Over the next 10 business days, SALON TODAY is thrilled to introduce you to the 2022 Class of the SALON TODAY 200 and share their best practice tips. These first 20 honorees are focused on their team members, helping them create top-notch experiences with their guests. Check back tomorrow and meet our next 20 honorees. 

5 SALON & SPA
Fort Lee, NJ
5salonspa.com
Ona Diaz‐Santin
SQUARE FEET: 4700     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 20
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Innersense Organic Beauty, Wella, Mizani
COLOR: Wella, Pulp Riot, Redken
SKIN CARE: Valmont  
NAIL CARE: OPI, Essie, CND
TECH SUPPORT: Inspire by STX, Vish, Vonage 
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA
“We took many courses with Inspiring Champions, both traveling and on-site education for the team, to make sure that our minds were in a good place. Another course was Top Gun, which really focused on going beyond customer service and more into customer care.”

5TH AVENUE SALON
Hendersonville, NC
5thavenuesalonhvl.com
Debbie Berry
SQUARE FEET: 2200     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 16
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Davines, Aluram, Redken
COLOR: Davines, Matrix, Oligo, Blacklight
NAIL CARE: OPI, GelBottle, Young Nails
TECH SUPPORT: Vagaro, Squarespace
“With so many new people moving into our area we decided to join the Welcome Wagon. This company sends out coupon books to all new residents moving into our county. We’ve incentivized our guests and stylists with monthly promotions, such as when a client books their next three appointments they’re entered into a drawing for a $100 shopping spree on their 3rd appointment.”

8 THE EXPERIENCE
Willemstad, Cuacao
8curacao.com
Kimberly de Freitas
SQUARE FEET: 5382     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 25
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda  
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
NAIL CARE: CND, Ella Mila 
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest  
“Day passes historically were marketed for a small fee just to use our facilities. But with the heightened desire for touch points, we redesigned the day pass with a higher service price to also include mini rituals of renewal. Some of these are as simple as a tea experience, while others are small teasers into full services.”

A GLO SPA & SALON CO
Janesville, WI 
aglospa.com
Christi & Allan Newell
SQUARE FEET: 7000     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 30
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda  
SKIN CARE: Aveda, Colorescience 
NAIL CARE: CND 
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo, Textel
“We added a brow bar and a dedicated body wax room in our salon and created more excitement around all our wax services. All wax services increased by 88%, which is an increase of $53,500 so far this year. Facial waxing alone has increased by 76% so far this year, adding an additional $26,700 to sales.”

A PERFECT HUE SALON
Las Vegas, NV aperfecthue.com 
Emily Climer
SQUARE FEET: 1200     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 10
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Redken, Pureology, Mizani
COLOR: Redken, Pulp Riot
SKIN CARE: Farm House 
TECH SUPPORT: Envision, Numa  
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“As a team, we started learning how personality types could improve our daily interactions. Success Signals by Rhonda Hilyer has been highly effective. Each member of our team now understands why and how one stylist may be more direct whereas others may lead more with the heart.”

A ROLAND
New Cumberland, PA 
arolandsalonstudio.com 
Amy Roland
SQUARE FEET: 1350     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 6
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda  
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
TECH SUPPORT: SaloBiz  
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“We featured small-batch, female-owned, environmentally sustainable companies to sell boutique items in-house. This has given us the opportunity to open a Shopify account online and invite the community to come in and shop for more than just hair and skincare.”

A.SALON
Chicago, IL
asalonchicago.com
Amy Daniel‐Moser & Rudy Moser
SQUARE FEET: 2000     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 15
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $68
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Kevin Murphy, Eleven, Milbon
COLOR: Kevin Murphy  
TECH SUPPORT: Rosy, Salon Interactive  
ASSOCIATIONS: CC 
“Sustainability is one of our core values. Since opening, a.salon has been a member of Green Circle Salons and recycles up to 95% of all salon byproducts. Every product line is committed to sustainability and being cruelty-free. Our space has reclaimed fixtures with LED lights and tankless water heaters.”

