Business & Tech

New Salon Flaunts Style in Strathmore Shopping Center

InStyle Salon finds a familiar home in Aberdeen.

Light pours in the front windows of InStyle Salon, where stylists chat away with clients as they cut, color and style their hair. Mirrors around the salon reflect the warm glow of the sunlight against the light purple walls, adding a touch of comfort to the modernized space.

About four months earlier, however, the ambiance at that very location in Strathmore Shopping Center was much more dim. The owners of Gallo's I Haircutters were making the decision to shut down. On July 14, they closed their doors for a final time.

Although it was sad to see a four-decade-old business come to an end, stylists Jackie Haines and Tammy Barnes, who had worked together at Gallo's for seven years, saw this as the final push they needed to launch their own salon together.

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"We became friends while working together and we’re a good team. We approached each other this summer thinking it was time to start our own business, and then things transpired and that happened quicker than we thought," said Haines. "It was a good thing, a positive thing."

Haines and Barnes were originally planning to open the salon in a new location, but as fate would have it the pair ultimately returned to Strathmore. 

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"An amazing lawyer by chance told us it was a bad deal, told us to look for something else," Haines said. "After walking in the door [here] we knew it was the right spot. We knew this was where we should all be."

In just four weeks, Haines, Barnes, and their future employees gave the salon a facelift and transformed it into the comfortable yet stylish space they had dreamed of.

"It was an all around effort with all the girls and all their families that put the salon together. We didn’t hire anyone to do anything because all the girls were excited to get the salon open and looking the way our vision was that they came in to work day and night," Haines said.

InStyle Salon officially opened its doors on Sept. 25, and according to the co-owners, the salon was welcomed with open arms by the Aberdeen community. 

"Everyone has been so supportive of us and came out on our first week with flowers and cookies and hugs. It was very good and we couldn’t of asked for anything better than that, " Haines said.

The pair is confident that between Haines' thirty two years of experience and Barnes' knowledge of new trends, their partnership will help support a successful salon.

"This is a whole new adventure for us, but what I lack she has and what she lacks, I have," Barnes said. 

"That's what it is, experience and youth. We took it and put it together," Haines added. 

The women envision a salon where customers can recieve high quality services in a comfortable and clean atmosphere for an affordable price. InStyle provides hair services for children, women, and men with all different hair types.

"We have a very mixed clientele and we have a very mixed staff to accommodate them," Haines said. 

Haines and Barnes intend on continuing their ability to offer quality services by holding focused classes to further the education of their employees.

"In this business you definitely have to stay motivated because its always changing, there’s always new trends and styles. We’re definitely also looking to expand and learn more," Barnes said. "You definitely always have to be in motion."

For more information on Instyle, visit their website


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