When the recession hit some of her clients hard, Terrie Simpkins and her team created a new color service at Shampoo Hut in Paw Paw.
"Accents" is a less expensive version of coloring for customers who have their hair highlighted regularly, but can no longer afford a full head of highlighting.
"Some people don’t want to change their look much, but can’t pay what they used to for highlights or lowlights, so we can do a partial highlight instead," Simpkins says. "It’s been very popular."
While Simpkins paid attention to her clients’ needs with new services like "Accents," her business continued to grow. So much so that she gave up the 1,100-square-foot space that formerly was Shampoo Hut, moved across the street to a space that tripled her salon’s size, and hired three new employees last October.
"I needed a cosmetologist, another massage therapist and a nail technician," she says. "Now we have 12 employees, more space for massage and spa treatments, and plenty of room to offer the new services I wanted to provide."
Balsamic mud wraps and seaweed wraps are two of them, services that Simpkins says are in demand. Other skincare services available at Shampoo Hut include facials, cellulite lifts, skin firming services--and even chemical peels.
Full hair care and nail services round out the roster, along with massage therapy, which includes hot stone, deep tissue and sports massages and reflexology.
Simpkins says she’s not finished. "I would love to be able to offer full hair extension services in 2012," she says.
Men, women and children of multi-generations call Shampoo Hut their salon and spa home, and its owner calls her employees "amazing."
"They are creative and hungry for education--trends change so fast that we have to have a great team to keep up," Simpkins says. "Everyone who works here is incredibly dedicated to their careers."
Writer: Kelle Barr, Second Wave
Source: Terrie Simpkins, Shampoo Hut
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