Chelsea Self / Post Independent
Once again, Colorado offers more than one way to get a buzz.
Beginning next week in Garfield County, salons and barbershops are allowed to reopen.
“Personal services” businesses will accept customers under strict state requirements. In addition to haircutting establishments, tattoo parlors, dog groomers, tailors and tanning services — among others — are eligible to open.
After businesses fill out the Garfield County Business Social Distancing Plan, the county will notify them if they meet the requirements.
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For some, there is excitement about returning to something closer to normal.
“I’m so excited to go back to work. I miss the customers a lot,” said Fran Hurt, a longtime stylist at Hair Depot on Railroad in Rifle.
Things will, of course, be different.
“Everyone has to wear a mask,” said Summer Scrivens, owner of Good Old Days Barbershop in Carbondale.
“We are wearing masks, and we are requiring clients to wear masks,” said Cathy Stillman, owner of Creekside Hair & Day Spa in New Castle.
“Artists will have cloth masks and will be gloved up,” said Rhonda Hunter, owner of Inkology tattoo parlor.
Scrivens is a one-woman show, so with the one-customer-per-stylist rule, she’ll be limited to one customer in the shop.
“Before there were four or five customers in the shop at the same time,” she said.
Creekside has five stations, so if each stylist has a customer that will max out the requirement of no more than 10 people per establishment.
“We used to go back and forth, with one customer under the dryer and one at the station, but we can’t do that now,” said Stillman.
They can’t wait inside, either, or line up.
“Everybody has to wait outside. We’ll have the door locked, and when we’re ready we’ll go outside and bring them in,” Stillman said.
While cleanliness is already a common practice in salons and tattoo parlors, the current rules require complete sterilization between clients.
“I’m going to take every precaution I can, though we’re already a clean industry,” said Cassandra Collins, owner of Floyds of Mayberry Barbershop in Glenwood.
“I’ll clean the environment like we do between clients anyway, suit up with new gloves and sterilize the whole station,” said Scrivens.
“We’ll clean chairs and everything between clients using MadaCide, which even kills hepatitis,” Hunter said.
Clients will be expected to wash their hands before entering the business at a station provided by the business near the front door.
Bonedale Tattoo’s website says, “All clients are required to wear masks and sanitize or wash their hands upon entry.”
The state requires that all financial transaction equipment be sanitized after each use and contactless payment options be provided whenever possible.
At Creekside, “Everybody pays at each individual station, so each stylist has a credit card machine,” Stillman said. This eliminates the risk of contacting a different person to pay, she said.
The state requires that employees and customers seeking or receiving high-contact services be checked for symptoms. Bonedale Tattoo’s website says, “Body temp will be taken upon entry.” Hunter also will be taking clients’ temperature.
Hunter is going beyond the requirements with physical separation beyond the now-familiar six feet of distance. “We’ll have a 4-1/2-foot glass wall between clients,” she said.
Cutting, coloring and body inking will be allowed, but not all esthetician services will be.
“We won’t be able to do facials; it’s a little bit too close for comfort,” Stillman said. State requirements limit businesses to services that can be done without a customer removing their mask.
As specific as the requirements are, there will likely be a need for adjustments.
“It’s going to be a good run the first week figuring out the system and getting the rhythm right. It’s going to take a few days to fine tune,” Hurt said.
“There’ll be some grey area that we didn’t see until we’re living it,” Stillman said.
But the bottom line is to open businesses while minimizing chances of infection.
“I really believe that we need to take [COVID-19] seriously. Garfield County was not hit that hard, but I don’t want COVID coming out of my shop,” Hunter said.