Urban Edge Salon is bringing a new business concept to Siloam Springs that will benefit both customers and professionals.
The new salon, owned by Christy Osbourn, offers seven private rooms under one roof which will be rented to beauty professionals. The suites allow beauty professionals to own their own businesses without investing in a salon, while giving customers a private and luxurious experience.
In addition, the salon will provide a one-stop place where clients can have their hair fixed, get a manicure, pedicure, massage or a facial, and eventually tan. I will also allow them to try new services previously unavailable in Siloam Springs such as dermaplaning -- a procedure that exfoliates the skin.
Unlike a traditional salon where stylists work in booths, professionals at Urban Edge Salon rent their own large rooms and share common spaces such as a lobby with a waiting area, bathrooms, a coffee bar and a laundry room, Osbourn explained. The professionals will have their own clientele, their own retail and will keep their own hours.
Osbourn said the rooms are already fully rented and house a total of seven professionals -- including five stylists, two estheticians and one massage therapist. Estheticians offer services relating to skin care, including dermaplaning, waxing, eyelash extensions, and brow tints and lifts. Each renter gets a sign with their name on it outside their room along with personalized signage about the services they offer on their interior windows.
Services such as hair, skin and nail care, and massage are luxuries that people don't have to spend money on, Osbourn said. When they do invest in those services they want to be able to unwind and relax, she said.
"In typical salons, people are just jam packed in," Osbourn said. "Your clients can't carry on a conversation with you, they can't relax and really enjoy their service."
Bringing a new idea to Siloam Springs
Osbourn has plenty of experience in the cosmetology industry. She grew up in Springdale and graduated from Gentry High School. She lives in Siloam Springs with her husband Rex and she has worked as a stylist for 27 years, operating her small salon, Puttin' on the Spritz.
Osbourn said she is always on the lookout for new ideas and was looking for a way to venture out and grow, as well as a way to generate income for retirement. She got the idea for salon suites from businesses she had seen in larger cities, such as Dallas, but wanted to also provide a more luxurious space while keeping a hometown, family atmosphere. She also wanted to offer beauty professionals a place to work individually while staying part of a team, she said.
A few years ago, she bought the property, located at 1500 South Pointe, with her husband. Her husband designed the building and they worked together on designing the interior, from the layout to details such as the cabinets, flooring, doors and windows, and decor.
Enabling entrepreneurs
The reaction from clients and from the professionals renting from her has been very positive, Osbourn said.
Jami White, who has worked for nine years as a stylist in Siloam Springs and Fayetteville, said she recently rented a room and started seeing clients about a month ago. Both White and her clients love the new concept, she said.
"It's very unique, Siloam Springs doesn't have anything like it," she said.
White also likes that the salon offers her the opportunity to own her own business.
"It's like having our own business and we can be social if we want to be social or we can close our door and really give our clients that atmosphere they want when they get their hair done," she said.
Hailey Osbourn, a stylist and Christy's daughter-in-law, has worked in the beauty industry for eight years and offers services such as haircuts for men and women, perms, color, waxing and blowouts.
"It's like having your own business within a business but with less overhead, so it's nice to be covered but still feel that you have that family environment," she said.
She explained that she made a choice to come to Uban Edge, not just because it is owned by family but also because of the privacy it offers.
"I really like it and all my clients have really enjoyed it," Hailey said. "They come in, they feel pampered, they like the privacy, it's a relaxing setting and they enjoy that."
While Hailey is the only family member working in the salon, Christy said she is selective about finding renters who have ambition, experience and a good portfolio of work. Professionals also have to sign contracts and carry liability insurance.
"This is an investment in their career," Christy said. "I provide for them the chair, sinks, the main things, but they're having to invest into the room as well. ... That isn't taken lightly. This is somebody that really is serious."
Christy said she feels the community is ready for her new business model.
"I think Siloam has grown enough that we're exploding in every direction," Christy said. "Our school systems, people are moving here, people are working for big corporations and commute back and forth so their kids can have a smaller school to go to. I just feel like Siloam is ready for this. We don't have anything like it."
For more information about Urban Edge Salon, visit the business' Facebook page or call 479-524-6424.
General News on 12/26/2018