The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Beauty and the beast of inflation

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 22, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Beauty and the beast of inflation

Customers are unwilling to pay more for grooming products and services

Photos: S. R. Raghunathan

Tough times A customer gets a facial done at a beauty parlour.

People in the beauty and grooming industry are stuck between a rock and a hard place, faced with rising prices but unable to hike the cost of their products or services.

“It’s becoming very difficult,” says B. Irsamma, who sells bindis and other sundries at a makeshift stall in T.Nagar. The price of one dozen sheets of bindi has gone up from Rs. 66 to Rs. 84 in the past 3 months. A pack of hair-pins has increased from Rs. 84 to Rs. 96. “There is very little profit to be made,” she says.

“Mushkil nahin, bahut mushkil hai,” says B.S. Shivam, describing life in Chennai as very tough, sitting in front of a posters with mehendi designs on a street in T. Nagar. He came from Delhi to Chennai a year ago hoping for a better market. What he did not account for were the costs.

The grocery bill for his team of 8 is now to Rs. 10,000 a month. During festival and marriage seasons each one earns Rs. 300 per day; off-season it’s only about Rs. 50 - Rs. 100. “I spend Rs. 50 to Rs. 100 on water a day,” he says.

“I only buy bindis,” says R. Malliga, who works as a house-help. “but even the bindi prices have gone up,” she says. “From Rs. 2 per packet, it has become Rs. 3 per packet.”

Spending on beauty needs is pinching the middle-income too. “The price of a box of cream has gone up from Rs. 110 to Rs. 150 in 3 months and it weighs 5 grams less now,” says Mary Paul from Tambaram. Her expenses are mounting with increasing prices. “I don’t go to the parlour,” she says.

“Not many colour their hair these days,” says C. Sampath, who works at a salon for men. The cost of colouring has increased from Rs. 300 to Rs. 450 because the price of colouring creams has gone up. “People increasingly prefer to colour their own hair at home using local dyes,” he says.

S. Ganesh, an employee at a salon for men, earns Rs. 8,500 a month, says his house rent has gone up from Rs. 2,500 to Rs. 3,000. As he has a baby, he buys 1.5 litres of milk every day. With the milk price hike, he has been hard hit. “If this price rise continues, we just cannot manage,” he says.

Shakeela Saleem stays with her extended family of 8 because, she says, “Rents are too high.” She works at a beauty parlour. “I can’t even buy anything extra for my child,” she says. “We somehow manage. We cannot save,” she sums up.

“If the bill comes to Rs. 2,500, people ask you to bring it down to Rs. 2,000,” says Radha, owner of a small women’s beauty parlour. “I can’t increase prices because customers won’t pay. But the cost of every product I use has gone up,” she says.

The dilemma is faced by all beauty parlour owners, says Sujatha .P from All India Beauty Specialists and Hairdressers Association. “Beauty is still treated as a luxury. People don’t want to spend too much,” she says. “So, they cut down on visits to parlours.”

“We are trying to educate customers about increase in costs,” she says.

“We did not hike prices for three years, but now we had to,” says Latha Mohan, proprietor of Kanya, a chain of salons. Rentals have doubled. “From Rs. 50,000 we pay Rs. 90,000 for an outlet,” she says.

Most products have increased by 15 per cent, she says. Salaries also need to be increased considering costs. “But, I just cannot charge double for a haircut,” she says.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu