I must have written this post over and over again in my head hundreds of times before finally sitting down to piece it all together. You see, I’m not really one to complain about beauty products and services. If I don’t like something, I simply don’t promote it. I am someone who would much rather spend my time promoting what I love. In this case, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Chicago last week, and it was a wonderful experience for me. I took to the Windy City very warmly, and I could honestly see myself living there someday. While I was in town, I decided to make myself an appointment at a spa…a spa that I normally can’t access in South Carolina since I don’t live near any major cities (Atlanta is 3 hours away). I chose Bliss Spa because I’ve seen their line in Sephora, used their products before, and heard about their spa treatments in fashion magazines. I booked myself a Hot Milk & Almond Pedicure that was to last a full sixty minutes. Even as our plane descended on the tarmac at O’Hare, I was looking forward to my spa treatment at Bliss, thinking it was going to be one of those really cool experiences I’ll have as a beauty enthusiast and blogger for the rest of my life. Boy, was I wrong.
Immediately upon entering the spa on the 8th floor, you are greeted with stark white walls and small open windows that look out onto Lake Michigan. The views are most definitely million dollar ones, and I couldn’t help but gravitate toward them and want to peek out. I politely asked the receptionist if I could take pictures and she said it was no problem.
Being able to see Lake Michigan from these small windows was so special. Unfortunately, it was probably the best thing about my experience. There are no chairs or couches along the front of the spa in this area, so when you walk in, enjoy your view, because you’ll be sitting where there are no window views or natural lights.
Once I was done taking in the view, the receptionist told me I could have a seat on one of the small benches further down the hallway. The entire hallway is composed of Bliss products on shelves, as if it were a retail location.
The employee’s were cordial, but just cordial enough. No one offered me a wait time or any idea of who would be performing my services. It reminded me almost of going to a doctor’s office: have a seat, the doctor will call you when we’re ready.
The nail area itself is open to the rest of the spa, toward the back where the waiting area is. I was fascinated because the chairs looked really modern and cool and I noticed TV’s and headphones. I waited about ten minutes before someone came and told me she was filling the pedicure tub up for me. As soon as she told me she was ready for me, I picked my nail polish color from a wall, sat down in the chair, and she got right to work.
Wait. What?
Now listen, I realize I’m not Beyonce. I don’t expect the royal treatment, but for a spa so apparently “world class” and renowned, I was surprised that no one bothered to ask me if I wanted something to drink. Heck, no one even bothered to really look at me or ask me how I was doing. You’ll hear me compare this treatment to my local nail salon here in small town South Carolina, because quite honestly, it’s an amazing salon. My small town nail salon always asks me if I would like a glass of water or a glass of wine. They even ask you if you prefer red or white wine. I’m not looking to get a buzz on at my spa appointment, but quite frankly, I was definitely surprised that no one offered me anything at all. I had heard and read in magazines and from other bloggers that they were offered water and brownies. Imagine my disappointment.
I sat in the seat and she told me to put my feet into the “hot milk & almond” soak, which is where this treatment gets its’ name from. From the Bliss Spa website itself: “feet are softened in steamed whole milk and mega-moisturizing almond oil.” I sunk my feet straight into cold milk and almond oil. She never asked me if the temperature was too hot or too cold, or even comfortable at all. I found myself saying, “Maybe the steamed part comes later”. It never came. While the cold milk & almond mixture did make my feet feel soft, I was left to soak in this cold mixture for around ten minutes. Now I know what you’re thinking, “Why not speak up and ask her to change the temperature of it for you?” To be 100% honest, I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t know if the steamed part was coming after the soak or what. It was my first time ever being inside of a Bliss Spa to begin with.
I was more than happy to take my feet out of the cold mixture. It wasn’t relaxing and it didn’t feel that great. Sorry for the feet picture (I hate feet), but you know, I wanted to document the entire experience from start to finish.
After soaking in a cold mixture, my nail tech came over and started working on my feet. She was extremely rough on my feet and as she was filing my nails down I actually found myself squirming from pain because she was filing my skin. She never made conversation with me except to talk to the nail tech beside her who was also working, and they started discussing a shooting that just happened several blocks away. Great.
At this point, I was wondering why I was not told if the TV’s were for personal use. I was wondering why there were headphones on the chairs. Not a single person even said they were available for me to use. Again, you might wonder why I didn’t speak up. I was honestly pretty put-off and bewildered at this point in my treatment. No one had explained really anything to me and quite frankly, the nail tech seemed pretty short and cold with me, so I just stayed quiet.
When she started to buff my feet, she noticed that I had really rough heels. I work out and do a lot of walking and running, so my heels are always the worst. She asked if I wanted to add on the callus treatment for $15. I decided to do it because she made it sound like this wonderful treatment. Well, she up-sold me on a treatment that I wouldn’t have paid $5 for. She slathered this serum over my heels and toes, wrapped my feet in plastic bags, and told me to wait fifteen minutes.
