Amazon.com Inc. is boldly going where no one expected the company to go, opening its first-ever hair salon today.

The home of the salon reportedly will be London, England, in the neighborhood of Spitalfields, an area renowned for fashionable restaurants, clothes stores and crafts. It won’t be an ordinary salon, of course: Amazon says artificial intelligence will help customers to get the style that suits them.

Instead of looking through books to see an array of hairstyles and colors, Amazon will have augmented reality mirrors. A customer will be able to “try on” various styles in that mirror using artificial intelligence. It may sound gimmicky, but it might also be something that catches on.

The staff will all be professional stylists, working with the salon Neville Hair & Beauty. It will offer a “full range of hairdressing services,” although the cost of getting something done has not yet been announced. It’s doubtful it will be cheap, with the salon usually charging anywhere between $70 and $350 for various cuts and treatments. Amazon has said that prior to the public getting a chance to test the tech, Amazon staff will be the first to sit in the chair.

The move comes on the back of Amazon launching a dedicated beauty section on its website, which is said to be focused on small businesses that have been closed during lockdowns. It offers various beauty products, many of which you’ll find in a hair salon.

Amazon said the salon will also have what it calls “point-and-learn” technology, meaning customers can point at something in the salon and information will become available on a nearby screen. If they like something, they can then scan the barcode and it will later be delivered to them.

“We have designed this salon for customers to come and experience some of the best technology, hair care products and stylists in the industry,” said John Boumphrey, Amazon’s U.K. country manager. “We want this unique venue to bring us one step closer to customers, and it will be a place where we can collaborate with the industry and test new technologies.”

Photo: Amazon