According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, laser hair removal was one of the most sought after minimally invasive procedures in 2016 for clients ages 13 to 54, and Americans spent more than $300 million on laser hair removal in 2016. But it’s not just the minimally invasive hair treatments that are seeing a rise. More hair transplants were performed in 2016 versus 2015, though the number of transplants has dropped significantly since the year 2000. These numbers show that clients are readily seeking hair-removal and hair-rejuvenation options at medical spas. But with the internet and social media, clients are often flooded with information and misinformation on the subject. Hair-treatment clients may have unrealistic expectations or misinformation that could lead to service dissatisfaction. Here’s how to best avoid problems and manage the expectations of clients receiving a hair-removal or hair-transplant service.
“Clients need to know these procedures are an investment and are meant to manage excessive hair growth. IPL or laser procedures may need to be repeated annually to maintain results.”
—Tina Zillmann, founder, Skin Rejuvenation Clinique
“Electrolysis is the only permanent method of hair removal, and it kills grey and blond hair, whereas laser hair removal is hair reduction and needs color in the follicle of the hair.”
—Jenya Titova, director of med spa operations, Hochstein MedSpa
“You cannot afford to advertise for a patient and then not be able to treat them at the point of sale. Have electrolysis. Make sure you can treat Asian, African-American, and Hispanic patients.”
—Alan Durkin, M.D., CEO, Ocean Drive Plastic Surgery
“There are a number of factors involved when determining who is a good candidate for hair transplant… if a person has a small area and/or poor density of donor hair, they likely would not make a good candidate, because we would only be able to remove a small amount of hair safely, which for a transplant would have little to no impact.”
—Baiju Gohil, M.D., hair restoration surgeon, Robotic Hair Restoration Long Island