Janie, my girlfriend purchased a $1,000 hair piece from strut hair solutions several weeks ago and was encouraged to have it professionally style-cut to better match the modern look she wanted by one of their stylists.
Unfortunately, the workmanship of both the hair piece and the cut were subpar and the piece now has sections that have so little hair left that they are actually see through. We can see janie’s hair and scalp when she puts it on. She’s totally bummed. The piece is essentially ruined. Well, maybe we could use it for halloween.
Janie was told before she purchased that all the products were guaranteed … so she requested a refund … twice.
She left three messages over the next week for elena, who is evidently a full time employee but never seemed to be able to make it to the phone to talk when she called. Still haven’t heard back.
One of the other employees explained to janie when she called that strut hair solutions usually doesn’t give refunds after a piece has been cut. Evidently they cannot sell a wig or hair piece after it has been altered and the store owner was not willing to take the loss. Don’t really have recourse here because janie paid by check unless she wants to go to small claims court which is a crapshoot and strut hair solutions would have an appeal process if they lose. Janie is just stuck.
I’m a detective who was an arbitrator for a short time while finishing my masters. I’ve seen this type of thing many times before. Janie wanted me to go into the store and do the “badge” thing to get her money back but that type of approach is only seen on television and is frowned upon when you’re in law enforcement.
So learn from this you. Here’s my advice to the consumer
Remember to always read your contract. For an item like a wig, if it’s altered Colored or cut) it can’t be re-sold so getting a refund or exchange will be next to impossible.
Try not to pay by cash or check because these payment methods don’t have the built in protections that credit cards do.
And tell someone what happened! never make a scene where the offending party can call the police on you. This turns the tables on you legally and makes you the bad guy.
Best thing to do:
Let people know how this store’s owner operates so it doesn’t happen to them. Best way to do that … the outscam!! that will follow them for many years.
We should have looked there to begin with. Looks like strut hair solutions has had their share of problems in the past.
My name is barbara rhodes. I have been an arbitrator for business disputes for the past 40 years. I was asked by my husband to review a case involving web development. The law classifies this type of work as virtual since it is not like a physical product you can buy in a store and return.
It pains me to publish this report about another woman in business because i know how hard it is for women to compete in a man’s world. More than that though, if we are to be held to the same standard as our male counterparts, it’s important that we conduct ourselves in an honest and ethical fashion.
The client in this case is helena gibson, owner of strut hair solutions in solana beach, who claims non-delivery of web development services and was requesting a full refund of her deposit, about $740.00.
The web development team consisting of mr. Stahl, principle, and two engineers claims to have put 35 hours of work into a new website for ms. Gibson which included research, seo, photo manipulation, logo creation, consultation and a 28 page website.
I wanted to review this case because mr. Stahl, of mike stahl web designs, has done quite a bit of work for my husband’s business and had nothing but very good reviews up until this incident. His portfolio was one of the nicest i’ve seen in any business.
In examining this case i inspected some twelve email communications between mr. Stahl and ms. Gibson and all 8 of mr. Stahl’s submissions to american express and paypal in response to her non-delivery claims. This included two research reports, a clearly written proposal, a complete 28 page website awaiting revision directions from ms. Gibson and seo for all 28 pages. I also read the outscam submission by ms. Gibson and mr. Stahl’s rebuttal to this report.
This is what i found - in all the emails i inspected that went to and came from ms. Gibson, what i did not see was any reference to the non-response, breaking of a contract or posting of untruthful reviews she was accused of. What i did see was repeated attempts by mr. Stahl requesting content needed to finish the work ms. Gibson hired his firm to do. What i did not see was any evidence that mr. Stahl had sabotaged her web assets or libeled ms. Gibson or her company in any way.
Ms. Gibson preceded to file a chargeback with american express which she won. Credit card companies often will rule in favor of their client in spite of the evidence, which in this case was overwhelming in favor of mr. Stahl. And there is no appeal in this process!
This means that including the two written reports (2 hours) each, mr. Stahl’s firm was never compensated for some 39 hours of technical labor.
Everyone advises that if you receive a bad review, the best way to respond is with a rebuttal. You are advised to plug your business in a positive light and express what you have done to rectify the situation for the client so it will not happen again. This is a form of damage control. Ms. Gibson used this opportunity to pat herself on the back and ends her rebuttal with the number of women who strutted out of her store with great hair.
It is my professional opinion that ms. Gibson is guilty of breaking her contract, posting false negative reviews in the form of rebuttals to mr. Stahl’s reviews of her business and non-response to the requests of a vendor she hired to do a job. I’m embarrassed for ms. Gibson. Her behavior is unacceptable.
