Mode Salon Spa – East

This was my first visit to Mode Salon East Spa. It was great… until check-​out. Quaintly located in downtown Gainesville in an old historic house building, they did a nice job jazzing up the place with modern décor — sparkly chandeliers, furniture that has an IKEA feel, while still reserving the historic feeling. Very clean and well kept, the red-​head receptionist warmly welcomed me when I arrived.
As a first time customer, I scheduled a Mini-​Pedi ($ 30) and Manicure Shellac ($ 40). Both were worth the quality of work I got from nail technician, Jessica. She was bubbly, conversational and gave me exactly what I asked for on my nails. She is very detailed in her work leaving my nails flawless.
My gripe with Mode came at check-​out. Their website offers «$ 20 off $ 50 for first time customers only». I wanted to take advantage of this on my first visit. When I checked out, the receptionist said she needed to check with someone else on this coupon (maybe the front desk manage, I’m unsure). Another lady came out and told me they cannot honor the coupon because it’s $ 50 off a SINGLE service. Nowhere on the coupon or website does it say this. I pointed this fact out and the woman just stared at me and said they could give me 20% off instead — not the same as $ 20 off. She was unwilling to honor their misworded coupon — a shame. I paid and left and mentioned again to the first receptionist that they should consider fixing their wording because it does not state ‘single service’ anywhere. She agreed at least.
The salon saved themselves $ 14 by not honoring their website’s coupon and left me with a sour taste in my mouth on how the situation was handled. Hopefully they will revise the website’s coupon for future first-​timers so they don’t upset other people wanting to try — and hoping to like — their salon that did everything GREAT… until check-​out. Bummed.

I recently moved to Gainesville and I’ve been looking all over Florida for a good hair salon to satisfy my ever changing hair colors. I stopped by here the other day after a friend recommended me to Emily.
Right when I walked in Emily was very knowledgeable about the entire process and was confident we could get my dark orange-​ish blonde ombré hair to silver in one day (the last salon I went to was unable to do this). She was also very clear about the price and gave me a lot of different options to choose from. I decided on first getting a blonde balayage and then getting a full color silver on top.
During the process Emily walked me through everything she was doing as well as always asking if I needed any beverages. She never let the small talk die and let me feel very comfortable.
Seven hours later I walked out of the salon with my hair looking amazing. Emily is definitely the color expert of Mode East. I would recommend her to anybody who is looking for silver (she did the receptionist’s silver hair too!)
Mode also currently has a New Year’s promotion where if you book your next appointment at the salon right after you’ll receive a discount on the service as well as be entered into a drawing for a free mani pedi!

Customer service drove me away.
I originally called to schedule a hair appointment for a trim with Lonnie, book a trial run for my wedding, and book for the day of the wedding plus 3 bridesmaids.
The day of my trim appointment (today), I received a phone call to confirm. I decided to confirm my trial run appointment while I had the representative on the phone, which I had down 3 days later, but they had no record of it. I asked if they had record of my appointment for my wedding day. They did NOT have any booked appointment but did see a blocked hold on the schedule.
I was then asked by the rep if I filled out a «wedding contract» and put down a deposit. This was the 1^st time that was mentioned. The representative stated I could sign the contract & provide the deposit later today when I came for my trim. I asked how much the deposit would be so I could come to the appointment prepared, but she couldn’t tell me how much and instead decided to email me the contract to look over before I arrived. She stated I will need to know how many bridesmaids are confirmed as well. This was exactly an hour before I had to be there!
As I waited for the email of the contract (which I never received) I frantically contacted my matron & maids, of which they asked for a price. Duh!
When I called the salon back for an average up do price I was told around $ 100 but still not given a deposit price. I cancelled any and all appointments at that point. I just don’t have the confidence. I’m real sorry Lonnie but I need more assurance from the schedulers that your salon knows what time it is… wedding time! I hate last minute cancellations but this has got to be a solid transaction. Stressing me out today with less than 2 weeks before the wedding with no solid answers, information in advance, and secured appointments was below my expectations of average salon customer service.
PS. This is my 2^nd review, same rating for poor nail service over a year ago. :/

