Preserving History

By Emily Rose Hamby

Located right off of the Square, 1116 Floyd Street has been utilized as a hair salon for decades. The late Bertha Goss’ beauty salon — originally called Bertha’s Beauty Salon — occupied the storefront for almost 50 years.

Then, Diane Boswell bought the space nearly five years ago and opened Nutrenitee Salon and Spa. Since its inception, Boswell has worked to establish the salon as a staple in Covington.

“I’m not just here for the money,” Boswell said.” I have a passion for making people feel good, look good. If I can make a person feel good just by the words that I speak, not just because I curled their hair or gave them the best haircut that they had ever had in life. If I can speak some positive words to them to uplift them, to encourage them, to send them out and let them know that they are beautiful, not just on the outside, but on the inside.”

Boswell discovered her passion for doing hair as a little girl among her nine sisters, beginning by practicing on her dolls.

“We would get dolls for Christmas and by Dec. 27, the doll didn’t have any hair,” Boswell said. “Hair was gone. I have an identical twin sister so, she and I would get together and come up with ways that we could cut the doll’s hair. We’d go sneak the scissors from my mom. We’d get that knife from the kitchen… anything to cut hair. I was drawn to hair. Anybody I saw with hair, I wanted to touch it.”

Boswell’s history with the location of her storefront on Floyd Street extends past her ownership. It dates back to the first time she got her hair professionally styled.

She saved money throughout her childhood in pursuit of her hairstylist dream. Then, Boswell attended Southern Beauty Academy and found work at the same salon.

Nutrenitee Salon and Spa’s origin began in 2000 on Lions Club Road in Madison, Georgia. Behind the name lies a deeper meaning to Boswell, who is strong in her faith.

“I’m a Christian, I’m a believer. I believe in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” Boswell said. “At that time, I was in a hard place and believing that God was gonna do it for me. I was over my client’s head and, as I was praying, Nutrenitee came to my mind. Immediately, it was like, it’s the new trends and I style them to the T, but with the help of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, which equals Nutrenitee.”

Nearly 18 years later, Nutrenitee relocated to 1116 Floyd Street along with its large variety of loyal clients. The salon’s clientele has been solidified through feeling a sense of connection and comfortability with Boswell.

“What sets [Nutrenitee] apart from the rest is, it’s a ministry,” Boswell said. “I’m not for the crowd. I can have one salon. I can have one client in here at a time. And I think that’s why God has blessed me. Because that’s his will that he has for me to speak life into women. I love women. I love everybody. But to speak to a woman, because I’m a woman, I know how I feel and I can give my heart to them. My salon is small. It wasn’t intended to be big and to draw a lot of crowds.”

Nutrenitee has two employees, Boswell and another hair stylist, who provide services such as hair cutting, braiding, natural hairstyles, relaxed hairstyles, silk presses and more. Typically, no more than one or two customers are in the salon at a time. That’s an expectation Boswell has set in order to make each individual feel special and to ensure quality results.

With Covington and Newton County continuing to grow and evolve, Nutrenitee is happy to be a part of the community. Not only that, but Boswell aims to take Nutrenitee to greater heights.

Boswell believes the help of the community, her faith and the steep history are three crucial factors to help accomplish that goal.

“I’m so thankful and grateful to be part of Newton County. Beautiful people, they do their job. They made sure that when I opened those doors, it was going to be safety for me as well as my clients or for anyone that walked through that door,” Boswell said. “It was a hair salon run by the late Bertha Goss. She ran it for almost 50 years and that’s what we want to keep it, a beauty salon, because there’s so much history here. So many memories here.”