Debate: Should barbers charge extra for beard trims or include them with cuts?

I was at a shop in Austin last Saturday and overheard two barbers arguing about this. One said beards take 15 extra minutes and deserve their own price like $10, while the other claimed it keeps clients loyal to bundle it. I've seen shops split 50/50 on this. What do you all do in your shops, separate fee or combo price for the beard and cut job?

3 comments

3 Comments

tessaperry4d agoMost Upvoted

Oh come on, bundling it just leaves money on the table. I charge $15 extra for a beard trim because it takes real time to shape it right, especially if they want a clean line on the cheeks. The whole loyalty argument is weak too, I've had guys drive across town just for my beard work alone, they're not loyal to a price bundle. If you break it out separate, you make more on the haircut+beard combo anyway since nobody complains about $50ish total for both.

dylan4632d ago

Man, that's a solid point @mark_green but I think the real issue is how bundling kills upselling. If you have the beard as its own thing, you can offer a hot towel or a straight razor cleanup on the neck as a separate add on for like $5 more. That extra little touch is way easier to sell when someone's already paying piecemeal instead of a flat bundle. You ever try that?

mark_green4d ago

Oh man, but what about the guys who just come in for a quick beard cleanup with no haircut do you still charge them the same or is that a whole different pricing situation? I mean, that seems like it would complicate the whole bundle-or-not debate more than people realize.