As the lockdown gradually eases, there are many who will be eagerly awaiting the opening of hairdressers, currently scheduled for July 4, but Hereford salon owners are ready to delay if the statistics dictate otherwise.

“We are working towards July 4,” says Ian Beswick of Avant Garde Salon in Church Street. “But I want to see signs in the two weeks prior to opening of the numbers dropping more steeply. Otherwise I would hope they would push it back again. I would rather everyone felt safe than open too soon.”

Ian explains that, rather than taking bookings now and then seeing the July 4 date moved, customers will be called from June 15 by a small, socially distanced, team in the salon. “What we are not doing,” says Ian, “is having a priority list or asking people to pay to be on a priority list, because every single one of our customers is a priority.

“We are fortunate that we have 15 stations in the salon, which meet the two-metre guidelines, and we have installed screens between the backwashes.”

Having taken the decision to close before lockdown was officially announced, Ian and his wife Naomi were relieved when the coronavirus job retention furlough scheme was announced. “We were very nervous, as we’d have struggled without the furlough scheme.”

Customers returning to the Hereford salon will see big changes. “We’ve had a big refurb,” says Ian. “It’s completely different. We wanted to give our team a lift, and we’ve added lots of things, which, though not essential, are aimed at making sure that everyone feels extra safe.”

Across town at Hair Junction in Commercial Street, Iggy echoes Ian’s views: “Technically, we can reopen on July 4, but there are no guarantees. All we can do is prepare and hope we can open.”

Iggy too will be calling his clients rather than opening booking. “We won’t make any appointments until we have the green light,” he says. “We will try to contact every client individually, and whoever’s gone the longest will have an appointment first.

“For any business whether it’s hairdressing or not, it’s all about how safe everyone feels and doing it in a friendly manner. Get that recipe wrong and it will be a while before people come back.”