THIRD RUNNER UP:
ROOT
St. Paul, Minnesota
rootsalons.com

Owner: Jim Koktavy
Salon established: April 2005
Opening after remodel: August 2008
Salon style: Organic, chic
Square footage: 3,600
Styling stations: 11
Treatment rooms: 2
Equipment: Belvedere
Furniture: Belvedere, custom
Total design investment: $198,500
Top retail lines: Kerastase, Davines
Design: Creative Consultants
Architect: Peter Hilger

Judges comments:
“Use of existing vintage space a plus.”
—Cicela

“The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.”
—Soukhopalov
THIRD RUNNER UP: ROOT St. Paul, Minnesota rootsalons.com Owner: Jim Koktavy Salon established: April 2005 Opening after remodel: August 2008 Salon style: Organic, chic Square footage: 3,600 Styling stations: 11 Treatment rooms: 2 Equipment: Belvedere Furniture: Belvedere, custom Total design investment: $198,500 Top retail lines: Kerastase, Davines Design: Creative Consultants Architect: Peter Hilger Judges comments: “Use of existing vintage space a plus.” —Cicela “The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.” —Soukhopalov
The salon now has a separate retail area.
The salon now has a separate retail area.
The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.
The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.
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THIRD RUNNER UP:
ROOT
St. Paul, Minnesota
rootsalons.com

Owner: Jim Koktavy
Salon established: April 2005
Opening after remodel: August 2008
Salon style: Organic, chic
Square footage: 3,600
Styling stations: 11
Treatment rooms: 2
Equipment: Belvedere
Furniture: Belvedere, custom
Total design investment: $198,500
Top retail lines: Kerastase, Davines
Design: Creative Consultants
Architect: Peter Hilger

Judges comments:
“Use of existing vintage space a plus.”
—Cicela

“The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.”
—Soukhopalov
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THIRD RUNNER UP: ROOT St. Paul, Minnesota rootsalons.com Owner: Jim Koktavy Salon established: April 2005 Opening after remodel: August 2008 Salon style: Organic, chic Square footage: 3,600 Styling stations: 11 Treatment rooms: 2 Equipment: Belvedere Furniture: Belvedere, custom Total design investment: $198,500 Top retail lines: Kerastase, Davines Design: Creative Consultants Architect: Peter Hilger Judges comments: “Use of existing vintage space a plus.” —Cicela “The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.” —Soukhopalov
The salon now has a separate retail area.
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The salon now has a separate retail area.
The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.
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The relevance and preservation of existing architecture is fused with modern touches. The use of color in the reception and retail areas represents the salon as an active and creative environment.
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The secret to Root’s successful remodel was owner Jim Koktavy’s belief that it was time to tear down walls instead of build them up. Koktavy preserved the architectural attributes of the 125-year-old building that now houses the salon—exposing and cleaning original brick walls, integrating the limestone foundation into the basement-level hair department, ripping out ceilings and exposing the natural joists to provide height, and reusing the staircase, which was moved to accommodate the salon’s new flow.

Relocating hair services to the basement made sense for Root. Most clients don’t want to be seen from the street in foils, stresses Koktavy. He hired a lighting architect to create perfect lighting for the color process. One of the owner’s favorite new features is the open color bar and mixing area that takes center stage. “Clients really enjoy witnessing the mixology—they see it’s much more than opening up a box of color and dumping it in a bowl. It conveys the notion that they can’t do this at home,” he says.

The remodel offered Koktavy an opportunity to fix the things he missed when he opened the salon four years ago. “As a new owner, you’re so focused on getting the right number of chairs in there, you overlook things like storage space,” he says. One of the biggest improvements is a separate retail area that provides a comfortable shopping experience for guests.

By incorporating the building’s existing features into the design and repurposing existing materials, the design also is quite eco-friendly. A floor of recycled rubber not only provides an eco-conscious choice, Koktavy found its granite appearance stands up to tough Minnesota winters. “Most of all, I’m proud we created nearly 4,000-square-feet of organic, chic environment on a less than $200,000 budget—and we did it without several dumpsters hauling stuff away,” he says.

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