Bad Experiences at Beauty |Slimming Centres | Spa

[efai]

if they want to offer those deals or trials they should be showing their best so that customers would want to sign.
and not do a sloppy job and "close door release dogs" to make you sign while u did not even enjoy the services properly.

i went for a facial trial and only the very basics were done.
as my skin is quite sensitive, i had to wait a day or two to see if there were any effects (whether good or bad), so i won't be able to sign right after the session. but the therapist keep pushing to say the offer is only valid on the day, if want to sign up another day it will be more expensive.
or, they only running this promo now. when it is over there will be no more promos.

crap l.a.h. they have promos every other day.

same goes to massage. you can't really feel it right after the session.
got to go home and see if you can sleep well and how the body feels the next few days.

they should be confident that if they are good, customers will come back naturally.
if they are pushy, something is very wrong.

[Borgen-breeze]

Dear fellow spa going sisters,

Like all of you on this thread, I am frustrated and angered by all the unethical spa tactics being used out there. LIke any hardworking woman who loves a good pampering session now and again, I often looked forward to a good massage or facial session after an exhausting week, but due to the number of hard sell and pushy tactic used by so called "consultants", I now only look forward to using up my remaining package ASAP.

This is a shame because as time goes by, instead of making us part with more of our money, their tactics only made us even smarter and more cautious for an already cut-throat and competitive industry. We now look forward going to our neighbouring countries such as Indonesia or Thailand for our pampering sessions than with the local ones because they don't get us to sign on packages, they don't try to sell us things that we don't need and most importantly they do a good job and don't put us down by pointing to us our imperfections and flaws everytime we visit them. None of that "oh...you have very oily T-zone and you need our special S$288 lotion to cure it" !

The spa industry in Singapore needs a big wake-up call to realise that gone are the days when they think they can continue to deliver medicore products and services, expect us smart and educated women to give in to their forceful tactics and continuous humiliation. They need to know that those tactics worked on our mothers and our aunties 15 years ago but times have changed and they need to change with the world too.

I get on very well with a few of my usual therapist and through our conversations, I found out that many of them are simply under pressure from higher management where greedy bosses are not happy just earning a sustainable business. Many just want the exploit the most out of the minimum effort ! Most therapist actually suffers from knuckles and backache problems due to the nature of their job such as using high amount of pressure for massages and bending down day in day out. Higher managements such as the managers and so called "consultants" who doesn't do the actual massaging themselves are often harsh and unsympathetic towards the therapists when they take the occasional off days or do not know how to persuade customers to buy that extra bottle of cream. Keep in mind that most therapist have to work on most weekends and public holidays too when business is at it's most brisk !

Products and services aside, I personally do not want to even associate myself with unsympathetic companies and firms. Many of these therapist are young girls who either can't speak English very well, have little proper education apart from their beautician training and they do not earn very much. I even know of one girl who had her passport confiscated by the owner of the nail salon !

We need to show the spa industry that we are smart consumers who will make smart choices and we will put our words into action. I hope all of you can join me in the follow few steps where every little action will make a huge collective difference that will give the spa industry a wake-up call :

• Avoid taking up one-off discounts and offers which sounds too good to be true. i.e $28 for a usual $288 treatment. We have all established that they are only gimmicks to lure you in for a good hard selling session.

• Choose quality over quantity. Do not be greedy. If it means paying more for a good ambience, good service and no hardsell experience, then go for 5 separate good sessions instead of paying in advance for 10 bad ones ! i.e. 5 good hotel sessions instead of 10 chain spa sessions.

• Avoid signing on packages if you can. Always check what they charge per session, take time to do the maths properly to see if it is really worthwhile by paying so much more in advance in order to save a little. Don't forget that by paying in advance, your cash is officially locked up that cannot be withdrawn for any emergency usage.

• If the place does not entertain one-off treatment, then avoid them and check out the nearest hotel offering or a home-based therapist. It's all about making smart choices !

• Support freelancing or home-based therapist where they are in control of their life. They give better services too as they become their own boss.

• Find out from your therapist during your spa session how the management is being run. It will give you a good idea whether it is an ethical company that you want to be doing business with.

• Lastly, love yourself for who you are. Growing old and getting a little out of shape as we age are all part of life. The only way these beauty services and products can eat away our heart is by exploiting our weaknesses and self esteem by trying to promise us that they can deliver eternal youth and perfect beauty. Accept that there is no perfection in the idea of beauty.

• Live a healthy life style by exercising and eating right and do not ONLY rely on spa sessions to feel good. With S$3K, we can buy a lot of gym memberships, swimming pool admission tickest, pay for golf lessons, get a tennis instructor, have plenty of private yoga classes.