Ah, another fifteen minutes of waiting. No entertainment, nothing for relaxation. At my salon here in my hometown, they have massaging chairs (PS, the massages are free). They have a television on, music playing, and offer you drinks. So I basically sat and stared at the wall at this point, not wanting to run the battery down on my iPhone since I would need the GPS for walking around town.
My wonderfully fabulous view that spent staring at for more than thirty minutes throughout the pedicure. I was honestly so disappointed and jaded at this point. I just knew that my experience wasn’t going to be what I thought it was, and I pretty much threw in the towel. My nail tech finished buffing my feet and polished my toe nails. After she polished my toe nails, she had another customer waiting for her. She told me to get up and sit at the original bench I waited on when I first got there.
Excuse me? My nails had literally just gotten a topcoat about twenty seconds ago and you want me to get up already? I hopped my way to the bench and she told me she would come and put nail drying drops on my toenails to help them dry faster.
In typical Bliss Spa Chicago fashion, that never happened. She took her next customer and she never looked at me again. She didn’t acknowledge me after that. I sat for about five minutes, hoping they would be dry enough to put my socks and sneakers on. I knew I had a long day of walking ahead of me and at this point, I just wanted to pay and get out of there.
Oh yeah, payment. If you’re wondering what this experience cost me, it was 80 freakin’ dollars. Now listen, I am originally from New Jersey and I know what it’s like for everything to be overpriced or marked up. I expected to pay more for services in Chicago because it’s a major city. But I also expected to get more out of my services because I was not only in a major city, but in a well known spa. I was so disgusted when I checked out and had to pay $80 (that doesn’t include gratuity) for a service that was below mediocre. I felt like someone had just ripped me off, and if you’ve ever gone somewhere for a service and been overcharged for a bad experience, you know just how violating it can feel.
I made it back to my hotel room that evening and my big toenails were smudged. It’s just a reminder of how pitiful the service was at Bliss Spa Chicago. Though I only had this pedicure done 2 weeks ago, I already want to go back to my local, small-town spa to get them redone, just so I don’t have to be reminded of my awful impression of Bliss. Oh yeah, and I’m going to be sure to let my local spa know how much I appreciate them now.
WHAT WOULD HAVE ACTUALLY MADE THIS EXPERIENCE “BLISS”FUL: (take note if you’re reading this Bliss!)
- Chairs or seats in the front of the spa, where the view and natural lighting is.
- Music that actually went with the theme of a spa. At one point, they actually had on Top 40 music. I want “relaxing” not “dance in my car” music.
- Employees that were actually attentive and friendly, and asked if it was your first time, explain treatments, extra’s, headphones, TV’s, etc.
- Offer your customer something to drink or eat, even if it’s just water or a small snack. It shows you’re going out of your way to make the experience worth it.
- Make sure your employee’s ask if the temperature of the treatment is okay. In my case, the “hot milk” was cold and certainly not steamed.
- Have employee’s check in occasionally to make sure the buffing, clipping, and filing is not painful or too rough.
- Do not ask the customer to get up immediately after finishing nail polishing.
- If your employee says they are going to do something, have them stick to it. It’s not the customer’s job to remind the employee. In my case, I never got those nail drying drops on my toes and I ended up smudging my polish everywhere.
- Make the interior of your spa more aesthetically clean, interesting, and pleasing. Half of my pedicure was sitting around waiting. This of course goes hand-in-hand with not being told I could use the headphones and/or TV.
- Smile. Your employee’s looked pretty miserable and no one bothered to smile or even say goodbye as I left. Life is good!
- Bring down the prices of your treatments, particularly if you are not going to take the above constructive criticism. My small-town pedicure’s cost me $30 WITH tip, and I get free water, wine, TV service, friendly service, and a massaging chair.
Lesson: If you’ve got a champagne budget with beer taste, by all means, go to Bliss Spa Chicago. I paid $80 without gratuity for a service that I honestly felt was worth less than $20. Not a single person went out of their way for me at the spa. The services, the features, and the treatments were not explained to me or even offered to me at any point. The spa’s interior was mediocre in terms of cleanliness and aesthetic appearance. I’m not entirely sure what I paid for at Bliss. I do know that I passed several other salon’s and spa’s throughout my trip and made it a point to go inside of them, just to see what they looked like and how they greeted me. I can say that I had a better experience in the first sixty seconds in those places than I did at Bliss Spa Chicago. I not only won’t be returning, but I will not be recommending Bliss Spa to anyone in any city. Quite frankly, I don’t think I can even look at Bliss products the same way in Sephora stores anymore without cringing.
And yes, you might look at this post and think, “First World Problems,” because trust me, I know there are far more important things to complain about. This is a beauty blog and I am a beauty professional, so it’s in my blood to assess and enjoy all things beauty. Just remember, though, when you pay to travel and have an experience, you expect to actually have a positive experience. No one wants to leave a store, spa, salon, building, or city with a sour taste in their mouth. Luckily for me, I absolutely adored Chicago as a city and Bliss Spa was simply an annoying blemish on an otherwise flawless trip.
Special thanks to Erin from Read at Home Mama for the clever post tagline.
