# Stay Alert

We hope you are all safe and well and would firstly like to express our gratitude for all the supportive messages that we have received during this testing time. 

We have, of course, been inundated with enquiries from customers asking when we will be opening, or indeed if we are open? We’re not sure how many of you have been keeping an eye on the media or the government briefings, but for those of you that need bringing up to speed, read on. As we are considered a ‘close contact’ business we fall into the same category as Restaurants and Bars and based on the PM’s recent announcement, it’s unlikely we will get the green light to re-open until at least mid-June to early July.

It is important that we all remain patient and do the right thing. A Barbershop environment is a very difficult place to properly self distance within, so hence the need to follow the Government’s guidelines to the T. We are already drafting re-opening policies for our team members, which will include meeting the COVID-19 secure government and industry guidelines. We have outlined below some of the features that will be implemented towards social distancing and hygiene once we are in a position to re-open for you. The health and safety of our customers and staff is paramount at all times. Please bear this in mind over the coming weeks and try to avoid getting impatient just because you’re looking a little grizzly.

“There are a number of reports of rogue Barbers operating behind closed doors, which is disappointing news and bad for industry standards. Do not compromise the safety of yourself & others around you for the sake of a haircut!”

As some of you may know, we took the decision to close a week early, before the official lockdown was implemented. We expedited safety precautions by getting clients to wash their hands on entry and sanitizing barber stations between each client change over. We feel that by implementing these actions, we may have saved many of you from potentially getting sick. During the interim, it has been frustrating to witness a number of local barbershops not applying the same principles, practices or common-sense, but instead concentrating more on lining their pockets before putting the welfare of their customers first.

Customers supporting their Barbershop

We have received a number of emails from customers asking how they could support the Valet to stay afloat during these testing times, possibly feeling anxious that they might lose their local barbershop. Not only were we extremely touched by these gestures, but it also confirmed what we have developed over the years; something a little more than just a shop, but more of a club based on a strong community.

Gift vouchers are still available to purchase online and will automatically be assigned to your client account, where they can then be redeemed on your next appointment. You can even send these gift cards to friends and family. Online bookings have been disabled for the time being, but as soon as we get the green light and have a date to re-open we will let you all know and will then switch this back on.

What we will do to protect you

We will fully implement and comply with the Government’s recommended COVID-19 secure saftey practices and guidelines. The health and safety of our customers and staff is paramount, so please do keep this in mind. We guarantee that we will be the salon in the Borough that leads by example, acting responsibly and taking the best possible precautions to protect you.

In order to fully implement the guidelines during the ‘Stay Alert’ period, we will need to make certain adjustments to our services which will reduce the level of experience that you are normally used to receiving from us. We hope that we will be able to re-introduce our service offering in full, just as soon as confidence levels have been resumed. We all know things are going to be different for a while for all of us.

The precautions will include:

• All clients will receive hand sanitiser on entry and exit of the salon
• Staff will wear face masks and clients will be encouraged to wear a face-covering
• Staff to wear surgical gloves during all facial treatments, including include hot towel treatments
• Towels and gowns will be washed on a high heat and changed throughout the day
• Regular and thorough cleaning of the salon using an anti-bacterial spray, with particular attention to areas of multiple contact, such as door handles, handrails, toilet flushes, taps, credit card machine etc.
• Barber stations and chairs to be cleaned with anti-bacterial spray after each changeover
• All equipment, such as clippers, combs and scissors will be sanitised on each client changeover
• Complimentary hot beverages will be temporarily withdrawn from our service offering
• The removal of newspapers and magazines within the salon
• All staff will work to the highest hygiene standards and follow Government and NHS guidelines
• There will be a dedicated space for over 70s, and people with an underlying health condition
• Services will be carried out strictly by appointment only – no walk-ins accepted
• Waiting areas will be limited to a maximum of two people in total at any one time
• The salon will only be accessible for people with an appointment
• Services that include facial steam may temporarily be removed from our offering
• Shifts will be rotated in order to minimise the number of staff members on-premise
• We will operate shorter weeks in the early days

We trust that you’ll appreciate these adjustments are only temporary so we can provide a ‘Covid secure’ environment for you. The more we all co-operate to ‘Stay Alert’, the quicker we will hopefully be able to resume our normal lives.

How to book your next appointment

We’ve received an incredible amount of emails asking the key question; ‘When are you re-opening?’ If you haven’t already relented to a haircut from your partner or self-inflicted a No. 1 all over, then you’re probably looking like you belong in 1970’s San-Francisco.

So you booked an appointment before we suddenly had to close our doors and many of you are asking if we will have a waiting list. Well, those of you who already had an appointment booked that we were unable to fulfil will be contacted first, just as soon as we have an opening date, in order to re-schedule your appointment. So yes those that were already booked and missed out will be offered the first slots when we’re in a position to open the appointment book. You will receive a call from the front desk followed by a text message.

After this, we will switch back on our telephone lines and online booking system so that the rest of you can secure an appointment. We will send out a text notification to all clients, as well as posts on Facebook and Instagram, so please like and follow us on our social media platforms to be notified, if you don’t already.

Stay safe, we look forward to seeing you soon.