Bellus Academy looked like such a prospective school for me to attend. I called the admissions office and got a phone call after leaving message after message and I must say I was excited. to finally have a dialogue. I had heard about this place because they had offered gift certificates to the annual Marine Corps Ball and I had always intended on going back to school to get a makeup certificate. The lady I spoke to on the phone was nice and I was looking forward to my hair appointment the day of the ball. It was a disaster to say the least. I left Bellus Academy in tears. I couldn't believe it was now 4 oclock and my ball was to start at 5.. I was still at the academy and I had initially booked the appointment for 10 oclock!!....You may be thinking I had to dye my hair beach blonde, style, cut...the works...but nooooo...I went to the salon to get my hair dyed black....yes Black!!!...not to mention my hair is already black...it had just faded a little...I requested that my hair be set in rollers since my hair frizzes at the presence of humidity. It took 2 hours just to put rollers in my hair. I couldn't believe it. I got so frustrated that my "stylyst" decided to paint my nails because I missed my nail appointment by my house. A 2 year old would've done a better job. I purposely booked the earliest appointment to make sure that I would get home on time to get ready for my very first Marine Corps Ball. It was so dissapointing that I'm even second guessing the idea of attending the school alltogether. It is such a shame because I want to say that I had a decent experience...but I ended up coming home to a very angy husband who still had to wait for me to style my hair since they didnt have the time to blow it out...after close to 7 hours!!!...If I had known...I would've never done it...even if it were free...never again!!! So if you have an entire day for a cheap opportunity...by all means do so...but I would rather pay 100 dollars for a wash and blow dry then to ever go through this again. read more

My 5-star review goes to Adeena. I come here regularly but just had to give a special shout out to her. She was cute beyond words and did a great job with my facial and pumpkin treatment. I wish her the best after graduation... her clients will love her just as much. read more

Jordan did a magnificent job with coloring my hair exactly to The shade I wanted it. She is extremely friendly and Very knowledge. Highly recommend! read more

I had a very good experience with my facial appointment last time. During the process, I was able to relax and had a good result after it was done, my face was smooth and brighten, and it was exactly what I wanted. read more

They were able to schedule me for a haircut same day. I was greeted by the people at the front desk. The gal that cut my hair was fine. She explained everything she would be doing as she went along. Got a deep condition as well. As other reviewers have said, keep in mind this is a cosmetology school and prepare for a lengthy visit. I suspect some of the things she did were to meet school requirements. My trim and condition took 2 1/2 hours BUT I am please with the look of my hair and for the price I paid. Will be back. read more

So I got a facial here monday and that was a 5 she waz professional and did a good job. I booked appts for me and my mom hair makeup pedi . The make up was horrible and cakey, i has to put my own mascara on and eyeliner, no primer no highlighter, nothing. . I know theyre learning but she was doing it for 6 months already. I should of stayed home to do it. My moms eyeliner filled her whole eyelid. We told the teacher and nothing was done we paid full price almost 100 . I will only come for facials. So horrible read more

I was easily able to book an appointment. I know this is a cosmetology school, but a simple hair cut took nearly three hours. While the price was a steal, I would gladly pay double to get that time back!!!! I have had a color and highlights done in the time it took to get a hair cut! read more

Kaitlyn and Hope were amazing! My boyfriend and I got a Swedish and a deep-tissue massage for my birthday, they were both so nice and knowledgable. They were very active in making sure we were comfortable and enjoying the service. The only complaint I have would be with the appointment organization, I had to make an appointment almost a month in advance and then had to reschedule the day of, because one of the technicians didn't show. I was very impressed with the service itself and would be happy to return. read more

The ladies in skincare really take their time and talk with you about your skin. Love getting the peels and facials.

