ST PAUL, Minn. — Those who were planning to swap hairstyles with the change of seasons will have to put things on hold indefinitely
The Minnesota Board of Cosmetology is telling salons and spas across the state that it's time to close.
"We’ve received guidance that hair salons, nail salons, and other spa-like businesses are included in the Governor’s Executive Order yesterday (Monday) and should be closed now through 5 pm on Friday, March 27," read a post on the board's web page.
The post was referring to the executive order issued by Gov. Tim Walz mandating the closure of restaurants and bars across the state starting Tuesday at 5 p.m.
"Truthfully, it was kind of a relief," said Sandy Bueckers, who runs her own home salon in Sauk Rapids, MN. "He (Walz) made the decision for me."
Bueckers says the last couple of days have been a touch stressful, having to ask her clients, many who are friends, about their current health and whether they've been sick. As a precaution, when they'd leave the salon Sandy would wipe down everything to protect both her and other clients.
Being on her own as a small, home-based business person, Sandy has no benefits to fall back on, and pays everything herself. The house payment won't go away just because she can't see clients. Fortunately, her husband's work in the meat industry has him working overtime to keep up with a public that is hunkering down and buying up everything in sight.
If there is good news, Bueckers says, it's that ALL salons and beauty shops have been shut down, and the competition is idle as well. "I'm not losing clients," she laughed, "they can't go to the salon down town."
She also knows that when health officials give the all-clear, all the clients Sandy has had to cancel will need cuts, dyes and the like. "We are going to work like dogs when we get back in the swing of stuff," she said.
In Edina at District Salon and Spa, stylists were busy packing up Wednesday.
"It's a really big bummer," said Kelsey Landro. "Just grabbing what we think we might need for the coming days."
She also had to cancel or reschedule appointments.
"Quite a few," she said.
Other than that, it was pretty quiet at the salon and will be for quite a while.
"Yeah," said Gina Zaffarano, co-owner of the salon. "It's a little horrifying.
She says she already had to lay off the front desk crew.
"[They] will be seeking unemployment as soon as they can because this is their livelihood," said Zaffarano.
This comes after the Board of Cosmetology late Tuesday night stated all hair and nail salons are included in Governor Walz's executive order Monday. Salons should be closed now through 5 p.m. March 27.
Right now it's unclear what's next for the industry and how people like Gina and Kelsey can still receive income.
"Community of independent contractors where everybody works for themselves," said Gina.
There's now a national petition circulating on change.org that calls for a federal aid package for the cosmetology, barber and body work industry.
While it's tough to shutdown, Gina knows it's the right decision. She remains optimistic for now.
"We want to do the right thing and we want to protect our community from the growth of this illness," said Gina. "I just truly feel like the best of humanity can come through times like this. We're here to help each other."
Gina says if this shutdown drags on longer than expected, her team could explore other ways for income including in-home services.
Below is the list of businesses and organizations included in the executive order by Gov. Walz.
Beginning no later than March 17, 2020 at 5:00 pm, and continuing until March 27, 2020 at 5:00 pm, the following places of public accommodation are closed to ingress, egress, use, and occupancy by members of the public:
- Restaurants, food courts, cafes, coffeehouses, and other places of public accommodation offering food or beverage for on-premises consumption, excluding institutional or in-house food cafeterias that serve residents, employees, and clients of businesses, child care facilities, hospitals, and longterm care facilities.
- Bars, taverns, brew pubs, breweries, microbreweries, distilleries, wineries, tasting rooms, clubs, and other places of public accommodation offering alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption.
- Hookah bars, cigar bars, and vaping lounges offering their products for on-premises consumption.
- Theaters, cinemas, indoor and outdoor performance venues, and museums.
- Gymnasiums, fitness centers, recreation centers, indoor sports facilities, indoor exercise facilities, exercise studios, and spas.
- Amusement parks, arcades, bingo halls, bowling alleys, indoor climbing facilities, skating rinks, trampoline parks, and other similar recreational or entertainment facilities.
- Country clubs, golf clubs, boating or yacht clubs, sports or athletic clubs, and dining clubs.
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The state of Minnesota has set up a hotline for general questions about coronavirus at 651-201-3920 or 1-800-657-3903, available 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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