Had this case come before me professionally, ms. Gibson would have been ordered to pay back the deposit american express awarded her during the chargeback plus the remainder of what was owed for the project. I would have levied the maximum fine permitted by law in penalties along with a stern warning about ethical business practices and the negative message she sends to others about women in business.
Finally, the owner of the outscam has been sued many times and has never lost. It is considered freedom of both speech and press to post whatever one likes about whomever one chooses. The outscam does not verify any of these reports. Ms. Gibson clearly knows this and has taken advantage of our system of freedoms in a spiteful attempt to discredit someone with an otherwise sterling reputation. I find it ironic that she appears so put upon that her integrity was questioned.
My company was hired to create and build a re-design by the owner of Strut Hair Solutions, Helena Gibson. A detailed proposal was provided to her that stated a 7-10 day turn-around time and that the site was to contain a maximum of 15 pages. All additional work was to be charged at our hourly rate of $35 per.
Myself and two engineers spent the next 10 days and some 35 man hours creating a new 28 page website working from the notes taken during Helena Gibson’s first of two free one hour consultations without changing one word of the content. The look was different as the color scheme and structural elements around the site had been altered to accommodate the design requirements from the spec sheet. In addition, I was asked to review a complex technical document and do some migration work on her server which she had no intention of paying additional for. (About two hours of work)
Helena Gibson Consulting was supposed to contact us to discuss the progress of the site right after returning from a trip to Canada.
We did not hear from her so contacted her ten days later to schedule a conference. During this conference, she preceded to change virtually everything from the header to the footer of every page we looked at. Hours of detailed work from the spec sheet had to be thrown out. I took this difficult call. At no time did she say the site was supposed to look exactly like her current site.
Why would anyone pay that type of money for a clone site that had all of the same problems we were attempting to correct for her? Problems we had discussed in detail. This was completely a surprise. In good faith we revamped just the home page with her newest instructions. I sent this over to her the next morning asking for feedback.
We did not hear from her for ten days so again I contacted Helena Gibson, the owner of Strut Hair Solutions. She scheduled another telephone conference which she missed, sending a message saying she’d call soon, then preceded to blow us off for 5 additional weeks. Later she claims she was crying because the work we had done was so terrible. At any time she could have called us, told us what wasn't what she thought she was getting and we could have worked things out. Or even that she didn’t like the work and wanted changes.
Instead weeks later we receive a letter demanding a full refund for the website we had already put some 35 hours of work into. We were accused of lying about how much work and time the site had taken, even though we had a flat rate for the project, and also that we had pushed her into agreeing to a new site. The truth is that she was encouraged to change templates and make numerous modifications to better present her company online. A menu that allowed visitors to access every page of her site from every page of her site, a slideshow that subtly presented the services and mission statement of her company and a cohesive color scheme were some of the many ideas Helena Gibson was amenable to during the first of two free one hour consultations. She mulled over the proposal for several days then agreed. No one pressured her. This assertion is insulting.
We were later also accused of not doing what we were instructed to do. Helena Gibson maintains that she expressly said she wanted the new site to look exactly like her current site. This is entirely untrue. Had she said this I would have recommended she have her current developer make some modest changes and stay with what she had. Even though she'd had two previous developers she still sought out a third. It wasn't until sometime into the project that we realized why.
I have been a developer for 12 years and have never had this type of a client. If you access our website and look at the portfolio page you can see 15 current sites we've built plus a plethora of positive references from our clients. It doesn't do us any good to leave unhappy clients. I also will show you the site we created for Helena Gibson’s Strut Hair Solutions then you can look at her current site, which she designed and maintains to save money, then you can be the judge.
I cannot recommend doing business with Strut Hair Solutions owner Helena Gibson. I don’t think she really understands that the whole business world is not a wig you try on approval for several days then return because it doesn’t make you feel pretty enough. I don’t think she understands that you do not play games and attempt to stiff engineers for 35 hours of highly technical development work because you changed your mind. In the end she filed a chargeback claiming non-delivery with American Express. Even after we presented evidence that we had done what we had promised they still awarded their client the win, effectively stiffing us completely. Helena Gibson thinks she is justified in this.
Although initially we found the owner of Strut Hair Solutions, Helena Gibson to be affable the more our business relationship transpired the more apparent it became that she is fickle, egocentric, flaky, a bit self-absorbed and cannot really be trusted to keep a contract or her word. She is prone to behave more like a spoiled child than a grown woman who is running a business. Absolutely everything hurts her feelings.
And worst of all, for a woman in a position of power not to have the spine to call us to discuss issues, difficulties or anything else, was probably more disappointing even than her unethical and dishonest business practices.
Strut Hair Solutions and Helena Gibson – GET IT IN WRITING, GET PAID UP FRONT and MAKE SURE SHE DOESN’T USE THE AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD. Their chargeback program will stun you!