I go here because it's inexpensive & i have a teenage daughter who gets hers done here too so it saves me money and I've never had them mess up all over color. The two of us cost $85 for color and cut. I regret coming here every time only due to how dang long it takes. Unless i am just always so un lucky to get slow stylists. Tonight my appt was at 5:30. I believe she called me back at 5:45-5:50. By the time she got her instructor & color mixed- she prob started my hair at about 6:20 to 6:30. Never have i been stuck there past 10. I gripe when it's 3 hours for a trim and color (because I have short hair) but it's never 4 hours and past 10. I left the salon today at 10:30 pm. You would think i got extensions or something with the amount of time it took. I have an A-line, so my hair is short! My daugher has long hair and was done an hour and a half before me for the same service. Why it took 4 hours is beyond me. My daughter was falling asleep in the chair next to me waiting. Being in that salon for 5 hours after an 8 hour day of work annoyed me the most. I was very grumpy when I left. Ugh!!! The color looks good though but if I paid more somewhere else, it would have been more then half the time less. read more

I love Bellus! Always such a great experience and such great prices! I'll never go anywhere else!

I had Yvonne wax me along with her teacher/supervisor. I got a brazilian wax. It was definitely a long process but worth the extra time. A few of the students came in to watch how the process was done. It's a great learning experience for the students. The area where the service occurs is open with many operating tables, but can be made into a temporary private room with a few screens. The waxing was free because the students performed most of the service in order to learn. I will be returning in a few weeks for the same service. read more

I went to Bellus Academy for a facial and didn't know what to expect and was more than surprised by the services, staff and facilities!! their school is absolutely beautiful, with a glamours interior that reminded me of a high-end spa, definitely not a school. when i was greeted by the student who was giving me the facial, she was attentive and sincere while helping me fill out the small questionnaire about my skin. we went back to the room to begin the facial and it was amazing!! it was more than i could have expected from a beauty school and from a facial in general. she did my head, my shoulders, my neck- the works!! i would definitely go back again, well worth it. read more

Sadaf touched up my color and cut my hair under the supervision of her instructor and did a great job!!! My usual stylist cancelled my appointment a couple hours before my appointment due to illness. Usually not a problem except that I was going out of town for the Labor Day holiday and wanted to look and feel good. Thanks to Sadaf I looked and felt great!!! Looks like I might have found a new stylist! And to make my experience even better, Sadaf was kind, thoughtful, professional and friendly. I felt confident and relaxed in her capable hands. Did I mention the price for the excellent results and service! OMG! I paid less for my cut, and color touch up than I normally due for just the cut! I could not have been happier and honestly, I like the cut much better now and she matched my hair color perfectly! THANK YOU, Sadaf! read more

I am a Bellus Academy Alumni and i have to say i don't think i have ever made such a great decision like the one i made when i chose to enroll. It was a AMAZING experience and the staff especially the night time teachers are amazing! Everyone is so friendly and knowledgeable! All of the Instructors are amazing and tremendously skilled and it is definitively the place you want to be if you want to be in the Elite part of the industry. The massage and esthetics department is comparable to the most elite spas out there and we are only a school! I think everyone that leaves from that door will always have a smile on their face, student, client, staff. I am so thankful to all the staff that made it possible for me to graduate and have the ambition and drive that i have know! My dream s to work for Vidal Sassoon, and with the knowledge i received from Bellus. I have no doubt that i can accomplish this!!!! Than you Bellus! read more

Love Bellus Academy in Poway! My daughter is a student there and I have been in on multiple occasions. The service is terrific and the instructors I have encountered, Matt and Shea, have been wonderfully professional, respectful and skilled. Students receive expert training and mentoring. Receptionists are warm and welcoming. I will miss coming in after my daughter graduates (but grateful I will have a well trained cosmetologist in the family!) read more

I went here just a few weeks ago and I LOVE my hair. I got the highlights, for 35 dollars! I've never heard of highlights so cheap. Just make sure you're really clear about what you want, and it helps if you go to someone you've heard has a good rep. My friend recommended the girl I went to. If you don't like what you got, they'll fix for free too! read more

SUMMARY: I hate to leave a bad review, but even one star is too much. Not only the quality of service is bad but they treat their customers horribly. I received a horrible pedicure, the girl who did my nails claimed that it didn't look that bad and that it's my toenails that had lumps, and the manager tried to kick me out of the store without removing the nail polish, saying that HE'S SEEN WORSE AT THE SALON. Please don't be that customer with the "worse condition!!!" However I do recommend this place for a cheap facial. It's super cheap and even if the esthetician is inexperienced, the stuff they use are some good stuff! Unlike nails or hair, it doesn't affect your looks instantly. 5 stars for the cheap price for facials, one star for nails and customer service. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE WHOLE STORY: I went there for mani & pedi for my birthday. I usually go to a nail salon somewhere else, but Bellus had sent me a 50% off coupon for my birthday, and I didn't have time to go to the salon before my dinner plans. The girl who had me was very nice, but the pedi job was horrible.. To start off, she didn't take off my previous nail polish completely. There was left over red polish all over my toes and toenails but she didn't care for another wipe. I politely asked her to remove it completely before she applies the base coat of Shellac. I didn't care at this point, the girl and I had nice little talks and I was excited for the pedicure. Then, something else came up. The most important thing about Shellac application is that you have to seal the top, or else the nail chips off in chunks. She was forgetting to seal the top MULTIPLE times that I had to remind her each time. She would just put on Shellac color & top coat like you would regular nail polish, and move on casually without sealing the top. I caught her and reminded her to please seal the top but even after I told her at least three times, she was still forgetting to do so. From here I started to have a bad feeling. When she told me she was done, I could not be more shocked.. The nail polish was on unevenly, as in the color (darkness) was different in each toe. Nail polish was on cuticles and skin, the borderline between the toenails and skin was messy. It looked like a kid applied the nail polish. Similar to this picture: http://d74bwl3dcueqd.cloudfront.net/images/guide/5bda63aa0a0d47b2a7ac98e566fda879/440x380_ac.jpg I asked her if she could remove the nail polish that was on the skin. She worked on one foot for 30 minutes with her wooden stick, but it didn't look any better. At this point, she looked frustrated, at me or her that I don't know. But she did apologize and seemed like she was trying her best to fix the problem. BUT when I told her I'd rather have the color taken off, her response? "It doesn't look that bad. It's your toenails that look like this (talking about the lumps)." When she maintained that it was my toenails that had lumps and that it isn't her skills, I was outraged. At least admit that you messed up! I asked her to take the polish off, but before I did that, I wanted to make sure I show her supervisor my toenails. Not to get her in trouble, Oh god no, but to make sure that I don't seem unreasonable when I walk out of the store, because I was sure the girl was going to say "it didn't look that bad." When I talked to the manager he said that I should understand that the workers there are students and that I shouldn't expect too much. He also said that I should have gone to a professional salon if I wanted a good service. So please do go to a professional salon because they only think of you as a practice partner for their students. But what pissed me off the most was him saying that HE'S SEEN WORSE, that my pedicure was nothing compared to what he's seen. He said he's seen a customer with her hair cut up to her ears... Horrible... I don't understand why they couldn't just say sorry and remove the polish, but instead I got "sorry BUT you have to understand. sorry BUT you shouldn't expect too much. sorry BUT this is not that bad." Of course I understand if it's not perfect, but sorry to say, the girl who did my nails should not be on the floor dealing with customers who pay for their service. I was only expecting a decent job, but what I got was an embarrassing one. There was no way I could walk out of the salon with those toenails. So I just want to WARN everyone that YOU could be the one in the "WORSE" situation that the manager was talking about (like your hair being cut up to your ears) and instead of receiving a sincere apology, you're expected to understand the errors and messiness bc you're not paying much. read more

They are SLOW!!!!!! They can't multitask. I spend 2.5 hours for just a hair cut and my hair is short! They preferred chatting than concentrating on doing what they need to do. read more