[ALL PHOTOGRAPHY ON THIS SITE IS TAKEN BY REBECCA KAZIMIR. NO PHOTOGRAPHS ARE TO BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION.]
Carolyn Pannone says
Did you complain to Bliss corporate directly? Have they responded?
Sarah S. says
Wow… just wow. I agree that the things you listed are like the BARE MINIMUM I expect for any nail salon in my lame little town, too! I got an expensive (though not this expensive!) manicure at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, and they offered me something to drink and took the proper care of me. The manicure also lasted the entire week of my vacation (not gel). I regularly go to small nail places near my home and they always offer a beverage and free massage chairs, too! Thanks for the warning, I would not put a trip to Bliss spa on my must-do list!
BeautyGala says
I have Carolyn, no response at all.
BeautyGala says
I know Sarah, right? I was hoping that I wasn’t the only one who felt this way. You go to the salon/spa to feel special and take some time out, so I was really blown away by the lack of service. 🙁
Sam A says
It’s really a shame that you had this experience. However, this was one experience, and should not deter you from returning. I frequent Bliss Spa on a monthly basis and have never had a bad experience. I do understand the “unknown” in receiving a service, but this is where becoming an informed consumer comes in. If there’s ever a question about your expectations and what you are actually receiving, this is where you have to speak up and not be silent, least you leave regretful. If you have not been to Bliss, I highly recommend it, from the friendly staff, to the skilled technicians, to the luxe lounge with yummy snacks. And if you go, and you don’t receive these items or this service, speak up BEFORE you leave. You’re always more likely to get a response in person than through email or letter.
BeautyGala says
Hi Sam! Thanks for your feedback here. I actually had researched a lot about Bliss Spa before going, from blog reviews to other customer experiences online. I’ve also frequented a good amount of spa’s and salon’s in general, so I was really surprised that the service was so poor during my experience. Bliss Spa is a high end name, known for it’s luxurious services, and I definitely did not receive any type of luxury. I could have spoken up before I left, however, I was visiting on a very limited amount of time from out of state, and was never even explained what was happening, or what was supposed to be happening. Confusion is the best word for it. I received a full refund and an apology from the spa director directly, so it was settled. Thank you!
Annabelle says
While I think it’s unfortunate that you didn’t like your experience, half the problems you experienced could have been solved if you had just spoken up or done something about them. Things such as asking for water, asking for the treatment temperature to be warmer, asking the tech to use less pressure when filing away your calluses…why didn’t you say anything?? That is your right as a customer, when something does not pan out the way you expect it to, you have EVERY RIGHT to ask why it happened that way. Also, while it was not right that the tech asked you to relocate to another bench while your nails were drying and neglected to apply drying drops, I think an obvious result of putting on socks and shoes merely 5 minutes after polish was applied would be that it would smudge…
Your thinking is backwards, it’s obvious that it would cost less in a small town for a similar service. Real estate in major cities is much more expensive and this factors into the price of the service you are receiving (essentially, you are paying for the lake view that you’re not getting in your other spa). Shops in small towns get less foot traffic, so it’s obvious that they would like to make sure that you have an amazing experience and come back. Likewise, because it’s probable that there are less people who are interested in receiving a pedicure service in a small town, they probably charge cheaper prices to encourage their existing customers to return. Since Bliss is a well-known brand across the world, they probably do not suffer from lack of customers and therefore, do not have to lower their margins to compensate for this. You are paying to receive a treatment from this brand. I couldn’t say as to whether or not you think paying for a label is worth it, but an analogy that I would use is that you would never expect to see things like YSL or Chanel at drugstore prices.
That being said, I do believe there were other things that they should have done better as well. I agree that they could have been more friendly (based on your comments) and that they could have offered water at least. I’m glad you asked for and received your money back.
BeautyGala says
Hi Annabelle! Thanks for your feedback, I do appreciate it. My nail polish was definitely smudged from having to get up off the chair and relocate elsewhere immediately after she was done, not from the socks and shoes. In hindsight, I could have spoken up while I was there. I honestly didn’t feel comfortable doing so in this particular situation, and generally I am not a timid person. This particular Bliss Spa apparently has a reputation for being subpar, from several Chicago dwellers I have spoken to now. I am well aware of how much living costs in larger cities, if you re-read what I wrote, you will see that I state this, being from New Jersey and living there most of my life, I know that the city brings much higher prices. You are, however, incorrect about the foot traffic being less in smaller cities. I call my town “small” because it is not a large metropolitan area, such as NYC, LA, or Chicago, but it’s not the smallest town in the world, either. My local spa and salon receives a TON of foot traffic and I would be willing to bet that they even have more customers in a single day than Bliss Spa does for pedicures, at least at the one in Chicago. My tip-off that this spa was not up to par should have been the lack of foot traffic that I actually did notice at this particular Bliss Spa. It was quite “dead” for a spa and I saw very little people coming in or out during the time I was there, which is unusual for a large city spa that considers itself “high end”. Again, thank you for your input!