Tornade Academie Coiffure

OMG, ma coiffeuse me dompe là. À 30 km de chez moi. Je fait quoi? Je sais plus. J’ouvre Unilocal et je cherche Coiffeuse. Économique. Bön review. BOUM. Tornade m’est apparu. Pourquoi je n’y avais pas pensé plus tôt? Je suis un pauvre étudiant avec un faible budget, qui a l’impression de se faire avoir avec des coiffures moches partout où il va même si c’est un prix raisonnable. Et puis là, chez Tornade, j’ai eu accès pour un prix ultra raisonnable (16 $) Pro Niveau 1 (le prix varie en fonction du niveau: Étudiant /​professionnel) + le niveaux. Une extraordinaire coupe de cheveux qui a duré presque une heure! WOW Tout fait à la main avec une finition du jamais vu! Mon coiffeur savais exactement ce que je voulais et m’a même proposé une variante temporaire le temps que j’ai ma pleine longueur afin de né pas avoir l’air trop wilde! :)
C’est définitivement mon nouveau coiffeur!

Of all people it’s my mom who recommended Tornade after looking it up on Google. I’m in the habit of dyeing my hair suspicious colours and at some point I got tired of dyeing my bathroom, my pillows, my walls etc… The friendly receptionist squeezed me in and a couple of days later, there I was! Side note: if you want an appointment with a student stylist, expect to wait 2 weeks+, otherwise the prices are higher but you get booked sooner.
My appointment with Marie-​Pier was great! I loved all the precautions and tests she ran before applying anything at all on my hair. We discussed the colour at length and she kept me updated throughout the whole process.
I thought her method of trying various colour combos on a towel for me to choose from was brilliant, and she made sure I was certain of what I wanted at all times, plus she’s a super friendly conversationalist! I was completely sold when the bill came and was under 100 $ even with all the extra bleach and colour I needed. I’d love to be back!

So, you might think that it’s exceptionally brazen for a girl with a pixie cut and pretty mediocre French to go get her hair cut at a Francophone hair school, right? Well, listen, my friend, sometimes a free haircut will make you do crazy things.
You heard me, free. A friend had mentioned Tornade to me, and I signed up for their email promo list. As a thank-​you gesture, they sent me a coupon for a COUPE GRATUITE. Hellooo dolly. I figured, at that price I couldn’t say no. Worst case scenario, I have to shave my head, or I have to pay $$ for a different cut elsewhere. Nothing to lose but my pride, right? Well, or my cute hair. Whatever.
So, I book my appointment. On the phone, in French. The receptionist is patient with me, and I get a booking for a few weeks out, at «treize heures». I was especially proud of myself, clueless American as I am, for knowing that meant 1pm without having to double check.
I show up, and have a seat in their cramped little «waiting area», which is really just a few seats along the wall. My stylist comes up and I explain that I want the same cut I have, just shorter. I ask if she speaks English, and she explains that she understands it well enough, but doesn’t speak it. No problem, that’s where I’m at in French, so we’ve at least got some means of communication.
At every stage of the process, my stylist consulted with her instructor (Julie?). Before doing anything, she had Julie check it out, and often let her take the first steps. While this might have irritated some, for the extra time spent, I greatly appreciated knowing that although a student was doing the dirty work, the instructor had my back. And, Julie was the one who did the tricky parts — shaping sideburns, razor work at the nape of the neck, final overall tweaking of my cowlick.
The whole cut, including shampoo, took just under an hour, which I found totally reasonable compared to the other Montréal haircut I got not long ago. The resulting haircut was totally fab. I probably would be more critical of it if I’d spent $ 60+ on it, but for $ 7 or for free, it’s amazing. Just what I wanted.
That said, I wouldn’t recommend the experience unless you know what you want the end result of your haircut to be, and unless you’re good at explaining anything tricky about your hair. In my case, I know the places where my hair poufs out strangely, and I know that you need to trim them just a little thinner than the rest. And the rest was straightforward, pretty much just a solid half-​inch off the whole thing from my last cut, and some shaping in the back, ‘burns, and bangs.
If I had gone in without a lick of French, and with the vague hopes that the stylist could figure out something nice to do with my hair, I probably would have been disappointed by the results. These are students, after all, and you’re reminded of that fact by the way they handle your hair cautiously, the way they hold the scissors, the lack of overall gusto that stylists often have. But, hey, less gusto, more cheap haircuts? Yes please. Sign me up for more.

Comme indiqué dans l’avis précédent, ce n’était pas évident de critiquer une école de coiffure…
points positifs: j’avais très soif en arrivant et on m’a tout de suite proposer une boisson. La teinture est superbe, ma coloriste a su exactement trouver la couleur que je souhaitais (d’où le 3* au lieu du 2* que je leur aurais donné). Elle connaissait très bien le produit et m’en a glissé quelques mots sans pour autant m’assommer avec de l’information.
points négatifs: je n’ai pas particulièrement aimé l’ambiance, les coiffeurs parlaient entre eux un peu trop fort (oui c’est une académie mais il y a quand-​même des clients). De plus, alors que c’était annoncé 25 $, prix confirmé par la jeune fille à l’accueil, c’était rendu le double au moment de payer. Ah oui? Ah bon…
morale de cette histoire: Je promet solennellement de rester fidèle à ma coiffeuse habituelle qui se trouve dans un autre salon.

I take really good care of my hair and I hate a bad haircut. When I moved to Montréal, friends told me they went to salons in the Plateau and got a color and a haircut for $ 100, and sometimes it was really bad.
A friend of mine told me about this place and I immediately decided to try it. $ 7 for a haircut? I’m in!
Here’s how it works: It takes between 2 weeks to a month to get an appointment. When you meet with your student, they ask you what you want and then they check with their instructor on how to do it. Then, they wash your hair and give you a scalp massage. Every now and then, they’ll their instructor to check if they’re doing it correctly.
Let’s be clear: They are students, which means that (1) your appointment will take more time than at a regular salon (easily 2 hours) and (2) they’re not always 100% confident in what they do.
One very, very important thing: I noted that the people who complained after their appointments didn’t speak up while they were working on their hair. Your satisfaction is part of their grade, so if they’re about to do something that you don’t like, say something! It’s not the time to be shy!
Funny thing is: I got my last haircut at a salon in my neighborhood. As the stylist washed my hair, I realized she was doing a very familiar scalp massage. Turns out she was a Tornade alumni, and she did an excellent job!
Conclusion: If you are on a budget, this is the place to go for a haircut. You won’t find a better deal.
P.-S. Check their website. Sometimes they have coupons for $ 1 haircut!

I find prices for a decent haircut and style these days are blown out of proportion, I mean $ 120 for a cut and style at some Westmount salons? Really? What are you putting into my hair? Diamond dust?
I have been coming to Academie Tornade now for about 8 years and not once have I had a negative experience. Yes, it’s true, these are coiffures in training, but the supervisor on the floor watching them (because they are being graded after all) is a professional so in case a student does get stuck on a tricky cut, the supervisor will step in. A wash, cut and style will set you back $ 12. Yup, $ 12 bucks and you walk out with a fab haircut.
I always do my research before going, get on the internet, look at hairstyles or cuts I want, print it up and bring that along with me to show to the student so they know what they’re doing. You won’t believe how grateful they are when they have an exact idea of what needs to be done, and that’s far easier than giving out instructions which may end up confusing the stylist.
It does help if you speak French, but I’ve had stylists who were also bilingual. The St. Denis outlet is by far the busiest but the one up on Fleury is also a great place, plus there are some great boutiques in the area to browse in afterwards.

This IS a school & consequently, you WILL get a student cutting/​styling your hair. I’ve been there a number of times myself, & it’s been a really surprisingly good experience; other times, the most recent… meh. Depends on the student… some will become master hairdresseers, other will be clipping away at some corner bargain basement chop shop. One has to bear this in mind, if you really want a professional, beautybook cut/​style, then by all means do seek out the services of a good salon & be prepared to pay.
Tornade only charges $ 8.00 for a cut/​dry, this is DIRT CHEAP; so, the argument here might be «You get what you pay for».I have recommended this place to many who needed a cut/​style but who were strapped for cash, & heard nothing but praise. Luck of the draw… those times they got students who perhaps will become master hairdressers. One caveat: if you do NOT speak French or do not understand the language, it will indeed be «good luck to you», as the students & staff are unilingual Francophones.

Dur dur dur de critiquer une académie d’étudiants en coiffure… Côté pro ma coiffeuse fut impec. Elle a fait exactement ce que je lui ai demandé: couper dans la masse mais pas trop, couper les pointes abimées sans endommager ma longueur et un super brushing lisse sur mes cheveux habituellement bien frisés.
En revanche côté customer service… ça coince…
Plus de 30 minutes de retard et aucune excuse de la part de la coiffeuse ou de la personne tenant l’accueil. Pas de café, pas de verre d’eau proposés. Il a aussi fallu que je demande à mettre mon manteau dans la penderie et enfin aucun mot n’est sorti de la bouche de ma coiffeuse durant l’heure avec elle… ambiance glaciale.
Ok c’est une académie de coiffure et donc orientée technique mais un bon coiffeur doit avoir un super contact avec la clientèle. Les élèves mériteraient sûrement de quelques cours à ce sujet. Tout vient à l’expérience…

The other review on this page is completely bogus.
First of all, all of the instructors at Tornade speak English. Second of all, a student never cuts someone’s hair without consulting with an instructor (who, again, speaks English).
I’ve been going to Tornade for two years now, and I have never been anything but extremely happy.
Give it a shot — you’ll save a ton of money, and you’ll have a great cut!

I came here just for a haircut. My hair was long, and damaged, hadn’t had it cut for awhile. Nevertheless, I had enough to work with. I don’t speak French, nevertheless, I said I wanted the dry ends removed and some layers. Pretty standard request. She started cutting from the top and cut it reeeeally short. Then it seemed by the end she realized that it was too short and left the last section at the back long. So now it’s like I have a bob with some ratty long ends at the back. My hair is thin, even though I have lots of it, but now all the thickness is in the short hair. Plus it’s not even cut evenly anywhere. Looks ridiculous. I will need to style it myself to see if I can fix it. It’s not even long enough to stick properly into a ponytail anymore. While she was cutting I could see how much she had snipped off and started thinking to myself, about how long it would take to grow back. My estimation is 1.5 years. She asked if I was ok at this point, obviously seeing the look of despair on my face. I went on a Thursday evening… which is double the price, I thought since they weren’t students? I think I thought wrong, save yourself the tears and go somewhere else. And by the way, I waited a week for this appointment.
On a side note, they did my boyfriend’s hair too. For some reason didn’t use clippers, didn’t bother to clean up the back of his neck and didn’t take enough off. It also took about 30 minutes longer than mine. He’s not too happy either but atleast his is fixable.