Salon, barbershop owners’ day of joy turns into heartbreak

On Monday morning, Santa Clara County’s hair salons and barbershops reopened for the first time since March 16.

Just hours later, salon and shop owners learned they had just one more day before indoor salon services would have to close again.

“It was exciting, exciting, we get to open, then boom — just devastating,” said Laure Chicoine, the owner of the Nirvana Aveda Concept Salon in Los Gatos.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s order to close indoor business operations in more than 30 hard-hit counties is the latest setback in a long journey for Santa Clara County’s hair salons and barber shops.

The county was among the earliest to shutter its hair salons, and until Sunday,

it was one of three counties in the state — along with San Francisco and Alameda — still keeping them closed.

To stay afloat, Chicoine furloughed her employees and got an Economic Injury Disaster Loan from the Small Business Administration. At the end of June, she organized a protest to demand a reopening date from the county.

On July 2, she got one: Santa Clara County announced that it would allow more businesses, including hair salons, to reopen on July 13.

Two days later, California denied the county’s reopening request. Three days after that, the state changed its mind and approved the variance to reopen.

“We thought it was a prank or something,” Chicoine said on Thursday. “But we confirmed it through Mike Wasserman, and so now here we are, ready to reopen.”

Chicoine cleaned her salon and restocked her supplies. She called customers back and rescheduled appointments that had been pushed off for months.

Fifteen minutes northeast, Dave Diggs was readying his barber shop, The Barbers’ Inc, to reopen. It had been a hard few months for him, too. Unemployment benefits went a long way towards covering his personal expenses. But as a business owner, it was different: Even though he wasn’t bringing in customers, he still had to pay for his shop’s rent, water, electricity and WiFi. Like Chicoine, he got an Economic Injury Disaster Loan to help cover the cost.

“I ‘lose’ about $13K monthly when we aren’t open,” Diggs said. “Times four months … I couldn’t possibly continue to be in business without help from the state.”

It would be “devastating to the business” if they had to close again, Diggs said hours before Newsom’s crushing announcement.

Around a dozen customers got their hair cut at Diggs’ downtown San Jose barber shop on Monday, as music blasted between two rows of black leather chairs and employees and customers alike delighted at being back in the shop.

“It’s a literal weight off,” said customer Esteban Galvin, who has been getting his hair cut by Diggs since 2010.

Diggs had customers booked through the end of the week. So did Chicoine, in Los Gatos, where the familiar scents of hair dye and incense hung in the air, wafting around new temperature check stations at the door and hand sanitizer dispensers mounted on the wall.

In the middle of touching up a long-time customer’s roots, Chicoine learned about Newsom’s order. But it wasn’t clear at that time if it might apply to Santa Clara County.

“We’ve invested hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on barriers and face shields and aprons and sanitation supplies,” Chicoine said. “If you’re going to open, then give us a chance to stay open for a while.”

Nancy Crutchfield, one of Chicoine’s customers, said, “These are businesses. You can’t just turn it on and turn it off like that.”

Hours later, county officials issued a response to Newsom’s order: Indoor salon services would have to close Wednesday at midnight.

“I’m completely devastated and disappointed,” Chicoine said.

Neither Chicoine nor Diggs know yet how they’re going to survive this new round of closures: “So much stuff is up in the air,” Diggs said.

Diggs said he doesn’t know if he’ll be able to get more money from the government to cover expenses without the ability to bring in revenue. Chicoine doesn’t know if she’ll be able to keep her salon in Los Gatos afloat.

For now, they’re trying to make the most of their 48hour window. Chicoine and another stylist were adding on more clients Monday night, and she’s got a 10-hour day booked for Tuesday.

“I don’t want to just sit at home and collect unemployment,” Chicoine said. “I want to be behind the chair, in the salon, visiting with my clients.”