The Mentor Chair · Clients & boundaries
The situation
The client is unhappy, money is on the table, and you have to decide what fair looks like.
From the mentor chair
Not automatically.
When a client tells you they aren’t happy with their hair, the first question shouldn’t be:
“How much money do I give back?”
The first question is:
“What happened, and can I reasonably fix it?”
There is a difference between a service genuinely not producing the result that was agreed upon and a client simply deciding afterward that they want something different.
There is also a difference between:
“This isn’t what we discussed.”
and:
“I thought I wanted this, but now I don’t like it on me.”
Those situations shouldn’t automatically have the same solution.
Start with the consultation
A lot of problems that look like refund problems actually start as communication problems.
What did the client ask for?
What did you tell them was realistically achievable?
Did you discuss maintenance?
Did you explain that their inspiration photo might take multiple appointments?
Did you both have the same understanding of what today’s appointment was supposed to accomplish?
A strong consultation doesn’t guarantee that nobody will ever be unhappy.
But it gives both of you something concrete to come back to when expectations don’t match the result.
Fix the hair when you can
If the result genuinely isn’t what you agreed to provide and it can reasonably be corrected, my preference is to fix the hair.
That doesn’t mean becoming defensive.
And it doesn’t mean making the client prove that something is wrong.
Listen first.
Look at the hair.
Figure out what happened.
Then decide what a fair correction looks like.
Sometimes that’s a toner.
Sometimes it’s adjusting a cut.
Sometimes it’s another appointment.
Sometimes the appropriate solution is something else entirely.
The point is to solve the actual problem instead of immediately reaching for a refund because the conversation feels uncomfortable.
But there are times a refund is appropriate
If you truly did not deliver the agreed-upon service and there isn’t a reasonable or appropriate way for you to correct it, then yes—a refund may be the fair thing to do.
Running a business doesn’t mean you never admit when something went wrong.
It means you handle it professionally when it does.
At the same time, a refund policy should not become a guarantee that every client gets their money back anytime they change their mind.
That’s why expectations and policies matter.
What about discounts?
Be careful about automatically discounting every time something becomes uncomfortable.
A discount should have a reason.
If you created an inconvenience—maybe you had an emergency, missed an appointment, or significantly disrupted the client’s experience—you may decide that offering something complimentary or adjusting the charge is the fairest response.
That’s different from discounting because you’re afraid someone is upset with you.
Fairness matters.
Fear shouldn’t be setting your prices after the service either.
Try this
Before deciding what to offer, ask yourself:
What did we agree on?
What was realistically achievable?
What result did I actually deliver?
Can this be reasonably corrected?
What solution would I consider fair if I were sitting on the other side of this conversation?
Then respond from there.
Not from panic.
Not from embarrassment.
And not because you’re afraid of a bad review.
Have the policy before you need it
Just like cancellation policies, your redo/refund policy should exist before you’re standing in front of an unhappy client.
Decide things like:
How soon does someone need to contact you?
What qualifies for a complimentary adjustment?
When is a change of mind considered a new service?
When would a refund be appropriate?
Then communicate those expectations clearly.
Policies don’t eliminate difficult conversations.
They give you something solid to stand on when those conversations happen.
Mentor note
You can stand behind your work without pretending you’re incapable of making a mistake.
And you can make something right without automatically giving away your work.
The goal isn’t to win against the client.
The goal is to find the fairest professional solution to what actually happened.
Redo & Refund Policy Builder
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