Last year, everyone tried everything, and that trend isn’t slowing down. People are using beauty to express themselves more, whether that’s through services like simple cuts and nude manis or more creative and experimental options.
A gendered service is not unlikely to find on a salon menu, but as client needs evolve, some salons are adapting. Jamie DiGrazia, Chicago stylist, owner Logan Parlor salon and founder of Hair Has No Gender NFP, shares why Inclusive Language is the future of beauty.
Inclusive Language For Business
There are plenty of angles to consider when adapting your menu and services to be more gender neutral. On the business side, it maximizes the schedule of the stylists and allows pricing to reflect their time and talent. By basing service prices on things like long, medium and short hair or design complexity, salons can plan bookings with precision. There can be obstacles in training and printing, but ultimately, salons that make the change will be able to project income for the day much better, according to DiGrazia. “It makes things flow much better in the salon,” DiGrazia says.
“It's illegal to charge based on gender in three states: California, New York, and Massachusetts,” DiGrazia adds. With states recognizing certain listings as discriminatory, salons and professionals that adapt early afford themselves better planning and remain in control, staying proactive instead of reactive. Not only will eliminating gendered language create a more attractive space for a wider range of clients, but it also minimizes overall risk.
Impact on Clients:
Clients, however they identify, will benefit in overt and subtle ways from this change. With a wave of consumer demand leaning towards more personalization in services and products, salons aware of the trend will clear up confusion and maximize customization.
“The client is receiving some really personalized care while being honored, respected and celebrated,” DiGrazia says, contrasting the opportunity against how harmful or discouraging it can be to limit hair or any beauty service to gendered projections. With clients no longer feeling encouraged to self-select out of different services, stylists can generate more trust and curiosity.
“Culturally, women are sick of paying more than men for something that is of the same quality, and non-binary people and gender non-conforming people deserve to have their identity validated and not have to pay for something aligned with a gender identity that is not theirs,” DiGrazia says, highlighting the pain points, “ I think men would experience more services in the salon if we didn't gender them so hard. We could be offering them facials or eyebrow tints.”
Who is Hair Has No Gender NFP?
“When we opened, we opened with gender free pricing because of my experience in a gendered pricing salon,” DiGrazia shared, as part of the inspiration for her salon but also a motivation for creating Hair Has No Gender NFP, “I took my salon company's mission and vision that hair has no gender and turned it into a nonprofit organization.”
Currently, Hair Has No Gender NFP has a service finder resource, which offers trans and non-binary people 800 salons all over the country that they could go to feel safe, seen and celebrated. “What we want to do as an organization is educate around how we elevate the industry with inclusive practices. Not just gender, but all hair types,” DiGrazia explained, “We have to make some changes in the beauty industry. Even around serving neurodivergent clients. So really, Hair Has No Gender NFP is more about inclusive practices throughout the industry.” Through Hair Has No Gender NFP, DiGrazia intends to amplify education, build community and bring beauty pros together for grassroots advocacy.
As beauty professionals, your work is about transformation and bringing people closer to themselves through craft and attention to detail. Through a language change, you could be opening doors into your business or reframing an existing client’s perspective on a service. De-gendering your services will only make it easier for your clients to choose you, and easier for you to manage your capacity and your schedule.
Stylists ready to get involved can sign up for Hair Has No Gender's Virtual or In-Person classes at HairHasNoGender.org
