When I first heard that Primark was extending its bargain basement ethos to hair and offering 18-minute blow dries for just £17, it seemed like an obvious game-changer.
Who wouldn't want a fabulous speedy new look for at least half the price of most High Street salons? Especially as it comes with the stylish stamp of Duck & Dry, the upmarket Chelsea hair emporium.
Primark has cleverly joined forces with the hipper salon to offer in-store beauty bars at its flagship Oxford Street outlet in London, as well as its colossal new store in Birmingham, with plans to roll out the concessions across a further 20 shops nationwide.
A brilliant idea, surely… and yet doubts nagged. Could you really get a salon-quality look for the price and time it takes to have a coffee, in the midst of a packed clothes store?
Can you tell which is £17 and which is £70? Sarah Barclay tried out Primark's new budget blow dry (right) against one of the most expensive in London (left), Daniel Galvin's £70 blow dry
Unconvinced, but willing it to succeed, I decided to put Primark to the ultimate test. How would its Duck & Dry Xpress bar fare when it went head-to-head with one of the most expensive blow dries in London — a £70 blow dry at the hallowed sanctum of Daniel Galvin?
No, it wasn't terribly fair — the maxim 'you get what you pay for' is true of most beauty therapies, after all — but if Primark proved those doubts wrong, what a marvel this would be for women like me who crave the professional just-done look but can't justify the expense, other than on special occasions. Here, potentially, was a means of looking expensive without being expensive. Brilliant!
I pitched up just a matter of days after the bar in the Oxford Street Primark opened and presented my slightly greasy mop to one of the lovely, friendly stylists. To my surprise, the space felt peaceful and airy, like an oasis amid the busy, fast-fashion devotees.
Barbie meets Marie Antoinette is how the decor can best be described, with tinted baroque jars of faux blossoms. Stylists and beauty technicians are dressed in pastel T-shirts, jeans and smart trainers. 'We are colour coded,' explained my stylist.
Of course they are. Blue for hair, pink for nails and yellow for brows — the latter work on the Duck & Pluck Xpress and Duck & File stands, where you can get super-fast threading, tinting and manicures at knock-down prices, too (£6 for threading; £10 for a file and polish).
My stylist asked me what sort of style I'd like. Customers can choose from six different looks — bouncy, straight and wavy, plus three updo designs with braids.
There's something incredibly indulgent about having your hair done in a top salon (stock image)
'I think probably just natural, full and not too styled,' I replied a little nervously, as she spritzed in a large dose of Primark Dry Shampoo, and then a generous helping of Tigi Queen Beach Salt Infused Texture Spray, to give some volume (and quite a synthetic pong!).
'Really, to style hair, it doesn't need to be wet,' my stylist explained. 'Some people come in with damp hair, but I would still dry it before I got styling.'
Strand by strand she coiled my flat hair into ringlets with her curling tong. I worried I was starting to look a bit peculiar, although I did appreciate her skill.
Finally, clouds of hairspray were administered, so my hair was kept in place. The result? A somewhat unusual interpretation of my usual style. I generally like to channel the healthy and a bit stylish natural look. My marvellous 'curtains', an age-softening layer around my face, had been swept away into the rest of the hair.
I didn't feel very me. If I'm honest, I felt older, and my hair looked shorter, due to the tonging.
Primark has cleverly joined forces with the hipper salon to offer in-store beauty bars at its flagship Oxford Street outlet in London, as well as its colossal new store in Birmingham, with plans to roll out the concessions across a further 20 shops nationwide (stock image)
Overall, it definitely felt as if a 'hair do' had been applied to my hair rather than a straight-forward blow dry and, given the short menu of options on offer, that's perhaps not surprising.
The key to the concept's success, it seems to me, is whether it's possible to adapt that short menu just a bit to a customers' individual needs. If it was, I'd definitely go back, but be far more assertive about my own style.
I bet a younger, less fussy age group will adore it, however, and if you have hair prone to volume and frizz (sadly, mine is not), it would be a brilliant way of sleeking up for a night out. For me, the main gain was cleaner-looking hair.
From one end of the spectrum to the other. Daniel Galvin is the high priest of highlights whose in-house colourists and stylists have celebrity clients so grand they can't be named. But, really, with the best will in the world, is a blow dry at his salon seriously worth the wonga? A wash and blow dry with the senior style director is priced up to £100.
What you're paying for, of course, is not just the finished article. There's something incredibly indulgent about having your hair done in a top salon. Not only was my hair washed in gloriously wholesome-smelling and formulated products, but it was given a quick vitamin rinse that brightened the highlights. And, while this conditioner works its magic, you get a fabulous massage, too, during which I felt the stress of impending GCSE revision supervision flood out of my head.
I hesitate to write off the Primark Duck & Dry collaboration. There is something uplifting and pampering about getting your hair blow-dried (stock image)
While my Primark girl was sweet and friendly, and knew her way around a brush, the Daniel Galvin stylist, Stephen, approached the blow dry in the manner of a life coach. Not only did he really listen to what I said, but he explained exactly what he thought would suit me and why.
Like all super-experienced hairdressers, he had a way of holding up a few strands of hair as though they were interesting artefacts. He demonstrated by altering less than a centimetre of height here and there the different impressions you get. I felt in safe hands.
Looking at the pictures above, I'll admit it is hard to tell which is which. What you can't see is the quality of my barnet: at Primark, my hair was stiff, due to the salt thickener and hair spray, and slightly dulled by the dry shampoo. Under Stephen's artful gaze, it was given a natural bounce that felt fuller and healthier, and I felt more confident leaving the salon.
And, yet, I hesitate to write off the Primark Duck & Dry collaboration. There is something uplifting and pampering about getting your hair blow-dried. However brief, it represents a moment of calm in an otherwise stressful, anxious world.
If you win the lottery, by all means go to Daniel Galvin, but for the rest of us, a cheapo blow dry is still a thing of beauty.
- danielgalvin.com; xpress.duckanddry.com
photo link
https://textbacklinkexchanges.com/is-primarks-new-17-blow-dry-a-bargain-too-far-sarah-barclay-tested-it-against-a-top-salon/
News Photo Is Primark's new £17 blow dry a bargain too far? SARAH BARCLAY tested it against a top salon
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