Sacramento hair salons and barbershops slowly reopen, working to safely welcome clientele

It looks like Californians may go shaggy a few more days or weeks.

Although hair salons and barbershops were given the green light to resume business in Sacramento County with safety modifications, many styling chairs and barber stools remained vacant Wednesday.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Tuesday that haircuts and shaves would be allowed in the 47 counties that have proven they could track and contain a coronavirus outbreak — a move that took many business owners by surprise.

Hair salon and barbershop owners are now racing to meet a catalog of new rules and guidance from the California Department of Public Health and the California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology meant to keep both employees and customers safe from infection.

Among the requirements? Customers and workers will both have to wear a mask during a haircut. Magazines, books, coffee and other high-touch items near the reception area will need to be removed. Workstations have to be thoroughly sanitized between customers, meaning stylists can’t double-book appointments.

The reopening of hair salons and barbershops, along with the reopening of churches for limited in-person worship, may represent California’s riskiest steps forward yet in the coronavirus economic reopening era. A leading state health official, Santa Clara County’s Dr. Sara Cody, suggested this week Newsom is now moving too fast.

Newsom acknowledged the uncertainty of the new moves.

“We are entering into the unknown, the untested,” he said during his Tuesday coronavirus briefing. He made a point of saying that the state will see an increase in cases in the coming weeks, partly because of the reopening and partly because of more testing.

But despite the risk, many hair salons and barbershops report that people are clamoring to secure an appointment for hair coloring or a clean shave. And some owners say hair salons, which already face a mountain of sanitation requirements, are more than capable of rising to the occasion demanded by the new safety measures.

Briana Burster, owner of Details Salon in East Sacramento, said the reopening of hair salons around the state is a bigger event — emotionally — than some might think. Getting roots touched up or hair trimmed is much more than a bit of grooming.

“Everybody wants to feel good about themselves. It feels good to get your hair done,” Burster said. “Getting rid of that gray helps you emotionally. They’re just happy to be here. I wish I could see their smiling faces, not just their eyes.”

She plans to work from 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. six day a week starting next week. But she scheduled just six clients Wednesday to ease back into the rhythm of work, and to maintain safety protocols.

County checking compliance

Over Memorial Day weekend, patrons at flocked to newly reopened restaurants for dine-in service — some not wearing masks or gathering in large groups — and tight crowds formed along the American River to cool off from triple-digit heat.

As Sacramento County has begun to loosen stay-at-home restrictions in the last few weeks, businesses and residents have been following safety guidelines to varying degrees of success.

That’s equally likely to be the case over the next few days with haircutters.

Both Sacramento County and state regulators will be doing checks on barbers and salons to see if they are obeying the rules, with a goal of education and persuasion rather than cracking down.

“There will be random checks to ensure businesses are in compliance, just as there have been for restaurants,” county spokeswoman Janna Haynes said.

“As before, we take an education road, not enforcement. In the event we find a business out of compliance, we will work to educate them on the requirements and determine what they may be missing in order to comply.”

County officials say people can report a business out of compliance by calling 311.

Perhaps the biggest danger now that hair salons and barbershops are reopening is that a substantial percentage of COVID-positive people are temporarily or entirely asymptomatic. Researchers have reported in the last couple months that as many as 25 to 50 percent of people with COVID-19 could be unaware they carry the virus.

That means customers could go to get a haircut feeling healthy, or an employee could show up to work without symptoms, and unintentionally spread the virus.

Newsom acknowledged Tuesday that “we are fearful as people begin to mix, you have flareups.” And that could put “enormous pressure” on more rural areas of the state where health care facilities are limited.

That will require vigilance, he said. But the percentage of people testing positive is within manageable parameters, and overall hospitals have a lot of capacity. The state’s growing workforce of contact tracers will also work as a key backstop, Newsom said, quickly investigating a positive case tied a salon or barbershop.

So far, regulatory officials with the state Board of Barbering and Cosmetology have taken a tough stance on salons during the coronavirus pandemic that had opened earlier than allowed by Newsom, such as in Yuba and Sutter counties. Officials contacted a number of them telling them to close up until given the OK.

Earlier this month, the board posted a warning on its Facebook page: “If businesses continue to put public health and safety at risk by not following the guidance provided, and if circumstances warrant it, the Board may pursue disciplinary action against their license. This will not be taken lightly.”

So far, the state has received 1,324 complaints from across California regarding shops being open or haircutters working at home since the pandemic started. While state cosmetology board officials are processing those complaints, “as of today, the Board has not taken any enforcement actions against licensees for violating stay at home orders,” said spokeswoman Cheri Gyuro.

Some open now, others opening soon

Although many hair salons and barbershops are delaying their reopening, Kristen Humes couldn’t wait to start working — she was cutting hair for clients by Wednesday morning at her mom’s salon in East Sacramento, Lola’s Hair Salon.

Humes said Newsom’s announcement to allow hairdressers reopen immediately came to her as a surprise.

“We thought we wouldn’t be allowed to open until Phase 3 — until at least late June,” she said.

Under Phase 3 of Newsom’s plan for lifting the statewide stay-at-home order, movie theaters, large churches, gyms and nail salons would be allowed to reopen with safety measures. Hair salons and barbershops were originally included in his Newsom’s Phase 3 plan.

To ensure physical distancing, stylists at the Folsom Boulevard salon staggered their hours so that no more than three worked at a time. Inside, clients and workers wore masks, and the usual waiting area was closed off — clients have to wait in their cars until contacted.

The salon had five customers on Wednesday and plans to schedule no more than ten customers per day. Before the coronavirus outbreak, the salon typically had eight to 12 customers per stylist on a normal day, Humes said.

But while Lola’s Hair Salon was already open for business Wednesday, many more remained closed, as stylists and owners put in place new safety precautions.

John Waldron, owner of Johnny’s Barbershop, is holding off on reopening his shop until Friday. He said he’s still waiting on a shipment of necessary protective equipment, like more disposable chair capes.

Shannon Marlin, owner of Spanish Fly Hair Garage and Maverique Style House, said she needs time to go over all the rules and regulation with her staff. She plans to open the stores Monday.

“I was really prepared for some really hardcore stuff,” like no air conditioning or required face shields. “I think we’ve got it fairly easy, just common sense stuff.”

And Larry Cromwell, owner of three hair salons in Folsom, said he’ll have a contractor come out to put up some “nice partitions” between the shampoo bowls on Friday. His stores — Maribou Spa Salon, Maribou Salon on Sutter and Maribou Salon at the Palladio — won’t be open until Monday.

“We don’t want anyone to get sick, of course we’re very nervous,” Cromwell said. “The phone’s ringing right now. It’s ringing every minute.”

This story was originally published May 27, 2020 at 4:42 PM.