I haven't had any appointments for services (although I want to get a perm and even a hair color change) but I have taken a tour and talked to the admissions advisor. I have completed my FAFSA for financial aid and my final appointment is tomorrow on how much awards I'll receive and when I can start school. I'm seriously so excited! Tomorrow will decide the rest of my future and for me, this is an incredibly exciting time. Anyways, everyone I have talked to this far has been so amicable and great energy. I can't wait to be a student. read more

Well first off, I give 5 stars for MY experience. I had a manicure and pedicure with Stephanie A., it was phenomenal. She really took the time and gave me high quality spa services, I highly recommend her! I was so pleased. HOWEVER, my friend was with me and she got a manicure and pedicure with Scarlet, it was horrible. I give ONE star for her experience. She just whipped through it and barely did anything but give her a horrible paint job. It is supposed to take 45 minutes for a manicure and 60 for a pedicure, it took about 30 minutes for Scarlet to do both. She did not even clean my friend's nails or touch her cuticles and the paint job was hideous. She didn't care at all about giving a quality service. She just did a half-ass job and then sat there yacking with her friends. When we complained the manager offered 15% off. What???? No. My friend ended up having her ugly nailpolish taken off right then and there and not paying for the crappy service. Their excuse was "Well they ARE just students." Yes they are students but this girl just couldn't care less about doing a good job. Stephanie, on the other hand, gave me the best manicure and pedicure I have ever had and it was only $25. She had even offered to fix the bad job Scarlet did on my friend. It's definitely worth going here if you get a good student. Oh, and the decor was gorgeous, you wouldn't know it from the outside but the inside looks like a high end spa. read more

My friend & I went there because we got a great Groupon offer. We each had a facial, a massage & a manicure. The experience varies - massage was great, facial was okay, manicure was.... well, I'd rather not have it done! The bottom line is - it's a school, and you're paying dinky amount of money to have students to work on you. So, don't expect the same experience as you would pay 5x the money to go to an established joint; then you might end up with a decent experience. read more

i was so scared to get my hair done, especially by a student. and after the girl i requested was double booked, i had no one to do my hair. then a sweet young lady name rosie volunteered. fyi she looks nothing like a rosie, shes young and pretty. when i hear the name rosie, u typically think a short mexican, sorry not being racist, its what we all think. anyways she really listened to what i wanted and took direction well from her teacher. she did a great job on my hair and i have gotten so many complements. i would highly recommend rosie to do anyones hair, and im glad someones mistake made me get her. read more

I think it's so funny how bellus academy tries sooo hard to hide all the faults they have. Like students not getting enough work to do in class and just having them sit down all day without anything better to do. Some people that work all day come here to what? Sit down and not do anything? Then get in trouble for sitting outside to take a breather or because you have nothing better to do. They race in our rooms and tell us to pretend to do work and look busy when potential students come by. Teachers are in such bad moods by the time night class hits and that's not an environment anyone wants to be in. I'm also so pissed off about the fact they lied about the education we get. Half the stuff they mention is BS. They can't even update their machines or just renovate the school . So many of the machines cupboards.. bathrooms are so worn down..Don't waste your money on a half ass education. Most your money goes to us sitting down in class with no work to do.... thanks bellus for an amazing exudation you preached when we first started. read more

The concierge was Great, very energetic and she listened to my concerns. Love the business hours, very flexible. Clean place and very quiet to have a facial/massage. read more

The place is clean, the staff and students are nice. Plus and most importantly I received a great haircut for very little money. What else could you ask for. read more

I appreciate the response I got back from bellus academy through yelp. And they say that they can redo my hair and fix them. I can't say anything else until I get my hair fixed again! read more

I bumped up my rating to a 4. Shortly after posting my previous review I was contacted by the marketing director - she thanked me for the feedback and assured me that she reviewed it with the academy director so they could make improvements. I appreciated her response, so when she offered me a gift card toward another service I decided to give them another shot. I had no problems this time with the front desk, and Erin performed my facial and did a very nice job. I will likely go back in the future. read more

