SALON SPOTLIGHT - May 2021

2021 Salon

spotlight special feature PRESENTED BY

WORDS Dwain Hebda and Catherine Frederick some interviews have been edited for length and clarity

Do South® is proud to recognize the talents and contributions of select salons and spas in our community. They set the bar for excellence and are committed to giving their clients the very best. Join us as we salute their incredible achievements and the passion they share for their profession!

DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM

2021 Salon

spotlight special feature PRESENTED BY

WORDS Dwain Hebda and Catherine Frederick some interviews have been edited for length and clarity

Do South® is proud to recognize the talents and contributions of select salons and spas in our community. They set the bar for excellence and are committed to giving their clients the very best. Join us as we salute their incredible achievements and the passion they share for their profession!

DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM

Raw Beauty Salon & Spa rawbeautysalonandspa.com

Looking to bring something completely different to the local beauty scene in Fort Smith, Madysn “Mady” Casteel brought her vision for a nontoxic, organic salon experience to life with Raw Beauty Salon and Spa in 2019. Since then, the unique spot has steadily gained a loyal following.

“Raw Beauty Salon and Spa’s ultimate goal is to provide a nontoxic, organic experience for our clients and our environment,” Mady says. “Because we absorb up to sixty percent of substances that we apply to our skin, Raw Beauty strives to offer skincare products that are natural rather than those containing harsh chemicals.”

A licensed cosmetologist, Mady has worked in all facets of the beauty industry for the last nine years, always driven by her passion for nutrition and skincare. She built her business offering organic, nontoxic skincare products, and hair care products. Her skilled team provides a range of services including hair, facials, brows and lashes and waxing all in a relaxed, luxurious environment.

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Salon Elements salonelements.com Over the years, Salon Elements’ troupe of full-service beauty professionals has grown to seven stylists, plus lash pros, extensions, and color experts and, through the brand-new spa at Salon Elements, specialists offering the best in spa services. But, as owner and stylist Marcie Comstock points out, it’s what hasn’t changed that keeps bringing people back.

“Our customer experience starts with our client’s arrival and we work as a team to make sure everyone who enters the salon has an amazing experience with a positive outcome,” Marcie says. “Professionalism and a willingness to listen are key; we make sure we give each client that personal touch and we listen to what our clients want.”

Marcie doesn’t just preach these values, she hires for them. Thus, each member of the team reflects her high standards for technical expertise, creativity and most of all, perfecting the customer experience.

“Working with Marcie and seeing the commitment to quality and hard work she brings to her business is inspiring,” says Donna Reamy, medical massage therapist. “She has a huge heart and cares deeply for the clients and staff. She enables us to do our job to the fullest in service to our fabulous clients.”

"I love the whole vibe of the salon,” says Brooke Leonard, esthetician, and lash artist. “You walk in and immediately feel like you belong. My number-one goal is to make sure my clients are one hundred percent satisfied with their service and I know I’m not the only one who feels that way."

“My goal with every client is to help people feel better, whether that is getting stronger, improving balance and coordination or improving bone density,” agrees Kristy Holland, the spa’s personal trainer and TruSculpt 3D technician. “I love how we all take a team approach here. Everyone supports each other and will gladly step in to help when needed.”

Marcie says this all-for-one attitude is an important element of the salon’s success.

Everyone on the team has a role to play and each is the best at what they do, from clientfacing beauty professionals such as Gayla Jepson, one of the salon’s wig specialists, to support staff such as Laura Bullington, salon coordinator, who ensures everything exceeds the customer’s expectations. All of which combines to offer customers the finest salon and spa experience anywhere in the region.

“Our clients are everything to us; without them, we are nothing,” Marcie says. “That’s why we, as a team, will always give our best for them. That’s been my personal guarantee since Day One.” DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM

C a l l f or you r p r i vate co nsultati o n!

479.649.3435

314 Lexington Ave., Fort Smith, Arkansas | salonelements.com

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Salon Savvy at The Hub facebook.com/salonsavvyatthehub When Samantha Sims opened the doors of her first salon last fall – Salon Savvy at The Hub in Fort Smith – she did so with the goal of providing an experience unlike anything available in the area. So far, the luxury salon has been right on point with that goal.

“We are focused on being that higher end salon, a luxurious experience with the really high-end brands that we carry,” she says. “I visited salons all over the region and getting my hair done in those high-end salons inspired me to want to create a vision of something like that here in Fort Smith. We strive to make it a really luxurious experience to get your hair done.” The experience starts with the quality of the staff. Salon Savvy’s well-trained and experienced crew is top-of-the-line, offering a variety of services to make each client look their best. “We do specialize in blonde and we specialize in hair extensions as well, both hand-tied and tape-in,” says Samantha, a native Oklahoman with nearly a decade in the beauty business. “We also have an esthetician on staff; she specializes in lash extensions, facials and skin care as well.”

Samantha picked her location at The Hub at Providence, an upscale development in Fort Smith’s Chaffee Crossing, not just for its proximity to clients, but for its growing list of amenities.

“We not only have clients from Fort Smith, but those who travel from all over Northwest Arkansas and the surrounding counties in Oklahoma,” she says. “The Hub was the ideal location; you can walk next door and grab a coffee or walk down to the Italian restaurant for lunch. You can make a day of things.”

Asked the secret that sets Salon Savvy apart, Samantha says it’s more than just technical skills and good coffee. At its heart, it’s the way the staff pampers clients that makes the salon a truly enjoyable experience.

“I am really picky about professionalism and interacting with the client and connecting one-on-one,” she says. "I am adamant that no client should ever leave unhappy. I have handpicked my team who are as adamant on the same things as I am. We are all professionals who treat clients with the utmost respect.”

Sims says as the salon continues to grow, these are the professional qualities she looks for in new team members, as well.

“I'm always interviewing for new booth rent stylists, estheticians, lash artists and nail technicians,” she says. "I always tell people we’re looking for the kind of employee who wants the client to leave the salon looking or feeling their very best and won’t be satisfied with less than that.”

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The Hub at Providence

479.551.2403

9101 R.A. Young Jr Drive, Suite 104 Fort Smith, arkansas DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM