The best pedicure chairs are built for comfort and pampering to help ease away the stresses of the day, and more than likely include a kneading or shiatsu massager in the seat to allow a person to relax even more as they receive a pedicure. Usually, the chairs will include magazine racks, cup holders, and relaxing jet streams that massage the feet. Pedicure chair upholstery can be important for a person to pay attention to, since people don’t want to develop a bad skin irritation when they peel themselves out of the chair. Another important factor is the ability to control the water temperature, since too hot or too cold water will affect a customers’ spa experience. You will need to keep all of these features in mind in order to choose the best chair for you, as well as factors such as durability, craftsmanship, and quality.
One way to get a good feel for different chairs, is to observe as many chairs as you can in various salons in your area. Take special care in looking for customer discomfort as they step out of the chair, because that is when the results of a stiff or uncomfortable chair become most noticeable. You should also observe the relaxation levels of the customer as she sits in the chair during the actual pedicure. A customer may put up with an uncomfortable chair one time, but you can bet they won’t be back for another session anytime soon if the chair is really that uncomfortable. The best pedicure chairs will provide that relaxing spa experience that most customers are looking for.
You can usually find the best prices on pedicure chairs on the internet, and spa or salon owners may sometimes also qualify for wholesale pricing, depending on their volume. Your choice of a pedicure chair will really help define your business, and the quality and comfort level tells a customer what they can expect from the salon as a whole. So even though you may not want to go to the very high end, don’t go to the other extreme either when trying to decide. A chair with more options and features will probably bring in a higher level of clientele, whereas the model with fewer options may benefit you if you are only looking to keep a high turnover rate.
If you have a high-end luxury-oriented spa, then you might consider spending more money on a nicer pedicure spa chair, and research some of the latest models coming out that might have auto-massage cycles, or even attached entertainment and learning centers. Some may provide docking stations for iPod or smart phones, and built-in laptop tables with Internet connection may be coming in the future.
Your main concern might be to turn over as many customers as possible in any given day in which case you might think about purchasing pedicure chairs that will help to create or build a client base. Many times owners will need to choose the best pedicure chair based on total cost, and these higher volume salons may have anywhere from 2 – 35 chairs that they try and fill daily.
Unfortunately, various types of pedicure chairs may have a history of not draining completely due to piped tubs, and this can be very unsanitary and even cause infections by trapping residue from the previous pedicure. You don’t want an environment that is detrimental to your clients’ health, so this is an important issue to be concerned with. No matter if you think you have the best pedicure chair, it can start chasing customers away if they know that it carries unsanitary water. Even the most ergonomically sound and comfortable pedicure chair won’t be able to overcome that perception problem.