Business
Beauty Salons Need A Voice In Conversation To Reopen NYC: Owners
The largely-immigrant salon industry has faced unique challenges during the pandemic that will continue when they reopen, officials said.
NEW YORK, NY — New York City beauty salon and barbershop owners struggling to stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic say their problems will be far from over even after they're allowed to reopen.
"When we go back to open up we have tons of bills, we have backed-up rent, we have a staff of people that rely on us and we don't even know what to say," Floribel Thomas, of the USA Beauty Salon Owners organization, said Thursday. "How are we going to deal with all these situations?"
Thomas and owners from the salon industry gathered in front of Carmen House of Beauty in the Bronx on Thursday to call on the city to give more support to the largely-immigrant and working-class employees that make up their industry.
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The coronavirus crisis has been particularly hard to navigate for the salon owners given the language barrier, the inability of undocumented staff to receive unemployment and the complicated process of applying for small business help, Thomas said.
"I'm not saying the help is not there, but the help is not getting through the way it's supposed to be," she said.
Thomas, owners and Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez fear that the lack of support from the city will only continue as the businesses are asked to reopen.
So far, New York City has indicated that it will likely begin reopening in June should it reach certain benchmarks. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said that only regions that meet seven markers — among them two weeks of declining hospitalizations, increased testing and hospital capacity — are allowed to start the reopening process.
Hair salons have been some of the first businesses to reopen in other states, though with specific precautions.
Rodriguez in particular called out what he said is a lack of representation for the beauty industry and Latinos on Mayor Bill de Blasio's Small Business Sector Advisory Council, one of several task forces tasked with a reopening plan for New York City. The council's 31 members includes one salon representative.
"We need to make sure everyone's voice especially those of communities which have been severely impacted are included within the conversation," he said.
Thomas said being part of the conversation about New York City's reopening would help the 600 or so salon owners her organization represents deal with the cost of protective equipment, resources for how to train staff and procedures for ensuring social distancing in salons that are usually close-quarters.
"We do direct contact — We are like doctors and nurses because you have to be on top of people," she said. "If we reopen we need guidelines."
