Hairdresser (Friseur) & Everyday Errands: German Phrases & Dialogues

Ordering food is easy because you can point at a menu. Real everyday errands—explaining a haircut at the Friseur, handing a stained coat to the dry cleaner, mailing a registered letter, or getting trousers hemmed—require actual German sentences because you have to explain what you want someone else to do.

Luckily, almost all of these errands share one indispensable grammar pattern (lassen + infinitive) plus a compact set of service nouns.

The Errand Power Verb: lassen (“To Have Something Done”)

If you walk into a salon and say “Ich schneide meine Haare,” it literally sounds like you plan to grab the scissors and cut your hair yourself! Whenever someone performs a service for you, German uses lassen + infinitive (with the action verb sitting at the very end):

• Ich möchte mir die Haare schneiden lassen. — I’d like to get my hair cut.
• Ich lasse den Mantel chemisch reinigen. — I’m having the coat dry-cleaned.
• Ich möchte diese Hose kürzen lassen. / Könnten Sie diese Hose kürzen? — I’d like to have these pants hemmed. / Could you hem these pants?
• Wo kann ich einen Schlüssel nachmachen lassen? — Where can I have a key copied?

Look up all forms of lassen (ich lasse, du lässt, er ließ, hat gelassen) in our German Verb Conjugator.

1. At the Hairdresser (Beim Friseur / Coiffeur)

Hairdresser bookings in DACH (der Friseur in Germany/Austria, der Coiffeur in Switzerland) are frequently made online or by phone, though traditional barbershops (der Barbershop / Herrenfriseur) also take walk-ins. Keep these words ready before sitting in the chair:

Salon etiquette & tipping: Das Trinkgeld (5–10%, or €2–€5 in cash) is appreciated across DACH salons. Because salon registers don’t always add digital tips to cards, check if there is a small cash box (Sparschwein or labeled cup) near the mirror or pay the tip in cash!

2. Post Office & Parcel Counters (Bei der Post / Im Paketshop)

While neighborhood parcel lockers are popular (read our DHL Packstation & Paketshop guide), official bureaucracy still demands paper mail—especially das Einschreiben (registered mail with legal proof of delivery for canceling leases or contracts):

• Ich möchte diesen Brief per Einschreiben schicken. — I’d like to send this letter by registered mail.
• Eine Briefmarke für einen Standardbrief innerhalb Deutschlands, bitte. — One stamp for a standard letter within Germany, please.
• Wie lange dauert der Versand nach Österreich / in die Schweiz? — How long does shipping to Austria / Switzerland take?
• Ich möchte ein Paket abholen. Hier ist mein Ausweis und der Abholschein. — I’d like to pick up a parcel. Here is my ID and the pickup slip.

Note: Sending an Einschreiben Einwurf documents delivery into the recipient’s mailbox, while Einschreiben mit Rückschein requires a physical signature—helpful when sending formal cancellation letters (die Kündigung).

3. Dry Cleaner & Alterations (Reinigung & Änderungsschneiderei)

In German cities, dry cleaners (die Reinigung) and alteration tailors (die Änderungsschneiderei) are often cozy neighborhood shops where you receive a paper claim ticket (der Abholschein or der Zettel):

Watch out: Never confuse die Reinigung (dry cleaner’s) with der Waschsalon (self-service laundromat) or die Wäscherei (commercial laundry).

4. Key Cutting, Shoe Repair & Copy Shop (Schlüsseldienst & Copyshop)

For keys, shoes, and printed forms—which German offices still love asking for on paper—these four phrases handle almost every counter visit:

• Key & shoe cobbler (Schlüsseldienst / Schuster): Ich möchte diesen Wohnungsschlüssel nachmachen lassen. (I’d like to get this apartment key duplicated.) Note: Security keys with a serial card (Sicherungskarte) cannot be copied legally without the landlord’s signed card!
• Copy shop (Copyshop / Schreibwarenladen): Kann ich hier etwas vom USB-Stick ausdrucken und scannen? (Can I print and scan something from a USB drive here?) In Schwarz-Weiß oder in Farbe? (In black and white or in color?)
• Pharmacy or drugstore (Apotheke / Drogerie): Remember the crucial split in DACH shopping: die Drogerie (like dm, Rossmann, or Müller) sells shampoo, detergent, vitamins, and toiletries, whereas die Apotheke sells actual medicine.

Quick Noun Reference Table for Errands

Notice the polite tone across every counter dialogue: stick with Sie (du vs. Sie etiquette), soften requests with Könnten Sie… or Ich hätte gern… (Subjunctive II), and check tricky noun genders anytime with our Der, Die, Das Checker or practice everyday phrases with de-DE audio in the GermanLogic app.