Do you tip your barber?

[Wingshooter]

Yep. I tip the young lady that cuts my hair. It's mostly clippers, but she always does a good job.

[MacGyver]

Yes. 

[Obiwan]

I usually give my barber a kiss. Or a pat on the butt. Or both.

[TripleGGG]

Always tip. Went to the same barber for 27 years then I moved to TN. Finally found a good barber and a fun, entertaining barbershop in Farragut. The entertainment is well worth the tip. 

[Spiffy]

I use the same lady that Mom goes to. One time I pushed her shoulder and told her I was tipping her. Everyone laughed.

[Mark A]

Yep, small businessman, busting his hump to raise his family which includes a disabled child. His wife stays home and they home school their kids and they are doing a great job. I'm happy to give him extra money.

[A516]

I recently had to find a new barber after the one I had going to unexpectedly passed away.  I found a barber in a one man shop closer to home who does a much better job than my previous barber.  Only charges $5.00 for a burr cut.  I give him $10.00 for a burr for the great job and being a nice person.  He deserves more than $5.00 for a haircut.

[glowdotGlock]

I've been getting mine cut by the same gal for years. She's always good conversation. I think my cut is about $14 but I give her a 20 every two weeks to stay trimmed up.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[Murgatroy]

Yes. My grandfather, whom I have maybe five fond memories of (out of fifteen fond memories from the male role models in my entire life) always tipped his barber. To this day, regardless of who ( I don't have a regular barber) cuts my hair, I tip $5. As a result of my cheap old man status, of my ten yearly haircuts, I perform nine of them myself. This means more money to spend on my hobbies most of the year.

Edited October 25, 2017 by Murgatroy

[analog_kidd]

I started going to this little place down the road when it opened up a year or so ago. It's just one gal running her own business, and she can set the price. She set it at $10, which I think is too low. I always toss her some extra money when I pay.

I had been going to a barber shop in Oak Ridge That had bought out the shop I had been going to for years and moved it to a new location. I really like the atmosphere. They play "guy movies" all the time, have guns and tobacco signs on the wall, they even put in a pool table for folks to use while waiting, or even if you wanted to play after your cut. The one thing is, is they are pricey. I went there one time and a new guy cut my hair. He gave me such a good cut and went way above and beyond the normal haircut experience, like a steamed towel on my neck, talcum powder finish, straight razor to the back of the neck. It was great, and I tipped him well. The next time I went I asked for him, and all I got was the basic quickie. I got the feeling that nobody ever tipped him, and he just said "why bother". 

Now all that said, I think the tipping culture we have here in America is ridiculous. I feel that it's awkward, you never know what the expectations are, and a lot of people don't do it, even when the service provider counts on it to supplement their income. I would much rather we go to a system where you tell me what you want to get paid, and that is the price. For everything.

[john455]

With barbers like Rubles they have to compete with the big chains like super cuts  so they have to charge similar prices, so tips are important.

 I like the tipping system because it is a way for the customer to show how happy or unhappy we are with the service that is provided, I never tip by a % of the check, I tip by the service I receive. I have tipped $5 on a $3 check before for great service and have tipped $.25 on a $30 check for bad. This is one reason I won't eat at a restaurant that auto adds a tip to your bill, A tip is a gratuity not a obligation. If you work in the service industry and you walk around with a frown, or an unpleasant personality, you might want to think about a career change. IMHO

[peejman]

I didn't typically tip my barber. My haircut is simple and I figured $10 for 10 mins of work was a pretty good wage, well above my hourly rate. 

When I had kids, I did start tipping for the aggravation/patience in dealing with my squirmy kids.  But after a few of those multi-hour $40 trips to the barber, I bought some clippers, gave them to my wife with a couple YouTube videos and said, "have at it". 

She does a pretty good job. Though one could argue paying the barber $40 is much cheaper.  

[Sam1]

Always a tip.  A good barber is hard to find.  Only time they change is if I move, or they retire/go out of business.

