Ena Salon

I really wanted to like Ena. I love them on Twitter and Facebook, and the people who work there are lovely. However, they have some serious issues with communication and time management and that’s pretty critical for a salon. I was a hair model for them about 8 months ago and was lucky that I had an entire day to dedicate to it because it ran over by about 4 hours. The 2 – 3 hour session ended up being about 6 hours and while my haircut was very nice, it wasn’t 6 hours in the salon nice. It was free though, so hey. There were a lot of weird, unnecessary delays that day, and I don’t know if it was representative of how the hair modelling usually goes, but I wasn’t thrilled.
Since then, I’ve been in for a consultation with Evie. Evie is really lovely on the phone and online, but wasn’t much help when I was chatting with her about my colour potential. She had someone else come and snip a bit of hair to run a test on and I was told I’d hear back about that test the next day. I rang them after a week and found out that she’d gone away for the holidays and wouldn’t get back to me until at least the 3^rd of Jan. Ok. Would have been good to know that from the beginning as I’d been hoping to get in for the appointment before then. Additionally, no one knew what had happened with my strand test so I’d have to wait for her to return to hear about it. I had already been ringing them regularly, but as they had no message letting customers know about Christmas closing information, I had no way of knowing when they would re-​open and just had to keep trying.
I had initially got in touch with them about an offer from Twitter — 50% off any bookings with Evie or James. When I mentioned this on the phone, I was told that the offer was no longer valid — that as of the day I went in for a consult, it expired. No one communicated that to me at all at any point, I was under the impression that my ongoing consultation process with them was enough to still use it. When I expressed worry about the cost of the process I was discussing with them without the discount, I was told that if I didn’t hear from them in 5 days about the test to ring them again.
I feel pretty certain that as soon as cost was raised, I was blown off. She mentioned a 20% discount for new customers and basically hung up after that. I got no information during the consultation that was of use and will not go back at this point. I’m just really unimpressed by the way this was handled and by how disorganised they seem to be. For the amount they charge, the service should be seamless, and I’m wary of spending that kind of money at a place that can’t keep track of a strand test.

So, I wasn’t going to leave a review for this hell-​hole because I couldn’t think of anything nice to say. However, since it’s been 6 months and I STILL get promotional texts from them I thought I’d have at it.
I booked my first appointment last autumn, with a senior stylist, on the recommendation of a friend. When I got there, I was inexplicably given the junior guy. Right away, I could sense the sneer on his face, that he was far too cool for school. Against my better judgement, I went into the salon and sat at the chair.
The stylist guy asked what I wanted, and I said just refresh what I have, or I’m open-​minded to suggestions. He stood there thinking and started poking at my hair then said with a MASSIVE sneer «UGH so you have two different haircuts here. Some is long and some is short.» Yes… they’re layers… He was sort of flicking my hair as if it was too disgusting to even touch
He sort of picked at my hair with a look of sheer disgust and said «UGH this is SO damaged. How did it even get like this?» Again, he looked almost ill at the sight of my hair! I don’t say this to be obnoxious, but I have long healthy hair, naturally good colour, never dyed, and it has been well-​treated. I work in a professional environment and like to keep my hair and appearance professional and well-​maintained. Usually when I go to a new salon people ask how on earth my hair is so healthy! I also didn’t have split ends, as it had only been cut about a month before, by my beloved former hair stylist (who moved away)!
At the time of the appointment, I was in early stages of pregnancy and feeling unwell, and had fidgeted uncomfortably in the chair and he asked what was the matter with me and I said I was pregnant. He asked how far along and I said nearly 3 months. He sneered and said something indicating that that’s hardly even pregnant.
He then went back to criticising my existing hair style. Finally I said «I came here to get my hair cut, not be criticised. Which are you offering?» and he said «UGH we can cut your hair. They’ll wash it upstairs» and off I went, against my better judgement.
Shampooing person was very nice, shampoo was fine, and I went back down. He started trimming, complaining about my «two hairstyles.» I said, yes but I have long hair and want the layers, otherwise it lays very flat. He did not approve so cut it basically blunt anyway. He asked how I wanted to have it blow dried and I said I’d prefer it soft and natural. He said NO to that! and that iron-​straight «looks more polished.» I insisted that what I wanted was not dead straight, and he just said no, it doesn’t look polished (he repeated this 2 or 3 times). I asked him why you see so many actresses on the red carpet with soft, wavy hair and he just sneered and carried on.
When I went to leave, he came to give me free samples of shampoo and conditioner. They were for «damaged hair.» He said «here, maybe this will help.» You don’t even want to know the words I was thinking in my head. I paid, and left, went to meet my husband who kind of stared at my weird blunt cut and shrugged, and I swore to NEVER go back.
One thing I will say is that my fringe was very nice, but considering that I:
–had asked to see a senior stylist
–was told my hair was disgusting
–was told that my previous (lovely) hairstyle was wrong
–was told I wasn’t pregnant enough to feel unwell
–didn’t get the cut I asked for
–didn’t get the finish I asked for
–was given products for a hair condition that I don’t have
–have received several spam texts (all with my name spelled wrong)
I will not be back. I don’t need to be treated like that.