What a journey. I went to Mode Salon West on July 3^rd with what I knew would be a challenging color correction. The dreaded dark brown/​black to platinum blonde (silver, really), request that I’m sure every colorist dreads. especially after Kim K.
I went to Sara first and spent, no exaggeration, 11 hours (and obscene amount of $$) in her chair. When I left at midnight I was exhausted — and over it — and it looked *okay* in the glowing fluorescents of the salon, but by daybreak the next morning I was in tears. The resulting color and the texture left a lot to be desired. Through really no fault of her own, though, but I was still really upset and wearing a scarf on my head for the next few days as the salon was closed through Monday due to their hours and the holiday weekend.
I spoke at length to Lonie at the West location and we agreed for me to come in yesterday, the 7^th, for him to correct the color and adjust the cut to be a more flattering shape and discuss my options as far as my hair and the color transition I was hoping to achieve.
There is absolutely no way I can express the gratitude for what he was able to accomplish and what he did for me. Another 7 hours in the chair and more hair trimmed off to help mitigate the damage and reveal the color we’re achieving, but this time I left in HAPPY tears.
He went way above and beyond to achieve a wearable color while my hair grows out and I can get rid of the darker ends, as well as gifting me treatments and services to get the integrity of my hair back on track.
Sara is a GREAT stylist and this should not be considered a reflection on her ability, merely an incredibly complicated request and perhaps not necessarily the right resources at that location.
The way they handled the situation represents everything a salon should strive to be — professional, creative and above all, compassionate to the client. Seeing if I can upload pictures!

(It should be noted that though I no longer live in Gainesville, I came all the way from Atlanta to have Mode Salon and Emily take care of me.)
I very rarely treat myself to a proper hair appointment, and it’s been about a year since my last trip to the salon. I decided to visit Mode Salon because I had been following one of their newer stylists’ Instagram (@hairbyeclaire) for a while and been absolutely DYING (pun intended) to have her color my hair. She is incredibly talented and motivated to continue improving, as she’s fresh out of school. I think she’s a fantastic fit for Mode Salon, as they are able to provide a fantastic environment for her to hone her skill set.
Upon arrival, Emily greeted me and took me on a quick tour of the renovated home-​turned-​salon; the whole place is beautifully decorated and actually has the original wood flooring! She led me to the back room where the magic happens, and I was seated next to where Lonie (one of the owners) was working on another lady’s hair. Introductions were made, and we got down to business. I explained to Emily the length I was looking for, the color I wanted (while she was cutting away at my box color ombré, I perused Google and Pinterest for some pictures to show her the color I was looking for), and how I normally wear my hair. The length ended up a little shorter than originally intended but it was probably necessary. It got rid of all the previously colored hair and gave her a blank canvas for my ombré.
I am absolutely OBSESSED with the way the color came out. Emily showed me a couple of swatches that were close to what I was looking for, but when none of them really jumped out at me, she suggested adding a drop of one to another idk man, it was freaking magic. It turned out EXACTLY the color I wanted, and thanks to a new technique she used to apply the color, was thorough and quick. Once I was washed, dried and styled, she took me around to the other stylists and we showed off my color to them. It’s freaking awesome, guys.
I also have to add a couple things about my experience: Emily gave me such incredible service during my time there. She brought me tea, magazines, a hand scrub, anything I needed to pass the time comfortably. I was given a shirt to throw on over what I wore there because I’m an idiot and wore a white top. Really just above and beyond the requirement to make sure my time there was fantastic.
ALSO. I LOVE the way the team there works together. Since Emily is still relatively new to the salon (~four months), she was constantly getting guidance from Lonie and another stylist that was there. And not in a way that made me uncomfortable or worried about how things would turn out. More so in a way that makes you really glad that someone with such great potential found a place like Mode Salon that can really cultivate natural skill and passion into something great.
All in all, I will absolutely be back. So much love to Mode!

