REVIEW: Peppermint Salon: P500 First Haircut with Certificate (P770 Value) from Deal Grocer!

Peppermint Salon, SM Aura

When Rhyme popped out of me to see the outer world, he instantly had full locks. I pretty much think that it was normal not until I saw some babies and even toddlers having "weird" hair growth -- and I don't mean "weird" in a bad way. It's just I've seen some babies who mostly have hairs on the sides, or at the center, or have slow hair growth. For Rhyme, it was different. He had lots of hair covering his head, and as they grew long, they became wavy. He wasn't even a year old then but we had to do a "man bun" on him to get him through the sunny, sticky season.

Following traditions, we waited until he is a year old for his first haircut. We scouted kiddie salons and bumped into this deal from Deal Grocer : Your Tot's First Haircut with a Certificate (Weekdays) for Php 500 at Peppermint Salon. This rate is (or almost) the regular rate for the other kiddie salons, but we still opted to try it for the following reasons:

• I've noticed that Deal Grocer's merchant partners are selected carefully, and are a bit on the "high-end" level
• Peppermint Salon has higher rates compared to the other salons, and I was hoping it will translate to better quality of service and ambiance
• Peppermint Salon has a branch in SM Aura, which is relatively near our place

Playing after his haircut

We called for an appointment weeks before our target date (Allen's birthday). We were told to be in the salon between 2PM and 3PM.

The long-waited day has come. But as we wanted Rhyme to be in his best mood for his first haircut, we fed him well and allowed him to nap first before we go to Peppermint Salon. Unfortunately, his nap took a bit long and we were afraid we might miss the schedule. But my thinking was, as long as we arrive before 3PM, we should be fine. But NO. We came around 15minutes before 3PM. We were surprised to see a sign on the door that there will be an exclusive party from 3PM to 6PM. We still went in and insisted to be included in the cut-off (before the party starts) but we failed as the foreigner, who reserved the place, and some of the guests were already there. We ended up just having the "before" picture, and then we were told to come back by 6:15PM.

Waaaaahhh... I was really disappointed, at first, as we already have planned activities laid throughout the day for Allen's birthday. With this circumstance, we were forced to adjust what we planned. I wish Peppermint Salon could have informed us about the exclusive party ahead of time so we could have just re-scheduled or come on a later time. But again, as it was a special day for us, we just tried to be flexible about the situation.

Is someone not so happy with his haircut? But you still look so cute, baby!

By the time we were informed to go back to the salon, Rhyme was already asleep. But as we need to keep going due to a scheduled dinner in another venue, we agreed to have the haircut while Rhyme is sleeping. Both Rhyme and I wore a cover and were seated in a comfortable area to do the haircut. Unfortunately, while we're in the process, Rhyme woke up and started crying! I guess this is where the stylist's skill comes in, which probably, he get to deal with everyday -- crying toddlers. The stylist did it fast and carefully. And even though Rhyme was not in a good mood, we still get to check the hairstyle and adjust as I deemed needed. When we were done, the staff assisted me in removing the hair on my clothes using a blow dryer. It was only after the haircut that Rhyme got to enjoy the jet seat and the other toys (at least he still got to try them!).

For the First Haircut certificate, we were told that it will be available after a month, and that we will be informed via SMS. A month after, while we were in SM Aura, we thought of checking if the certificate is already available (we haven't received a notification yet). As expected, we went home empty-handed. We had several follow ups since then but it was only after 2months (since the haircut) that we finally received a confirmation that the certificate is available. And here it is, tadaaaahhh!!

Rhyme's First Haircut Certificate, frame not included

Despite what happened, I would still say that this is a good deal for the following reasons:

• The place has a very nice, cute, kid-friendly ambiance
• The staff are friendly and accommodating
• The stylist was skilled enough and seems very used to dealing with not-so-good-mood toddlers
• They do have cute First Haircut Certificate templates to choose from

Probably, they can improve more on communication or notification of their clients. For instance, like in our case, they could have informed the clients scheduled between 2PM and 6PM about the exclusive party. Also, if they cannot provide the certificate within the schedule they specified, they should have informed their clients about the delay.

Peppermint Kids Salon and Spa Boutique
Basement 1, SM AURA PREMIER
McKinley Parkway corner 26th Street, Taguig City
+632 553 3597; +63939 9251480
Open everyday from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM