Take a walk through Sydney’s east and you’ll spot them – the activewear-clad brunch set with impossibly dewy skin. They’re in their forties but could easily pass for 25.
The secret to their age-defying skin? Celebrity facialist Melanie Grant.
Known for her eponymous clinic in Double Bay, she also has outposts in Melbourne, London and Los Angeles, and her client list includes the likes of Kim Kardashian, Victoria Beckham, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and more.
But you can’t be an eastern suburbs success story without a little controversy (just ask Kristin Fisher) and our ears pricked up when we heard rumours of disquiet among Grant’s well-heeled Sydney customer base last week.
It turns out several ladies were claiming the popular skincare clinic had refused to refund their deposits despite cancelling their appointments within the 72-hour cancellation window. Instead, they were offered store credit.
They raised their concerns in an influential private Facebook group known as ‘High End’, which is known for its fashion and beauty recommendations.
You can’t be Sydney success story without a little controversy, and our ears pricked up when we heard rumours of disquiet among facialist Melanie Grant’s ritzy customer base last week
Known for her Double Bay clinic, Grant (left) also has outposts in Melbourne, London and LA, and her client list includes the likes of Kim Kardashian and Victoria Beckham (right)
Daily Mail Australia has seen screenshots of several of these complaints, including from long-time customers.
So we put it to Grant and received a response via the manager of her Sydney clinic, Rhonda McManaway.
Ms McManaway explained the refund policy may have been ‘incorrectly communicated’ to clients during a recent transition period.
Refunds weren’t available in some cases due to the transition to a new point-of-sale system and so staff could only offer credit.
‘Our cancellation policy is absolutely to provide refunds or account credits for all appointments that are cancelled within the correct time frame,’ she said.
‘We understand there were past occasions where this policy may have been incorrectly communicated to clients.
‘This seems to have occurred due to a shortcoming in management and training during a recent transition to a new POS [point-of-sale] system.
‘Refunds were centralised to management staff and some previous staff members lost the ability to refund, and could only provide account credit at POS.
Several ladies claimed the clinic had refused to refund their deposits despite cancelling their appointments within the 72-hour cancellation window. Instead, they were offered store credit. (Pictured: Grant, right, and British supermodel Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, model)
‘Once we became aware, we sought to address all client satisfaction issues, and ensured that new staff members were trained appropriately.
‘We welcome any clients to reach out to me directly at the Sydney studio.’
As for the complaints themselves… well, some were a little too on the nose to publish, including accusations against certain individuals.
However, others made a point of saying store credit for products was offered instead of a traditional refund.
‘Does anyone have experience with Melanie Grant refusing to refund an appointment deposit even when the appointment was cancelled within the correct timeframe?’ one unhappy customer wrote.
‘I cancelled an upcoming appointment and was told they won’t refund my deposit because it’s “company policy” but that I can use it on products instead!
‘I’ve been a client there for years.’
Grant opened her flagship eastern Sydney clinic back in 2012 and followed with a Melbourne location in 2016. (Pictured: Melanie and Australian fashion designer Nicole Warne)
Another client said not offering a standard refund to repeat customers was a ‘silly decision’.
Grant opened her flagship eastern Sydney clinic back in 2012 and followed with a Melbourne location in 2016.
She later expanded to LA, Paris and England. Facials at her clinic start from $150 all the way to $600.
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