It’s been weeks, maybe months, since most St. Louisans have been to their favorite salons, and some of us are starting to get a little innovative—especially the stylists.
Finding new ways to stay connected with dye-deprived clients has been critical during the stay at home order for those like small business owner and colorist Amanda Lux Wissman, whose salon in Old Frontenac Square has been closed since March 21. Three days after she stopped service, Wissman launched “Just a Tip Tuesday” IGTV videos to educate viewers on hairstyles they can easily do at home, including how to do your hair after a workout and other tricks for managing color.
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“My “Just a Tip Tuesday” was something that I have been considering for months, even before quarantine boredom. I am not a selfie person, so filming myself does not come naturally. Once the stay-at-home order happened, I knew there was no time like the present,” she says. “After the first episode I was absolutely shocked at the amazing feedback I had gotten and it’s only gotten more rewarding with every episode. I certainly hope to continue the videos after I am back in business.”
Liking, commenting, and sharing social media posts is what St. Louis hairstylists like Lauren Billen, founder of The Glam Room, are encouraging their clients to do to support their salons. Billen has been frequently interacting with her clients through Facebook and Instagram live sessions, conducting makeup routine and hair tutorials and, recently, a video to answer all things bridal so that viewers can use their extra time alone to prep for their big day.
Billen also encourages her clients to shop local, offering porch drop-off products for hair upkeep and self-care—teaming up with small business Bombs Away Bathtime—along with root sprays and color touch-ups through dpHue, as well as The Glam Room merchandise.
“The unknown is what is really scary,” she says of her business pivot at the start of the pandemic. “A lot of us have money set aside for bills, but when you don’t know how long you will be without income you have to get creative on ways to generate revenue.”
Countless other salon owners are doing just that; Kristen Parks of Bang Salon
in Richmond Heights is teaming up with Little Lemon Candles and custom calligrapher Florian Favors to offer customized “self-care quarantine kits” with hair care supplies and other lifestyle goods, as well as running a raffle to support her team until her salon reopens. And for nail care, PAINT Nail Bar St. Louis just launched an at-home “nail rescue” gel-like manicure kit, complete with six polishes in spring shades.
Homegrown Hair Co. commissioned one of their own clients, the artist behind RainstoneVisuals to create a custom illustrated design for T-shirts and sweatshirts for purchase, in addition to e-gift cards. To produce the merchandise, owner and founder Caitlin Tyczka collaborated with friend and fellow St. Louis business owner Jon Beeby of printing company By Jack.
“What makes Jon’s company special is that each affiliate has to provide zero overhead cost to jumpstart their designs, sales, and website. By Jack takes your logos and designs and builds your online store for you and then you make a 50 percent commission sales for the shirts and other products,” Tyczka said. “I take 100 percent of the profits from our online store and put it into the pockets of my team at Homegrown.”
Savis Davis, a St. Louis–based locs hairstylist, is selling at-home gypsy loc tutorial kits which include 75 locks, with an option of human or synthetic hair, and a step-by-step video tutorial. The style will last for up to four or five months.
To support The Hair Lab, founder Emily Struckhoff lost no time in launching her own side business, My Quarantine Dreams, an online shop featuring beanies, tees, and hoodies with slogans like “quarantine hair”, and “Ew, Covid” (a play on the saying “Ew, David” from the popular TV show Schitt’s Creek). “I was really just looking for something that could potentially keep a little bit of revenue flowing in, and so far it’s been pretty successful,” she says. “It has inspired me to dive deeper into it and maybe look into some other apparel or products even non-quarantine related.”
Kink Hair Salon in Clayton and their sister salon Notch in The Grove on Instagram are asking their clients to “keep the faith, stay strong, and do not cave to box color.” Followers are invited to post a photo of their roots online with the hashtag #showmeyourroots and #kinkhair or #notchstl to win a free, post-COVID color service.
If it helps for clients to get that appointment in the calendar, salons are also making it possible to prepay—some stylists offer this option through their own websites, while others, like Jared Wehmeyer of Salon Lofts in The Grove, do it through platforms like Style Seat.
Some of us, however, are feeling the need to grab shears or a root spray to prep for Zoom calls (or just because it feels good), and for that, there is support. Chelsea Frye of The Hair Lab is offering virtual appointments through her Instagram account to help coach people through giving their own fringe a trim or giving their partner a haircut, while Lux Wissman also recently started taking virtual consultations to point people in the right direction. And Helen Petty, founder of Chop Shop and Chop Shop East is telling her clients she’s happy to FaceTime them to talk about options and walk them through various styles and workarounds.
“Now’s the time to be creative,” Petty says. “Try something that you never would have tried before. I’ve seen a lot of guys on Facebook just shaving their head. You’ve never done it, and you want to try it? Now’s the time.”