Strut Hair Solutions Reviews
Janie, my girlfriend purchased a $1,000 hair piece from strut hair solutions several weeks ago and was encouraged to have it professionally style-cut to better match the modern look she wanted by one of their stylists.
Unfortunately, the workmanship of both the hair piece and the cut were subpar and the piece now has sections that have so little hair left that they are actually see through. We can see janie’s hair and scalp when she puts it on. She’s totally bummed. The piece is essentially ruined. Well, maybe we could use it for halloween.
Janie was told before she purchased that all the products were guaranteed … so she requested a refund … twice.
She left three messages over the next week for elena, who is evidently a full time employee but never seemed to be able to make it to the phone to talk when she called. Still haven’t heard back.
One of the other employees explained to janie when she called that strut hair solutions usually doesn’t give refunds after a piece has been cut. Evidently they cannot sell a wig or hair piece after it has been altered and the store owner was not willing to take the loss. Don’t really have recourse here because janie paid by check unless she wants to go to small claims court which is a crapshoot and strut hair solutions would have an appeal process if they lose. Janie is just stuck.
I’m a detective who was an arbitrator for a short time while finishing my masters. I’ve seen this type of thing many times before. Janie wanted me to go into the store and do the “badge” thing to get her money back but that type of approach is only seen on television and is frowned upon when you’re in law enforcement.
So learn from this you. Here’s my advice to the consumer
Remember to always read your contract. For an item like a wig, if it’s altered Colored or cut) it can’t be re-sold so getting a refund or exchange will be next to impossible.
Try not to pay by cash or check because these payment methods don’t have the built in protections that credit cards do.
And tell someone what happened! never make a scene where the offending party can call the police on you. This turns the tables on you legally and makes you the bad guy.
Best thing to do:
Let people know how this store’s owner operates so it doesn’t happen to them. Best way to do that … the outscam!! that will follow them for many years.
We should have looked there to begin with. Looks like strut hair solutions has had their share of problems in the past.
My name is barbara rhodes. I have been an arbitrator for business disputes for the past 40 years. I was asked by my husband to review a case involving web development. The law classifies this type of work as virtual since it is not like a physical product you can buy in a store and return.
It pains me to publish this report about another woman in business because i know how hard it is for women to compete in a man’s world. More than that though, if we are to be held to the same standard as our male counterparts, it’s important that we conduct ourselves in an honest and ethical fashion.
The client in this case is helena gibson, owner of strut hair solutions in solana beach, who claims non-delivery of web development services and was requesting a full refund of her deposit, about $740.00.
The web development team consisting of mr. Stahl, principle, and two engineers claims to have put 35 hours of work into a new website for ms. Gibson which included research, seo, photo manipulation, logo creation, consultation and a 28 page website.
I wanted to review this case because mr. Stahl, of mike stahl web designs, has done quite a bit of work for my husband’s business and had nothing but very good reviews up until this incident. His portfolio was one of the nicest i’ve seen in any business.
In examining this case i inspected some twelve email communications between mr. Stahl and ms. Gibson and all 8 of mr. Stahl’s submissions to american express and paypal in response to her non-delivery claims. This included two research reports, a clearly written proposal, a complete 28 page website awaiting revision directions from ms. Gibson and seo for all 28 pages. I also read the outscam submission by ms. Gibson and mr. Stahl’s rebuttal to this report.
This is what i found - in all the emails i inspected that went to and came from ms. Gibson, what i did not see was any reference to the non-response, breaking of a contract or posting of untruthful reviews she was accused of. What i did see was repeated attempts by mr. Stahl requesting content needed to finish the work ms. Gibson hired his firm to do. What i did not see was any evidence that mr. Stahl had sabotaged her web assets or libeled ms. Gibson or her company in any way.
Ms. Gibson preceded to file a chargeback with american express which she won. Credit card companies often will rule in favor of their client in spite of the evidence, which in this case was overwhelming in favor of mr. Stahl. And there is no appeal in this process!
This means that including the two written reports (2 hours) each, mr. Stahl’s firm was never compensated for some 39 hours of technical labor.
Everyone advises that if you receive a bad review, the best way to respond is with a rebuttal. You are advised to plug your business in a positive light and express what you have done to rectify the situation for the client so it will not happen again. This is a form of damage control. Ms. Gibson used this opportunity to pat herself on the back and ends her rebuttal with the number of women who strutted out of her store with great hair.
It is my professional opinion that ms. Gibson is guilty of breaking her contract, posting false negative reviews in the form of rebuttals to mr. Stahl’s reviews of her business and non-response to the requests of a vendor she hired to do a job. I’m embarrassed for ms. Gibson. Her behavior is unacceptable.