[MP5_Rizzo]

I never really gave much thought about tipping until I took a vacation to Australia, 20 plus years ago.  While reading up on things to know one of things discussed was tipping.  It seems that the practice of tipping is a very American thing.  At that time in Australia, tipping was not expected in the service industry and doing so may have been construed as an insult.  I know times and cultural norms are changing so I have no idea if this is still true.  So as for things changing the person that cuts my hair has not in many years.  During the early years I tipped but on the low side. After years of visiting the same person I know just about everything there is to know about my barber, her lifestyle, spending habits, her wants and most of all her needs.  Since I've worked like a dog for over 35 years, my disposable income has moved to a higher level and I will leave an above average tip if I feel like the person providing the service has earned or given me good cause to.

Edited October 25, 2017 by MP5_Rizzo

[hipower]

MP5_Rizzo touched on something here. "...Tipping is a very American thing."

As a younger person, I detested the tipping idea. I always thought you worked a job, and you got paid for your work. Yes I know all the relevant comments about service industry low wages, but I never liked the across the board practice. Going into a place of any sort and knowing that above the posted price for food/services. that you'd be expected to give an additional amount. That just didn't sit well with me.

I've watched the amount increase from 10, then 15, now 25 percent, and more, being "suggested" in some places. This still irks me.

I was brought up thinking you worked for a job. If you worked hard, you got a raise. I relate that now to tipping.

If you do your job in a lackluster manner...I do not tip. If you ignore me, have a bad attitude...I do not tip.

If you excel in what you are doing for me, I will tip. If I see you hustling about your job, doing more than is the required minimum, I will tip.

And I make it a practice to seek out the management and compliment people of the last two types. I figure they deserve to be noticed and have managers understand that as a customer, I see and appreciate someone like that. That is what brings me back to an establishment.

And not to spoil my reputation here, yes I have bowed to social convention...I do tip in most situations. Grudgingly. A minimal amount.

Just don't ask me to tip just because you run a register or drop a plate on my table.

 

Sorry, I did go a far bit off track here from the original quest. lol But to answer...do I tip my barber?

Well, my wife and I have been going to the same person for our hair services for well over 30 years. The young lady, relatively to me anyway, is a friend of my wife. We have known her and her family. Started going to her when she first began as a stylist. Helped and supported her thru marital problems, boyfriend issues after a bad marriage, and the deaths of her parents.

We are long past the stage of customer/stylist. We are family. I do not as a rule tip. We/I do give gifts at Christmas and her birthday. If I need an emergency cut, or I call asking to be worked into a busy schedule, I will drop more than she charges into her hands.

I guess I'm just a wee bit strange, and my situation isn't what everyone else might have.

Edited October 25, 2017 by hipower

[Omega]

18 minutes ago, MP5_Rizzo said:

I never really gave much thought about tipping until I took a vacation to Australia, 20 plus years ago.  While reading up on things to know one of things discussed was tipping.  It seems that the practice of tipping is a very American thing.  At that time in Australia, tipping was not expected in the service industry and doing so may have been construed as an insult.  I know times and cultural norms are changing so I have no idea if this is still true.  So as for things changing the person that cuts my hair has not in many years.  During the early years I tipped but on the low side. After years of visiting the same person I know just about everything there is to know about my barber, her lifestyle, spending habits, her wants and most of all her needs.  Since I've worked like a dog for over 35 years, my disposable income has moved to a higher level and I will leave an above average tip if I feel like the person providing the service has earned or given me good cause to.

In Japan it is the same way, no tipping.  They get paid for what the job entails and tipping is seen as insulting.  I'm not much for tipping I must admit, mostly because I rarely get what I consider outstanding service.  It sucks that waiters, waitresses get paid less than they should because of tips, at least they used to , don't know about now, but when I get ignored, or other bad service, I don't think a tip is in order.  I used to just leave a couple/three bucks on the table for a less than $50 bill, but was told that 20-30% was what I should be leaving.  Heck that's $10 or $15 for a refill (maybe) of tea,  so now, I let the wife calculate the tip, that way I wash my hands of it and don't see the bill.  Yea, I'm cheap, but I really don't feel that the service is worth that much, specially at some of these restaurants around here.

