Toni & Guy

I have always had great experiences with both Toni & Guy locations. But after moving out of town and back again, it had been a while since returning (especially after my regular Alberni location closed). I was so excited about coming back to my favourite salon to get pampered. Everything about this location is professional; staff are sweet and friendly, the salon is clean and it’s clear that everyone cares about their job.
I’m always nervous about trying new stylists. But, after meeting Clare and showing her photos of the Lana Del Rey-​inspired red I wanted my hair to be, I was so excited. She took the time to show me different options and make sure I was happy with her plan before starting, and I could tell she was super professional and experienced so I knew I was in good hands. Clare was very sweet the whole time I was with her and when she was finished, I was so happy with how my hair looked.
I’m thrilled with my new colour, I left the salon with exactly what I wanted and I’m thoroughly impressed with how attentive Clare was. I would definitely reccomend Toni & Guy to anyone looking for great service and beautiful hair!

I’ve been to the Alberni location but decided to try the W 4^th since it was closer to me. I walked in and made an appointment for a bit later since it was quite early and no all the stylists were in.
I think what I asked for was pretty straight forward — layers to give volume, something low maintenance (no products)…The lady who cut my hair was a «director» or art director (??). She was okay but didn’t wow me. She got distracted when a client came in with a dog and I don’t recall if she washed her hands afterwards. No big deal. I love dogs.
She did my cut really quickly and it seemed that she wasn’t really into it… her mind was elsewhere. At the end, she gave me her card, saying that at the end of the month, her price will be going up. I looked at other cards and most of them say directors I, II or III. When did stylists become directors?
Anyways, the cut wasn’t that great to warrant an increase in price so I haven’t been back.

I just moved to Vancouver in March, after coming out of a pretty bad breakup. Every girl knows that getting your hair did post bad breakup is a necessity. Just something to make you feel like a babe.
So my first visit here was a couple days into my move to Vancouver. I had high expectations as I know that Toni & Guy is a renowned company. I was impressed to have a coloring consult, and then later be moved over to a different stylist for my cut. I was not at all impressed with the color. It was one of those «How do you like the color??» «Oh its so um… it’s.great?» I had asked for a rich brown with red undertones, and was given basically straight up black. You know, that’s the same thing right? Right? Regardless, it looked fine, it just wasn’t what I had asked for.
Next stop was the cut, and I had brought a picture in and explained I wanted to do babysteps. I was going from hair past my shoulders to an elongated bob. The girl cutting was super sweet, and understood, although she didn’t speak much english. We agreed we’d take it up a bit, and when I had the guts, we’d take it up even further.
I left quite happyh, and feeling like a stone cold fox. Epic win.
Next trip back was about a week later when I had decided that, yes, I had the guts to make the dramatic post-​breakup chop. I brought in a picture of exactly what I wanted and explained to the girl that I didn’t want the classic bob, to the nape of your neck, but rather a touch longer than my face and for it lay longer on my neck. She started at the back and was talking with one of the other girls as she cut. I couldn’t see what she was doing, but then she worked her way to the side and first chop was way way way shorter than what I had anticipated. I took a deep breath, and tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. Second side was what I was hoping for, and she looked satisfied with that cut. then with disdain realized that the other side was much shorter. Enter, «Amelie» style to the bottom of my ears bob.
It took three master styslists talking with her, and talking with me to make the situation better. I burst into tears in the chair (Thats a first for me) and then they had to take the back even shorter than it already was, in order to make it look at all right. It’s been 5 months, and the hair at the nape of my neck is now finally at maybe an inch.
Needless to say, I left upset. The good news was they didn’t make me pay for the service.
They promised me a follow up phone call from the owner, and even a gift certificate in the mail, neither of which I ever received.
At the end of the day, I didn’t get what I wanted, hair grows back (given enough time) and although it looked good, I probably will not go back. My thoughts are if I bring in a picture and say «this is exactly, exactly what i want,» and I get something entirely different, that I probably will just go somewhere that can deliver. After two months of my hair growing back it looked how it should have, and it was then that i started to get compliments on how cute of a style it was. Oh well.

oh God! l will never go back there even tho Toni and guy has such a good reputation, maybe it wasn’t my lucky day, l had a consultation on my highlights they told me it would be around $ 120, so l decided to go ahead and do it and do it, l had my appointment at 9am, the colour expert started dividing my hair and putting the decolour stuff, it took him nearly 3 hours to do ¾ of my head, l have very long hair, straight, but l don’t have a lot of hair, anyway, he didn’t like how it looked after the decoloration, he stared putting more stuff while my hair was wet and it hurt sooo bad, the solution was burning my hair l got to the point where l didn’t know if it was actually burning my hair or if the solution was super cold, l stared crying, they didn’t even offer water or lunch because it took them almost 8 hours to finish the highlights! ohh god! the worst part was that they charged me 300 dlls, l paid and left, l will never go back there, neither you should!

