Storm Hair makes top-200 list for salons
Company named among best in North America as it navigates pandemic
A Niagara-based hair salon with two locations in the region has been recognized on a continental stage for its business practices and innovations — during a pandemic and navigating around two lockdowns since last March.
Celebrating a 25-year anniversary in July, Luca Crescia, Michael De Prophetis, and Ian Hearth from Storm Hair Group in Fonthill and St. Catharines were named as one of the top 200 salons in North America by Salon Today Magazine.
Closed during the most recent shutdown since Dec. 26, the trio and their roughly 40 employees have stayed connected during regular virtual meetings to talk about the toll the pandemic is having on their lives, but to also help each other out and discuss how to adapt once the salons reopen.
“We want to make sure everybody is doing OK,” said Hearth at the Highway 20 location in Fonthill.
One way the group has been applauded by the industry publication is how it manages waste.
Hair that piles up on the floor isn’t simply thrown in the trash. Through a partnership with Toronto-based Green Circle Salons, manes and trimmings are bagged up and sent to Alberta to
absorb spills in the oilsands.
Also, foils from highlights and excess hair colouring are recycled.
During the pandemic, with chairs off-limits in both salons, Storm has been selling various products and colouring kits through a curbside format to keep clientele pleased with their appearances and while also generating income.
The trio compiled essays about their efforts that were submitted to judges who arrived at naming the top 200 in the industry.
They are one of three from Canada to make the list.
Anticipating Niagara could reenter the red zone next week, allowing the salon to open in a limited capacity, Crescia said “it’s all about the little things” to keep clients comfortable and safe when they return for their post-lockdown appointments.
Chairs are cleaned after each visit, and tools of the trade are washed and boxed after each single use.
“That’s the biggest thing, making sure we have everything out and that they see we are keeping
everything clean,” said Crescia.
They are getting ready for business to resume next week if the provincial government gives the OK.
“We have to make sure we’re prepared mentally, and that all our stock is up,” he said.
Employees have received CERB for most of the last year, compensating for income lost during portions of the pandemic when salons have been closed.
Some salons in St. Catharines have been under a microscope in recent weeks for attempting to dodge government restrictions and finding loopholes to stay open, such as converting their facilities into makeshift film studios.
All three didn’t criticize these businesses for their attempts to remain open, but De Prophetis said taking a similar approach is something they were not interested in.
“We have a lot of clients who are doctors, nurses, dentists,” he said.
“They’re risking their lives every day going to work. We thought it would be disrespectful to try to open again, to find a loophole,” he said.
Hearth said the phone has been “ringing off the hook” with clients asking about coming in once Niagara’s grey zone restrictions are lifted.
When the U.s.-based magazine listed its winners last weekend, dozens of staff got dressed up and sat in front of their computers to watch the online event unfold.
It was a “virtual celebration” that involved a few glasses of wine being poured, said Hearth.
“It means so much,” he said, adding Storm Hair Group was honoured on the same list for its business practices two times previously — once in the early 2000s and again in 2018.
Storm Hair Group’s roots started in St. Catharines 25 years ago and expanded to its Fonthill location 12 years ago.