Hair salon finds a new home
Garry Preston may have holstered his scissors seven years ago, but that hasn’t stopped him and his wife, Chris, from continuing their peripatetic hair-cutting existence.
The couple opened the most recent location of their business, Headstart Salon, in Cook Street Village on Thursday.
It’s the fourth move in 43 years for Headstart, which started in 1970 in a space that now is home to the Mosaic building on Fort Street. From there it moved to 1010 Cook St. in 1977. In 2003, it moved a few blocks away to 1315 Cook St. and now it’s at 313 Cook St.
“Our first day was [Thursday] and so far it’s been great. The village has welcomed us,” said Preston, who remains hands-on even if he’s not actually snipping or colouring hair.
“These days, I’m more out front. I do PR, chatting, welcoming clients, I serve the coffee and chat,” he said, noting in his salon there’s always room for discussion on any topic including the socalled taboos. “I like to say we talk religion and politics here with impunity.” They also cut some hair. The new salon, about 1,500 square feet, is slightly smaller than the last location but the business intends to offer more.
On top of their four stylists, Preston said they hired an aesthetician to establish the new location as a full-service salon.
To make room, the salon has cut down some of its retail offerings.
Instead, they’ve focused their product mix on natural hair-care products.
Headstart actually produced its own line of products up until a year and a half ago.
Preston said they had put together a line of wheat-free products, which at the time were harder to find.
“Now there are quite a few people doing those, and for a small company it was hard to be competitive,” he said.
They have room for two more stylists, and Preston said he expects to hire another aesthetician to offer a full range of waxing, manicure and pedicure options.
As for the hair cutting, Preston said he doesn’t miss it as much as he misses dealing with clients on a personal level.
“When you are a hair dresser, you are invited into people’s personal space,” he said.
But he looks at the bright side: After 43 years in business he remains happily married.
“My wife and I have been involved in all the moves. We’ve been married for 43 years and we still get along — even working together,” he said.