In desperate search for a new hairdresser, I went to the highly recommended Ena. The salon in itself lives up to its expectations. It is beautiful and welcoming. Nino on the other hand left me with a bitter memory. You would hope that with a £90 haircut you would at least get someone who listens to you. I asked for a feminine, not too short, bob with a twist, I got served with a punkish very short haircut which I would qualify as brutal. I will probably have my hair cut by my old haidresser in a few days. A good hairdresser is not one who does what he wants with your hair and expects for you to appreciate his art, he listens to what you want and makes it look perfect on you.

I like Ena a lot. I first came here after diy bleaching my hair to the point of getting chemical burns on my scalp and a lot of my long, asian hair breaking off. Harriet really saved it, cutting quite a lot of length, not any more than I requested, but still managing to shape it despite the straggly ends. She answered any questions I had about bleaching/​colouring and suggested some techniques I could try to minimise damage (never did manage to try them since I’ve now stopped the bleaching entirely).
I have noticed prices increasing by about £5 over the past year, but the hairdressers are skilled and friendly, the décor is amazinggggg, and you get what you pay for! They’re also one of the few salons to carry Davines products – their purifying shampoo is the only thing that works on my nasty dandruff!

Having moved from north to south London, I was in need of a new hairdressers to replace my tried and trusted go to place (The Chapel, Islington —
), now just too much of a trek.
I tried Ena on the recommendation of my mother-​in-​law, who generously shares many helpful observations and suggestions about my hair styling, and who had been urging me to go here for some time (to be fair, they do seem to make a decent job of her hair). I finally buckled — what was there to lose?
Well it turns out, quite a lot of hair! Now I’m not prissy about my hair, I’ve had it long and I’ve had it short, and I’m totally up for a bit of experimentation from my hairdresser if the inspiration takes them. However, the end result was nothing like what I was expecting. It was a lot shorter, and although we’d talked about ‘working with the natural wave’, it was finished straight and sleek, which really didn’t suit me.
I was so horrified with my new ‘look’ that I had to buy myself a new dress (oh yes, and a sparkly top) on the way home to cheer myself up, so despite the introductory 20% discount for the cut, it ended up costing me a small fortune!
Once I’d washed and blow-​dryed what was left of my hair the next day and tonged some curls back into it, it did look substantially better, and the colour, with some subtly red highlights, also looked nice, so it wasn’t an unmitigated disaster. But it does now require no small amount of time and assistance from a barrage of different hair appliances to get it looking right — not exactly wash and go!
I’ve been back for my complementary fringe trim (which most places now offer), and the salon itself does have a lovely ambiance, and pleasant staff. However, you need to walk out of a hair salon feeling amazing, so my hair’s not planning on returning. Instead it’s going to play the field a bit more before it considers going steady with a new stylist again… the right one is out there somewhere, but for me, not here.

A couple cuts later and I don’t think I’m going to keep going here. I did like the first couple cuts quite a lot, but I let my stylist do some pretty drastic things with my hair, and the last one was just too weird for me. Instead of cutting the hair I have in a way that is sensible, he just shaved half of it off completely. That means that 4 weeks later as it grows in, I have a mess to deal with, and I can’t afford the £100 on a monthly basis. So, alas, I will not be returning and now I’m stuck trying to find another place to go yet again. Sigh.

I was introduced through a Groupon offer for £49 instead of £180 for two separate haircuts and conditioning treatment. I have since completed both visits and have been very impressed with the service and outcome.
As you’re greeted at reception, they take your coat and offer you organic coffee/​tea/​water and a copy of Vogue as you wait. The salon is set in a spacious, converted Edwardian house, and the great thing is that the owners chose to keep a lot of the original layout — fireplaces and all — but with a modern, minimalist twist. What struck me was that the salon has lots of character: you walk into the living room area/​reception, walk up to the dining area and lounge/​shampoo area and hair cutting stations. Used towels are even transported by the old dumbwaiter contraption!
Like Sherene J., I also have coarse, curly, unmanageable hair so was a little nervous about how the stylist would react. I was pleased to know that both my stylists, Sam and Jay, were well-​trained in dealing with curly hair. Both of them were very thorough during the initial consultation, helping me balance being open yet practical with my choice of hair cut. They would explain what products they were using, the style of cut, and why, but not in the usual sales-​y way that I’m used to.
My hair has been easy to maintain, healthy and stylish since then. Would like to try their other services in the near future, too. I will definitely be a regular!

I had bought a discounted voucher for a hair treatment, cut and blowdry at this salon from
, with great trepidation, because I’m wary of hairdressers in general and even more so without the benefit of a word of mouth recommendation.
Why am I wary of hairdressers, you ask? Here’s why… I have frighteningly curly coarse hair which is a joy to look at but a nightmare to maintain. To say that it has a personality of its own is more than an understatement. I have been at the receiving end of much ire from several hairdressers who make me feel like shit for having hair that’s difficult to handle, which merely pisses me off because quite frankly, if I didn’t need their help fixing it, I wouldn’t be paying them now, would I?
I loved, loved, loved this salon… they absolutely pampered my hair and gave me some very useful advice to deal with the unusual levels of frizz and volume. Yohan, my hair stylist, was exceedingly patient with my hair and me and left me feeling fabulous about my curls :) The name of the person who blow-​dryed my hair escapes me now but he was awesome too, left me looking like a sun goddess with stunningly defined curls which stayed for much longer than one would imagine salon styling to remain.
I highly recommend this salon. It doesn’t hurt that it is located centrally while being easily accessible from the City. The ambiance and décor is calming, minimalist and most stylish. Go forth and pamper your hair.