After two services, one hair cut and one high/lowlight weave hair color, I've decided that this salon is not for me. The quality was ok for both services, but - the prices are really not that reasonable. So, since I can't seem to count on getting the same student consistently (since even when you make an appointment with a particular student they don't always show up) , I'm just not willing to pay these prices for an inconsistent - and - very slow service. You can plan on spending a good four hours for any hair color - and - a good two hours getting a basic hair cut and blow dry. Guess if you get a free service from group on or something it is worth it, but otherwise it's not. read more

I have been to Bellus in Poway twice. My stylist was Ali Adgate. I got a great haircut and style the first visit. Just recently Ali did my color. I have been going to the same stylist for many years. She had to take a leave of absence, so I decided to give Bellus a try. Ali did a great job with my color! I can't believe how great my hair looks and how reasonable the cost was. I am going to make Bellus my new salon. I can't wait to try out the other services such as facials and spa treatments! read more

Bellus is amazing. I love the work im doing and i love attending. If you want to book an appointment with me let me know at angelinenyx@gmail.com read more

DO NOT go here for hair color or highlights/lowlights. Wanted to save some money so we elected to go here. The product was left in for hours and my wife's hair isn't only a horrible color, it's chemically fried beyond repair. She got there for a 530 pm appointment and didnt leave until 1040 pm. They made her pay before the service was even finished because the registers were closing. (BIG MISTAKE) I'm sure if you stick to the basic cut or nail treatment you will be fine, but don't make the same mistake as us. Look on Groupon for a local *Professional salon service and pay a little more for peace of mind. I (her husband) am disappointed beyond belief and feel horrible for even suggesting this option. I lost out on the $ for the hair and $85.00 for the ticket to a semi-formal function because it's embarrassing. Found out one of the instructors were different on 29 September so maybe a cause of it also. read more

See all

This bellus academy is awesome I suggest you get Desseray or Vivianna they did my hair and I got exactly what I wanted

A great find! I have been getting my hair frosted and tinted there for about a year now. I also get it cut. I have not been disappointed. The salon is clean, the staff and students are friendly and professional. Yes it is a school, but, I have NEVER had an issue or a problem. I have always left the Academy smiling. Lately I have also been getting facials and massages. Wow, what a bargain and in my opinion not much difference than the hundreds of dollars I have spent at the high end spas. Keep up the fabulous work everyone :) read more

The massage and facial I got here were awesome. Prices are very affordable since its a beauty school. You can actually reate your masseuse at the end of the massage to help the student improve. As for the nails, worst pedicure ever. read more

I recently had my hair cut and colored by Nicole at Bellus... I couldn't be happier with the results! Her expertise seemed to surpass that of my previous stylist who had been doing my hair for years. She used the best products, offered helpful suggestions and got to know my hair before making any changes. She gave me exactly what I was looking for and you absolutely can't beat the price! Not to mention she was incredibly friendly and personable. I will definitely go back! read more

This location is BEAUTIFUL, but some of the student are not that great at cut and color. The massages and facials are amazing at this school. read more

I couldn't recommend a better place to go to learn how to do hair! I was a student here and I am so glad I chose Bellus. The teachers are phenomenal and with teachers like that you can only expect excellence from the students. During my time as a student and since I've graduated, I've seen amazing skills and talent come from the students here. Personally as a previous student, when I graduated I was far more advanced than my new coworkers and I have my teachers to thank for that. The teachers go beyond teaching the basics and actually teach the students the "real world" of the beauty industry and how to succeed in it. The students are a direct reflection of how talented the teachers are and Bellus has done a great job at bringing in some of the best of the best to educate the students... I know you don't find that at other schools. read more

Sara J. at Bellus Academy was great! I have had my legs waxed at other salons and she did better than most of them at half the price. Thanks Sara for a job well done!! read more

After the event that took place, I contacted the director, Brad, who took the issue as seriously as I would hope any business manager would. The problem was resolved, the offending person was spoken to, and I will happily be going back. I gave them five stars instead of four because the issue was handled in a five star way, and the services are really very good. Much better! read more