AABANI SALON
Weaverville, NC
aabanisalon.com
Brandi Bailey
SQUARE FEET: 1200     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 11
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $60
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda  
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
TECH SUPPORT: SalonBiz, Reach  
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“While requesting online reviews has always been a part of our team practice, we wanted to proactively initiate the conversation and make it easier for the client. We sourced a new customer management system to send user-friendly email evaluations and feedback surveys, resulting in greater client engagement.”

ALKALI HAIR STUDIO
Winston Salem, NC
studioalkali.com
Amber Woodall
SQUARE FEET: 2236; 475    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 12
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Oribe, Davines 
COLOR: Goldwell, Davines 
SKIN CARE: Environ  
NAIL CARE: Smith & Cult  
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest
“We transitioned to a gender-neutral, ageless pricing system centered around time. Separating services by gender is not only divisive, but it doesn’t make good business sense. The more I analyzed typical salon pricing inconsistencies, the more obvious it became that men were receiving deep discounts on their cut and colors while some women were being overcharged.”

ALLURE BEAUTY BAR
Grand Junction, CO
beautybarallure.com
Bobbi Zmiewsky
SQUARE FEET: 1600     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 15
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Pureology, Surface, Matrix
COLOR: Pulp Riot 
SKIN CARE: Farmhouse Fresh, Cosmedix 
TECH SUPPORT: Boulevard, Slack, Tippy, Vish
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“Education is the driving force behind our service providers, and our leadership team dove into leadership training. We’re a Summit Salon that utilizes a coach, but we also signed up with PIP University for a fresh look at team culture, organization and motivation.”

ALLURE DESIGNS IN BEAUTY
Libertyville, IL 
alluredesigns.net 
Shelly Malizola
SQUARE FEET: 3200     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 17
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda, Oribe 
COLOR: Aveda, Goldwell 
SKIN CARE: Aveda, Glo, Beauty Cloud
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest, Vish  
ASSOCIATIONS: CC, PBA
“We have a culture rating for each employee that ties into our core values. The staff rates themselves and leadership rates them on their performance as a team member in conjunction with our core values. Our values spell out ALLURE: Accountability, Learning, Leadership, Unity, Respect and Excellence.”

AMBIANCE SALON AND SPA
Burnsville, MN
ambiancespasalon.com
Lorraine Masters
SQUARE FEET: 2800     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 7
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Unite, Olaplex, L’Anza
COLOR: Pravana, Redken 
SKIN CARE: Skinceuticals, Glo Beauty 
NAIL CARE: Entity, OPI
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest  
ASSOCIATIONS: CC
“I have to give a shoutout to my mentor and profit guru Salon Cadence. What I have received in return has been absolutely life-changing. The importance of knowing your numbers and being crystal clear with your vision is the best foundation anyone can have. Salon Cadence has saved my company and my marriage and restored my mental health.”

ANAGEN 11
Appleton, WI
Anagen11.com
Jessica Rondinelli, Christopher  Hartl
SQUARE FEET: 4100     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 20
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: L’Anza, R+Co, Schwarzkopf Professional
COLOR: Schwarzkopf Professional, Pulp Riot, Malibu
SKIN CARE: PCA, Jane Iredale 
TECH SUPPORT: Meevo 2  
“We honestly can’t say enough about our transition to Meevo 2. We had simply outgrown our outdated software and needed a solution that was able to help us accomplish the goal of better analytics, growth tools and above all, data integrity.”

ARZ SALON + SPA RETREAT
North Ridgeville, OH
arzsalon.net
Michael and Lezlie Meihls & Karrie Taylor 
SQUARE FEET: 2800     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 11
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda, Redken, Pulp Riot
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
NAIL CARE: Zoya, CND, OPI 
TECH SUPPORT: SalonBiz, Reach, Textel
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“We rolled out a back-to-school special “Pamper Our Parents” promo. For every $90 Botanical Facial purchased, our guests received a free serum. About 25% of the people who booked this service were new facial clients. We sold four times the amount of facials that we normally do that month.”

