Popular parenting TikTok creator Victoria Yavnyi (@toriyav) recently shared a troubling story about her former hairdresser.
In a video that has garnered over 2.3 million views, Yavnyi said her ex-hairdresser accessed her private phone number and sent harassing messages after she posted a video discussing a previous experience at the salon.
Yavnyi started by explaining that she isn’t the type to stir up drama.
“I would just like to note that I am a parenting channel,” she said. “This is not something I ever do, but I’m starting to feel really uncomfortable.”
What happened?
Rewinding a year, Yavnyi recounts how she originally visited a Brooklyn-based salon called Self to get her hair done. At the time, she said her appointed hairdresser quoted her $390 for the service, with an initial deposit of $180.
She expected to pay around $500 with tip. But when the appointment ended, the final price blindsided her.
“It ended up being $510… I paid what I had to pay and I left,” Yavnyi said, adding that the total came to around $800.
Fast forward a year later, and Yavnyi reached out to Self for an appointment. She wanted to go dirty blonde, and says the salon quoted her $450. However, having experienced a price hike before, Yavnyi was hesitant.
She decided to take a step back and ask her audience what they think.
“I was like, ‘Let me think about it,’ and I moved on,” Yavnyi says. “I made a video about this and I’m like, ‘Hey guys, I know I live in New York City. I paid $800 for my hair last time. This is what I want this time. What is a reasonable price for me to pay?”
Hairdresser contacts her directly
That’s when things escalated. Yavnyi says she received a lengthy and unexpected text from the hairdresser that made her feel uncomfortable.
What troubled her most, however, was that she never gave the stylist her personal phone number.
“That means she went back into her salon’s records from a year ago to get access to my private information,” she said.
In the text, which Yavnyi shared a screenshot of, the stylist accused her of trying to make her and her salon “look bad” on social media, though Yavnyi said she’d never mentioned the salon or the stylist by name.
“Nobody knows who you are,” Yavnyi responded, noting that her video was simply a request for advice.
The hairdresser ended the message by accusing Yavnyi of being unprofessional and saying she wasn’t welcome back to the salon.
Though Yavnyi said she never responded to this message, she says she received another one via Instagram that made her feel even more uncomfortable.
To conclude, Yavnyi addressed the salon itself.
“To you, Self salon,” she said. “How do you approve of your employees treating your customers like this? I was going to come back to you. I just wanted to know what I was going to pay, that’s all.”
Viewers react to the tale
In the comments, users expressed outrage and concern for Yavnvi.
“The way the hairdresser is borderline stalking you…that’s scary,” wrote one.
“$700 for BOB LENGTH HAIR is diabolical work,” said another. “i have my hairdressing license also.”
“As a hairstylist, I’m appalled that she reached out to you like that,” remarked a third. “I’m so embarrassed for her.”
@toriyav @Self Do you approve your employees treating your clients like this? At the end of the day I am entitled to my opinion, and I don’t believe that warrents your stylist getting my personal information and approaching me like this. Especially when she hasnt been mentioned, until this video. #hair #salon #parenting #momlife #motherhood #fyp #viral #CapCut #nyc #selfsalon ♬ original sound – Victoria
Most recent update
Two days after her initial video, Yavnyi posted a new clip updating her audience on the saga.
The TikToker said that the owner of Self salon reached out to her via email to apologize. Yavnyi few nice things to say about their correspondence.
“I felt it to be the most disingenuous, cookie-cutter, corporate email I have ever seen, with no sincerity in it whatsoever,” she said.
Yavnyi said the owner did apologize, but didn’t offer any solutions. She said she felt it was more of an effort to promote the salon itself.
Even after the email, Yavnyi said the hairdresser continued to comment on her videos and send more aggressive messages.
Did the salon take action?
Users flooded of Self’s social media accounts with comments. Eventually the salon turned off comments and temporarily made their TikTok account private.
Some users even left negative reviews on Google.
Eventually, the salon manager posted a video saying they had let the stylist go and do not approve of her actions.
“We believe this was the best decision for our staff and salon reputation as well as our clients,” the salon wrote in the caption of their Instagram post.
“We were also completely unaware that the former stylist was harassing Victoria through text messages and comments on her posts. This was only brought to my attention when the issue surfaced on TikTok,” it also wrote.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Victoria Yavnyi via email and Instagram direct message. We’ve also contacted Self salon via email. Neither responded.
The Daily Dot was unable to obtain contact information for Yavnyi’s stylist.
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