I posted on the laser thread last week, but figured it would be off topic to post this story there. I found out that a well-known salon chain does electrolysis (most salons here just do IPL) and they had a trial coupon, 15 minutes for 1000y (current exchange rate is 118y/$1, so less than $10) so I decided to give it a shot.
The salon is called TBC, and they are fully licensed practicioners of electrolysis. I had to fill out detailed medical history, and they explained the entire procedure, very professional. This was my first time trying electrolysis so I don’t really know what’s good or not, but the woman who worked on me seemed very skilled and efficient. I was very happy with my treatment and was thinking of continuing it.
Then comes the catch! The friendly woman suddenly turns into an overbearing, pushy salesman. If I want to continue treatment, I have a variety of options. They wanted me to join as a member, which was 15,000y a year. Members get the benefit of a price reduction. Now I don’t HAVE to join as a member, but visitors are charged 700y per minute, while members are charged 600y a minute. Is it just me or is this rather high? I would potentially be willing to pay that much for infrequent treatments… but…
THEN, they have a mandatory skin care package you are forced to buy, which is about $40. Members do get half off, but that’s not all! Depending how many treatments you have, you have to buy more “after-care” product sets, which are about $80 each!
They were pushing me to buy these pre-paid cards, which came in increments of about $1000, $2000, and $3000, which if I wanted, I could pay on a rotating $100 /month schedule. I ended up telling them I’d have to think about it, and walked right out of there.
Now I know real good electrolysis doesn’t come cheap, but that just screams SCAM to me. I don’t need to go into years of debt for hair-free armpits. I wonder if any salons exist here that won’t try to rip you off. 