[Omega]

7 minutes ago, hipower said:

MP5_Rizzo touched on something here. "...Tipping is a very American thing."

As a younger person, I detested the tipping idea. I always thought you worked a job, and you got paid for your work. Yes I know all the relevant comments about service industry low wages, but I never liked the across the board practice. Going into a place of any sort and knowing that above the posted price for food/services. that you'd be expected to give an additional amount. That just didn't sit well with me.

I've watched the amount increase from 10, then 15, now 25 percent, and more, being "suggested" in some places. This still irks me.

I was brought up thinking you worked for a job. If you worked hard, you got a raise. I relate that now to tipping.

If you do your job in a lackluster manner...I do not tip. If you ignore me, have a bad attitude...I do not tip.

If you excel in what you are doing for me, I will tip. If I see you hustling about your job, doing more than is the required minimum, I will tip.

And I make it a practice to seek out the management and compliment people of the last two types. I figure they deserve to be noticed and have managers understand that as a customer, I see and appreciate someone like that. That is what brings me back to an establishment.

And not to spoil my reputation here, yes I have bowed to social convention...I do tip in most situations. Grudgingly. A minimal amount.

Just don't ask me to tip just because you run a register or drop a plate on my table.

Ha, I must of been typing.  It irks me to see tipping jars at places like starbucks, where the coffee is already way overpriced.

[JAB]

I don't have a regular barber, stylist, etc. but I generally do tip for a haircut.

As for other tipping, I agree with Omega - sometimes it irks me to see a tip jar.  If I stop into a 'sit down' restaurant but get my food to go I see no reason why I should be expected to tip someone for punching in my order, ringing it up, taking my money and then handing the food to me.  I might toss a dollar in the jar if the person is especially efficient and friendly but a percentage tip isn't going to happen any more than I am going to tip the person doing the exact, same thing at McDonald's.

When did the 'suggested' tip amount go to 25% or 30%?  That also isn't going to happen.  If a server does a fantastic job I will tip 20%, maybe a hair more if the bill is pretty low.  With rising restaurant prices that is already a pretty penny, honestly - especially when (as others have said) all they have to do is take my order, drop off my plate and maybe refill my drink.  I understand that servers don't get paid much but that sounds like an industry problem that needs to be addressed and not a problem that the customer should be expected to make up for with exorbitant tips.  I believe that restaurants - especially 'casual dining' type restaurants and up - should be required to pay all employees at least minimum wage.  I figure that if they are charging me $15 or so for a little bit of chicken and a side or two they can afford to pay the waiter/waitress who brings it to me (and who is taking in like amounts for the restaurant from other customers at the same time) a real wage.  Don't expect me to pay that much for your food AND be responsible for paying your employees so you can pocket all the profits.  Of course, I don't eat at that type of restaurant all that much anymore because they have raised prices while greatly reducing portion sizes.  Even if the quality of the food is still there that quality and the experience generally doesn't warrant paying more money for half the food as what they served four or five years ago and then being expected to pay their staff, as well.

Edited October 25, 2017 by JAB

[monkeylizard]

19 minutes ago, JAB said:

I might toss a dollar in the jar if the person is especially hot and flirts with me.

Fixed it! 

 

At least that's how I operate. . .

Edited October 25, 2017 by monkeylizard

[hammerdrop99]

I always tip my barber. Small businessman who took over the 30 year old shop from his dad, close to home and charges a reasonable price. He even offered to come to my Dad's home to cut his hair when he was bedridden in his last days. A good guy and hope he stays in the neighborhood for a long time to come.

[AuEagle]

Yep..

[Pain103]

 $5 everytime. Helps its my cousin and they only charge me like 8 or 9 bucks. 

[dralarms]

Deleted

Edited October 26, 2017 by dralarms
Felt it was inappropriate

[wttam]

Yes. Same lady has cut my hair for about 35 years.

[quickbiscuit]

The same guy has cut my hair, and now what's left of it, for 30 years.  Small town barber shops guarantee good conversation.  He only charges $8, and I always give him $10.  Seems greedy to ask for two bucks back.