• Spread this message to all your spa-going friends and family.

[leonglm]

I have recently purchased voucher for 18 months unlimited Brazilian IPL from Beyond Beauty. I managed to get an appointment at the Orchard Central branch but when I got there, they told me that the Brazilian do not cover the back or sides but only the front. I have to pay additional $68 for back IPL. This is false advertising. Brazilian waxing is defined "Brazilian waxing is the removal of all hair in the pelvic area, front and back".
They have wasted my precious lunch time and a great deal of inconvenience. The consultant told me that if I am not satisfied, I can request for a refund with Groupn. I managed to speak to their Marketing Manager who said that he will call me back but he never did. He asked his staff to tell me that their explanation stands and Brazilian is only the front. In the end he offered me some complimentary sessions which I declined. Although adding additional $68 per session is not very expensive for the back, I refuse to be sucked into it. I find that it is this a dirty sales tactic to get customers to go to their shop and upsell them or to take advantage of customers who do not understand Brazilian?
A Brazilian is a Brazilian and if they do not know Brazilian then they shouldn't be offering such services. They should have advertised as front area bikini IPL instead.
I will be requesting for a refund and I hope all cotters to be careful when purchasing such deals in the future.

[Nutellahearts]

I had a terrible experience with Ritabella, a subsidiary of Forever Beauty Professionals. Especially to fellow Malay and Indian friends, who are their target market, their customer service is terrible. I made an order for their products to treat my acne prone skin. Two weeks into using their products, my skin was peeling around the nose area and mouth area.

My pimples got worst than before and even though I called my consultant to check on my condition, she said it was normal. I was not happy and their slogan on their bottom said 'Feel the difference in 7 days' , and all I felt was itching, peeling and terrible skin condition. I asked for a refund but the most they could give after tremendous negotiation is $40 of $120 that I've paid, provided I've only used 25% of my products, which does not make any sense, as 2 weeks into usage would equate to 50%.

I talked to the manager, called Nana, and she was unhappy with me when I started questioning her on why there are no policies on customers purchasing at discounted price as it was part of their marketing strategy. Instead, she blatantly related her products to an electronic store products, which does not make any sense, and started to raise her voice on me, blaming me for why I did not ask on their policies. Isn't it a business responsibility to disclose specific policies if any? She refused to put me to her boss, and after negotiation, she told me her boss was willing to 'DONATE' me another $10, an insult to me. I have since brought this matter up to CASE. Be careful girls, its best if you don't purchase products from them . To me, they are only cheating their customers, especially knowing most will not question them on their policies, which are unfair and ridiculous.

[lilylily]

I had a terrible experience with Ritabella, a subsidiary of Forever Beauty Professionals. Especially to fellow Malay and Indian friends, who are their target market, their customer service is terrible. I made an order for their products to treat my acne prone skin. Two weeks into using their products, my skin was peeling around the nose area and mouth area.

My pimples got worst than before and even though I called my consultant to check on my condition, she said it was normal. I was not happy and their slogan on their bottom said 'Feel the difference in 7 days' , and all I felt was itching, peeling and terrible skin condition. I asked for a refund but the most they could give after tremendous negotiation is $40 of $120 that I've paid, provided I've only used 25% of my products, which does not make any sense, as 2 weeks into usage would equate to 50%.

I talked to the manager, called Nana, and she was unhappy with me when I started questioning her on why there are no policies on customers purchasing at discounted price as it was part of their marketing strategy. Instead, she blatantly related her products to an electronic store products, which does not make any sense, and started to raise her voice on me, blaming me for why I did not ask on their policies. Isn't it a business responsibility to disclose specific policies if any? She refused to put me to her boss, and after negotiation, she told me her boss was willing to 'DONATE' me another $10, an insult to me. I have since brought this matter up to CASE. Be careful girls, its best if you don't purchase products from them . To me, they are only cheating their customers, especially knowing most will not question them on their policies, which are unfair and ridiculous.

So sorry to hear your experience with Ritabella. And thanks for sharing. Stuff like this need to be known so that there will be no other victims. We must be very careful with purchasing beauty products and make sure not to fall on false claims.

[guessme]

bad experiences is so extreme. Its so hard to find eligible and nice spa. Its always their staffs who is our problem. overselling, bad attitude, always wanting money from you. They should think of customer's satisfaction so that they will go back.

[efai]

it's a business
and in business, they only care about the $$

now they are not scared of losing customers because they can easily get new ones