Had this case come before me professionally, ms. Gibson would have been ordered to pay back the deposit american express awarded her during the chargeback plus the remainder of what was owed for the project. I would have levied the maximum fine permitted by law in penalties along with a stern warning about ethical business practices and the negative message she sends to others about women in business.
Finally, the owner of the outscam has been sued many times and has never lost. It is considered freedom of both speech and press to post whatever one likes about whomever one chooses. The outscam does not verify any of these reports. Ms. Gibson clearly knows this and has taken advantage of our system of freedoms in a spiteful attempt to discredit someone with an otherwise sterling reputation. I find it ironic that she appears so put upon that her integrity was questioned.
My company was hired to create and build a re-design by the owner of Strut Hair Solutions, Helena Gibson. A detailed proposal was provided to her that stated a 7-10 day turn-around time and that the site was to contain a maximum of 15 pages. All additional work was to be charged at our hourly rate of $35 per.
Myself and two engineers spent the next 10 days and some 35 man hours creating a new 28 page website working from the notes taken during Helena Gibson’s first of two free one hour consultations without changing one word of the content. The look was different as the color scheme and structural elements around the site had been altered to accommodate the design requirements from the spec sheet. In addition, I was asked to review a complex technical document and do some migration work on her server which she had no intention of paying additional for. (About two hours of work)
Helena Gibson Consulting was supposed to contact us to discuss the progress of the site right after returning from a trip to Canada.
We did not hear from her so contacted her ten days later to schedule a conference. During this conference, she preceded to change virtually everything from the header to the footer of every page we looked at. Hours of detailed work from the spec sheet had to be thrown out. I took this difficult call. At no time did she say the site was supposed to look exactly like her current site.
Why would anyone pay that type of money for a clone site that had all of the same problems we were attempting to correct for her? Problems we had discussed in detail. This was completely a surprise. In good faith we revamped just the home page with her newest instructions. I sent this over to her the next morning asking for feedback.
We did not hear from her for ten days so again I contacted Helena Gibson, the owner of Strut Hair Solutions. She scheduled another telephone conference which she missed, sending a message saying she’d call soon, then preceded to blow us off for 5 additional weeks. Later she claims she was crying because the work we had done was so terrible. At any time she could have called us, told us what wasn't what she thought she was getting and we could have worked things out. Or even that she didn’t like the work and wanted changes.
Instead weeks later we receive a letter demanding a full refund for the website we had already put some 35 hours of work into. We were accused of lying about how much work and time the site had taken, even though we had a flat rate for the project, and also that we had pushed her into agreeing to a new site. The truth is that she was encouraged to change templates and make numerous modifications to better present her company online. A menu that allowed visitors to access every page of her site from every page of her site, a slideshow that subtly presented the services and mission statement of her company and a cohesive color scheme were some of the many ideas Helena Gibson was amenable to during the first of two free one hour consultations. She mulled over the proposal for several days then agreed. No one pressured her. This assertion is insulting.
We were later also accused of not doing what we were instructed to do. Helena Gibson maintains that she expressly said she wanted the new site to look exactly like her current site. This is entirely untrue. Had she said this I would have recommended she have her current developer make some modest changes and stay with what she had. Even though she'd had two previous developers she still sought out a third. It wasn't until sometime into the project that we realized why.
I have been a developer for 12 years and have never had this type of a client. If you access our website and look at the portfolio page you can see 15 current sites we've built plus a plethora of positive references from our clients. It doesn't do us any good to leave unhappy clients. I also will show you the site we created for Helena Gibson’s Strut Hair Solutions then you can look at her current site, which she designed and maintains to save money, then you can be the judge.
I cannot recommend doing business with Strut Hair Solutions owner Helena Gibson. I don’t think she really understands that the whole business world is not a wig you try on approval for several days then return because it doesn’t make you feel pretty enough. I don’t think she understands that you do not play games and attempt to stiff engineers for 35 hours of highly technical development work because you changed your mind. In the end she filed a chargeback claiming non-delivery with American Express. Even after we presented evidence that we had done what we had promised they still awarded their client the win, effectively stiffing us completely. Helena Gibson thinks she is justified in this.
Although initially we found the owner of Strut Hair Solutions, Helena Gibson to be affable the more our business relationship transpired the more apparent it became that she is fickle, egocentric, flaky, a bit self-absorbed and cannot really be trusted to keep a contract or her word. She is prone to behave more like a spoiled child than a grown woman who is running a business. Absolutely everything hurts her feelings.
And worst of all, for a woman in a position of power not to have the spine to call us to discuss issues, difficulties or anything else, was probably more disappointing even than her unethical and dishonest business practices.
Strut Hair Solutions and Helena Gibson – GET IT IN WRITING, GET PAID UP FRONT and MAKE SURE SHE DOESN’T USE THE AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD. Their chargeback program will stun you!