a tad underwhelming. got a cut and colour, thank goodness i was using a discount i found on their site, if i had paid full price i would not have been thrilled.
a good solid cut, decent all over colour (we will see how well it stays in). the colourist and stylist were both very polite and attentive, they did a very nice job. they didn’t lecture me about how i abused my hair (which most stylists do) and there was zero pressure to buy products, which was nice. the overall impression was very low key. perhaps if i had more of a specific idea in mind when i went in and expressed it, instead of hoping for them to surprise me with their magic, i would have been more impressed.
for their regular, average prices though, i was expecting a bit more ‘wow’. still undecided if i will return.

I went there on the Unilocal recommendation. I hadn’t cut my hair in years. It was long and I wanted it short. I call and make an appointment. They match me up with a straight hair specialist called Elise (not her real name). The receptionist assures me that this is the woman that cuts her hair and I can trust her. So far so good. The day arrives for my appointment. I’m on time. Then it all goes sideways.
They call Elise and say her appointment is here. But a guy shows up. The receptionist says that Mike (not his real name) will take care of me. I think ok maybe he’s the guy washing my hair and Elise will show up later. Eventually when we get back to chair (or maybe during the hair washing I don’t remember) he says that Elise has had a family emergency and needs to go back to her home country. Wow, I say, sorry to hear that. And I am sorry. BUT I wonder why the receptionist didn’t tell me the situation and give me the option of scheduling another appointment or choose another stylist.
Anyway, I’m willing to give Mike a shot even though I prefer female stylists. I am used to my stylist being enthusiastic about hair and giving me lots of advice and options. He was timid and kept asking me what I wanted. I’ve had long hair for 8 years. I don’t know what I want. That’s the point of choosing what I thought was a good hair salon. In the end he gave me a fine cut but it is too conservative. The worst part was that another client of his showed up before my appointment was over and he had to leave me behind, only to return to rush the end of the cut. He didn’t make me feel rushed but the situation was awkward because the other client was right beside me.
I’m not putting the real stylists names on here because I have nothing against them whatsoever. Like I said Mike gave me a fine cut and I can only imagine that Elise is going through a rough patch. And I appreciated that there was no pressure to buy hair products.
Still, this was not an experience i want to repeat. I’m not going back.

How does one find a good hair stylist? Word of mouth? Advertisements? Referrals? Trial and error? … Leap of faith? If you have a fail safe way of finding someone to whom you entrust your tresses to … then please, do share!
There are many «high end» hair salons in Vancouver. What makes one better than the other?
I am an «researcher». When I set out to search for my next «top stylist», I naturally turned to the world wide web. To my surprise, there was not a whole lot of information out there.
I believe that all hair salons should have bios on their stylists. Any type of hair service is very personal to an individual. And the relationship you have with your stylist is the same — personal.
During my course of researching, I stumbled upon Toni&Guy’s blog/​website. I was able to discover loads of information on their operation and stylists. In addition, they run a forum of some sort whereby you can leave messages and comments. And guess what? Someone from the salon replies!!! You can share your concerns, preferences and questions. They offer suggestions as well as referrals to their stylists. And this is how I came to book my appointment with Toni&Guy.
The day of my appointment arrived. To sum it up, service is top notch!
From the moment I walked in to the time I left their premises, I was treated like a VIP. I ended up having my appointment with one of their most senior stylists — Omar (I believe he manages the store as well).
He is pricey — $ 95… but well worth it. Very experienced and a very knowledgeable fellow. I would highly recommend him for anyone seeking a classic style.
So impressed with my experience there that I eventually went back for a colour treatment a couple weeks later. My colour technician was wonderful and treated me like a princess. The result of my treatment was ok. I’ve had better and I’ve had worst. But I really appreciated his attentive nature.
Check out their website for more info… and get all the answers to your questions before you make a decision.

Toni and Guy’s reputation as being at the forefront of style is long-​standing. They have pioneered style after style, making sure that every trend dispensed from the shears suits the client. While other stylists lose sight of the client’s needs and lifestyle, it remains at the forefront. That said, though, they don’t necessarily pander to clients.
My one qualm would be the absence of Toni and Guy’s in-​house line. The one with the red labels.