ASH & WILLOW ECO SALON AND BEAUTY APOTHECARY
Park Ridge, IL
ashwillowsalon.com
Holly Santelli
SQUARE FEET: 4100     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 32
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Kevin Murphy, Aveda, Davines
COLOR: Kevin Murphy, Aveda, Davines
SKIN CARE: Intelilgent Nutrients. Rejuvi 
NAIL CARE: CND, OPI, Aveda
TECH SUPPORT: Rosy Salon Software, Meet Your Stylist, Salon Interactive 
ASSOCIATIONS: Cosmetologists Chicago 
“In 2021, we gave more than $8,000 in gift certificates. This helps give each of the service providers a chance to gain a new guest and to build up new services that we’ve added. It’s also a great way to give back, but also for the salon to gain exposure.”

ASPARATIONS SALON AND DAY SPA
Marshalltown, IA
aSPArations.com
Tasha & Terry Schnathorst
SQUARE FEET: 4600     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 22
AVERAGE CUT & STYLE: $36
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Eufora, Redken, Brazailian Blowout
COLOR: Eufora  
SKIN CARE: Dermalogica, Theraderm, Abi
NAIL CARE: CND  
TECH SUPPORT: Envision, Tippy, Vish 
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“We invested in a full-body LED capsule with a separate facial panel so we can customize treatments. Guests not only love the visible results, but also the endorphin rush. With the additional investment of a high-quality skin scanner, we were able to show guests their results, as well as increase product sales 25%.” 

ATELIER STUDIO
San Jose, CA
ateliersalon.com
Karie Bennett
SQUARE FEET: 1600     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 40
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda, Pulp Riot 
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
TECH SUPPORT: Aura, Meet Your Stylist  
ASSOCIATIONS: PBA 
“During the pandemic we created home touch-up kits for clients using their existing or most recent formulas. People who were not existing clients of ours heard about this and called us, asking us to create kits for them too. We brought in a couple of our senior stylists to do complimentary consultations to create custom hair color formulas for them and got new clients as a result.”

AVALON SALON SPA
Lake Zurich, IL
avalonsalonspas.com 
Bonnie and August Conte
SQUARE FEET: 5300, 1500    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 60
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda  
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
NAIL CARE: OPI, Essie, Gelish
TECH SUPPORT: Phorest, Vish  
ASSOCIATIONS: CC, ICA, ISPA, PBA 
“In addition to our commitment to honest communication, adapting to changing circumstances assisted with staff retention. We recognized that flexibility is an important part of survival. Leadership was able to retain staff members by recognizing individual concerns and being flexible to accommodations when necessary.”

AVANTGARDE SALON
Destin, FL
avantgardeaveda.com
Joseph A Rogers
SQUARE FEET: 4300. 1400    
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 32
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Aveda  
COLOR: Aveda  
SKIN CARE: Aveda  
NAIL CARE: Aveda, OPI 
TECH SUPPORT: SalonBiz, Demandforce, Reach 
“We’ve focused on two systems to help bring in clients, one of which is Reach, an AI tool that works to fill last-minute cancellations on our books by using our own database of guests that don’t currently have a scheduled appointment. We’ve been seeing many guests that we haven’t seen in years and our percentage booked increased 10 percent.”

BE INSPIRED SALON, INC Madison, WI
beinspiredsalon.com
Kati Whitledge
SQUARE FEET: 2500     
TOTAL EMPLOYEES: 16
BEST‐SELLING RETAIL: Innersense, Kevin.murphy 
COLOR: Goldwell, Pulp Riot 
TECH SUPPORT: Rosy, Meet Your Stylist 
ASSOCIATIONS: ICA 
“We decided to refresh our retail, bringing in two brand-new lines. We needed new education and inspiration. We brought in Innersense and the owner himself flew out with his top educator to provide an interactive all-day product experience class with our team. We haven’t looked back.”