Sisters, friends invest P3M on vanity venture
Capitalizing on the fertile vanity service market in Cebu, three sisters and two friends have pooled their resources together to open a chic salon boutique bringing in health-friendly products.
Sisters Mimi Bontes-Alazas, Gemma Bontes-Go and Debbie Bontes, along with their friends Amanda Wang and Marite Jiminez, invested over P3 million to establish one of the first health-friendly salon boutique called "The Clique: Nail and Hair Salon."
The 81-square-meter specialty salon, located at the newly opened Streetscape arcade along Maria Luisa Road, hopes to answer the growing vanity market that demands less chemical-injected products for hair, and nails.
Alazas said that as women themselves, they have seen the tremendous growth for vanity business in Cebu that despite the mushrooming number of salons, the industry still has enough room for more players.
"Today, availing of nail and hair care is already part of a family's routine for hygiene. More so, the awareness of the market in choosing health-friendly products has become much more apparent," said Alazas.
About 80 percent of the salon's products are organically-made or processed. Alazas said this is what sets the salon apart from others. It uses Italian prestige brands for hair care such as Davines, which is known for its premium ammonia-free hair coloring products.
The growing middle-class in Cebu fueled by the sustained growth of purchasing power paved the way for vanity business to thrive, as clients demanding for such services are not anymore the usual "mommies" and young women professionals, but now it already includes the whole spectrum of the society.
Kids, teenagers, as well as men are already part of the vanity sector's target markets, said Alazas.
Although the salon is designed to suit the taste of the discriminating market, primarily residents of the upscale Maria Luisa Estate Park, the company however commits to make its services reasonably affordable, she said.
According to studies, beauty and wellness have become one of the fastest growing sectors in the world.
Investing into these services that enhance well-being is not anymore regarded as "mere vanity" but has become an important part of one's ritual.