Hands down one of the top three worst haircuts I have ever had! Showed my stylist a picture of Judi Dench (I already have short white hair) and ended up looking like Sinead O’Connor. I’m new to Gainesville, liked the look and friendly feel of the salon, so I gave Mode a try. Printed out a $ 20 coupon for first time «guests» for service of $ 50, catch is, a single service has to be $ 50, so haircut ($ 35) & manicure ($ 45) did not qualify. Too bad, I’ll keep looking. Nina

I have not been to this location in awhile, but when I went it was great. The stylist is no longer there but apparently they have a new one who specializes in curly hair so I am excited to give her a go! The location next to TJ Maxx is pretty good, everyone is really nice. I wish the girl who cut my hair would have been more honest about not really knowing how to cut curly hair. I tried helping her out explaining I needed an S Pattern, etc. but she still cut horrible layers and I have been growing it for awhile now. i called and SW the manager and she was very understanding. I had an appt that next week so i wish they would have offered to give me a discount or something, but they did not. Oh well, I will keep going to the University Ave location instead :)

Unable to perform to expectation. Think twice before deciding on special trendy techniques. Non experience staff with hair coloring.

Went to mode salon because it seemed like a classy place and should be able to do great hair. However I came out after 5 hours of being there with ORANGE highlights!!! HORRIBLE results… I felt like it was a hair school because my lady was fumbling about and the mistake happened bc the foil bled onto my scalp creating the biggest orange spot on my main part! I attempted to have it fixed and round 2 was even worse! This salon is terrible and their people can’t do highlights! Now I am forced to pay hundreds of dollars to fixed my damaged hair.
This place doesn’t even deserve 1 star!!!
DO NOT GO TO THIS PLACE !!! Unless you want your hair ruined.

THis was the MOST AWFUL. AWFUL. experience I have ever had at a hair salon. Not only was my hair not cut the way I wanted/​asked, but when I requested it to be fixed, I was told that she was NOT going to fix it and that I should have specified when I first came in. I don’t really understand why it couldn’t have been fixed, I was still in the chair. awful, awful awful. DO NOT go here if you are looking for a place that cuts bangs well. I look like a 12 year old boy with a bowl cut. I signed up for Unilocal just so I could write this review, if that gives you any idea of how ugly my hair looks right now.

Schedule a hair appointment with India, and you will not be disappointed! She’s fantastic!

It’s getting really hard to even THINK about going anywhere else. I went there today because I’ve been on the lookout for a ghd straightening iron and met with Lonie. The man knows everything there is to know about hair! He also knows tons about ghd and took the time to explain the history of the company and how the straightening iron works. The straightening is pretty easy but I have a difficult time with using the iron to make curls. So, when Lonie sat me down and showed me how to do it, I was totally impressed. Not only did he show me how to do the curls, he made me do them and guided me throughout the entire process. Lonie is the BEST! I am using it for the first time tomorrow and I can’t wait!!!

Well, from my prior posting concerning Élan Hair Studio, you can imagine my angst when I called to schedule an appointment with Ashley Patrice, my stylist, and was informed that she no longer worked there. But I must give major kudos to Élan, they supplied me with her new location and phone number. I was relieved that she was still in town. I immediately called Mode to schedule an appointment.
Mode is big city salon meets small town hospitality. Upon my arrival I was greeted at the door and welcomed. The owner spied a new guest and welcomed me himself and gave me a tour of the salon. It’s gorgeous. Beautiful colors, décor and modern facilities fill the building. I was given a cup of coffee when Ashley came out to greet me.
I would follow Ashley anywhere within 8 hours driving. She is fun, smart, patient and great with my hair. If I were straight, I would try to steal her from her boyfriend.
One added plus for Mode — the price is very reasonable. Oh, and they’re very environmentally conscious, if that’s your thing.
Not to mention the owner is kinda cute.