Hair salons, barbershops reopen across state to eager clientele

“Hold still,” Johnna Dineley tells a visitor to the JoDavi Salon in Trumbull as she takes aim with a handheld scanning thermometer. Satisfied with the results, she adds, “Sorry, it’s part of our new policy. That’s just the way it has to be.”

Plenty of eager customers streamed into barbershops and hair salons Monday, as well as plenty of enthusiastic hairstylists looking to make up for lost revenue after more than two months out of business due to the coronavirus shutdown.

At a number of hair salons across the region, customers were waiting at the doorsteps at 7 or 8 a.m. for a trim, thanks to the partial reopening of businesses allowed by the state. Customers were making appointments from New York

and New Jersey, where salons are still closed due to public health concerns.

The snip-snip sound of scissors was joyful to the ears of Gabriella DeStefano, the owner of Gavali Salon on the Post Road in Fairfield. Having put her entire life savings into an expanded operation at a new location, DeStefano said it was intensely stressful to close it down when the coronavirus regulations were imposed in mid-March.

“I put a lot of money into it, and I was preparing to pay back what I spent in the next few months (after) opening,” she said. “All of a sudden we were shut down — and it was very scary.”

DeStefano said all of her employees applied for unemployment right away. She said she was lucky in that she received a loan from the Small Business Administration. “We’ve been living off that for the past few weeks,” DeStefano said. “Now that we’re open, it will be a lot easier to survive.”

The work was rewarding, but the pace has been relentless, she said. “It’s been really crazy.”

DeStefano said her staff is still trying to adjust to the procedures laid out by the state.

“We have to have everyone fill out questionnaires and waivers,” Travali DeStefano said. “We have to check their temperature. We have to sanitize the station after each person comes in and leaves.”

Travali DeStefano said the extra time required to follow state regulations has made made a busy day busies.

“It’s definitely an adjustment,” she said.

Dineley estimated she spent about $5,000 making changes to her Trumbull shop to comply with the current health protocols. That includes installing plastic barriers at the front desk and reconfiguring the layout to create more space between clients.

The 3,000-square foot salon is operating at half capacity with every other chair left empty. The coffee and tea bar is gone, and the lounge areas where clients could relax on couches before or after their appointments are taped off.

Also, the cost of being open has risen with the cost of personal protective equipment and sanitizer added to the salon’s overhead.

“But after two months of no income, we’re happy to be open,” she said.

Like other salon owners, Dineley said Gov. Ned Lamont’s backtrack on reopening hairstylists and salons had put the industry in a bind. After initially stating salons would be allowed to reopen May 20, Lamont changed his mind May 18 after hearing complaints from salon owners who said they could not safely reopen.

Dineley attributed the about-face to a small group of disproportionally vocal salon owners.

“He didn’t hear from me,” Dineley said. “I was too busy running around getting everything ready to reopen.”

The delayed reopening was devastating, she said.

“We had made all the changes, bought all the supplies, and extended our hours, then to have to tell everyone that we couldn’t open,” she said.

The staff also bore the brunt of the reconsideration, she said.

“They had come off unemployment because they wanted to come back to work, and then it’s another two weeks before they can come back,” Dineley said.

In Ansonia, at Copper City Classic, the chairs were full — but the hiatus had taken a toll.

“It was a terrible time for my employees,” said Frank John, who owns the shop, as well as Company Z Property Maintenance. “I was able to exist. I stayed positive, but I lost three of my employees to other jobs. I told them go ahead. You got to do what you can to put food on the table.”

On Monday, Daniel Perry, an 18-year-old Seymour resident, and Goodfellas client showed up for his 2:30 p.m. appointment.

“It was inconvenient,” he said of not having his hair cut for three months.