonda Gibson said it was nice to get out and get a trim.
“I thought I better get up early, have a shower and be the first one here but there were about eight before me, so I lost out this morning,” Ms Gibson said.
It appeared many had the same idea, with locals masked up and waiting their turn for a haircut.
“It doesn’t matter because they go through them pretty quick and I’ve been coming here for about 14, 15 years and was one of their first customers when they opened up,” she said.
Ms Gibson said she’s had a few snippets here and there during lockdown but has avoided bringing out the clippers.
“We’ve been lucky we haven’t been locked down for months so most people just let it grow a bit crazy and come in, we had one lady say that she might become Rapunzel if we don’t open up soon,” Co-owner of the Cutting Lounge Darren McDonald said.
For hospitality and hairdressing businesses, there are strict density limits of 10 customers per indoor venue, so the salon has put seats on the footpath for people in line.
Under the previous lockdown, the business could host more than 10 customers per the square metre rule.
“It’s these changing rules that makes things very hard, if they just kept it constant then it would be good,” Mr McDonald said.
The business expects to be busy for the next three weeks as people catch up on colours.
“We’ve still got outgoing bills like everyone else, we’ve got mortgages so it’s great to have that income coming back.
“We’ve been struggling like all small businesses, we’ve had a few issues with getting the latest round of government assistance because of clerical problems,” Mr McDonald said.