[sergiomattei]

Wow, this is a very real problem and I'm glad to see it addressed.

Every Friday my Abuela calls a stranger for manicure/pedicure they've known for years that she heard about from another friend, from another friend... Word of mouth, like most things in LatAm. They're not certified or anything, but they do a decent job.

I've always wondered about their background because they seem to hang out for too long at the house, and it sketches me out.

On my end, finding a good barber shop or beauty salon for my hair has always been a huge pain. The quality of cuts is extremely variable and online reviews are scarce, aside from maybe Facebook. There's no scarcity for cheap $10 cuts but the variability is incredible in quality. Some dude at the $10 barber shop could be a fantastic, trained stylist. But then next time you come in some other asshat ruins your hair.

Aka it's a bit of a crapshoot but it's all you know and what's accessible. I'm a broke college student and can't afford much more than that.

You're damn right that the beauty industry in LatAm is a bit of a wild west. I have a quick question: what are costs for customers like?

[Anahi2016]

Hi Sergio! Exactly what you are describing is what we want to solve: we want you to be confident that you will get a standard quality service when you book with Glitzi. Now, we have learned that good professionals (trained and using good quality products) invest in their work & tools, therefore, they expect a higher pay than a cheap non-quality service (and that makes sense!). So our prices are not cheap but are not crazy expensive (also consider that these services are at-home, the professionals have to travel to your house). Our haircuts for men are $18 dollars. However, we think that as Glitzi grows (we have more bookings), we will be able to reduce prices as professionals will earn the same or more but will have more appointments per day.

[sergiomattei]

18 dollars sounds very reasonable!

Down here in Puerto Rico a mid-range haircut is minimum $20. A low-tier, make-do barber shop cut is easily got at $10. A higher end cut can go up to $40.

$18 sounds like a great price, especially for a vetted professional. Rooting for you folks, let me know when the Puerto Rico beta opens ;)