Beauty salons jack up charges ahead of Eid

Women say parlours located in posh areas hiked prices by up to 200%

RAWALPINDI:

As the countdown for Eid ul Fitr began, the prices of beauty salon services skyrocketed. Hair styling, makeup, and henna services that were once affordable have now become exorbitant, leaving many women disappointed and concerned about the impact on their budgets especially during this period of neck-breaking inflation.

Several women complained that beauty salons throughout Rawalpindi especially those that were located inside different towns and societies had increased their rates of services by 100 to 200 per cent before Eid-ul-Fitr. Nevertheless, despite the steep increase in prices, women from affluent families have started booking appointments at beauty salons. This has led to an influx of customers, causing salons to extend their working hours till late at night.

The Beauty Parlours Association has given a formal pricing list for various services such that women's haircut is priced at Rs1,200, while hair styling costs between Rs1,400 to Rs1,500. Manicures, pedicures, and waxing are priced between Rs1,500 and Rs1,700 with eyebrows shaping at Rs300 and hair dye at Rs250. Facial whitening is priced at Rs2,200, while skin polish costs Rs2,000. The bride package is priced between Rs25,000 to Rs30,000, and a complete package including facial, hair colour, pedicure, haircut, and waxing at Rs15,000.

In this regard, the vice president of the Beauty Parlours Association Samia Abbasi, said that the majority of creams and oils used in the beautification process are sourced from foreign countries, and their costs have risen due to the increase in the value of the dollar. The entire beautification procedure for women typically takes around two to two and a half hours. As a result, renowned beauty salons that use only high-quality products have increased their prices to reflect the rising costs. These salons often experience high demand due to the premium quality of services offered, resulting in a rush of customers. The combination of higher costs and increased demand has led to higher prices in these salons.

She said that their beauty salon operates from Suhoor night to Eid moon night, and we have a policy of only accepting appointments with pre-determined deals during the Eid period. After Iftar on Chand Raat (moon night), our salon remains open continuously until 8am on the day of Eid to accommodate our customers.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 12^th, 2023.