Lets begin with a little place called Heaven…..

This is a tale about how I came up with a dream & decided to call it Heaven. Grab a glass & lets go way back to 2015. I had just divorced & had to not only live on my own for the very first time in my life (I was 30), but start a business completely from scratch. No biggie. No sweat right? I got this. Well I didn’t. Alas this is not a tale as to why I got divorced, but as to how I came I decided on the brand name Heaven Hair Gallery. We can get into specifics at another time… stick around. This story has guts, grit, & a sprinkle of extortion thrown in there for ya. I promise it gets GOOD.

When I had to start my new venture out on my own I knew I needed a strong name. very specifically a name that was one word, stood for something, something everyone would remember, yet it had nothing to do with hair. I thought intensely about the feeling I wanted my clients ( however I would move on to say ‘guests’) to have the second they walked in the door. I desired for every sense to be perfect. It had to smell like the perfect combination of eucalyptus, lavender, & lemon. The music had to be stuff you didn’t hear all the time, I wanted it to stand out to you… yet be pleasant on your ear. I wanted my clients to actually FEEL the teamwork. Every guest should feel as if they are being hugged the second they walk in the door without being hugged. It should be the salon equivalent of Cheers.

I wanted it to be HEAVEN.

Bam! That was it. That was the name. It should feel like pure Heaven walking into my space. Every. Single. Damn. Day. I was sold.

Heaven was born.

Post divorce all I could afford was a hole in the wall spot. It wasn’t a salon at all. It was a HOLE. My clients even called it THE HOLE!! . It had zero plumbing to be a salon.It needed paint …BADLY. There was no AC, no parking, no windows, terrible lighting. But I had hope. I knew I was destined for pure greatness. The ‘salon’ was connected to a laundromat, which is where the bathroom was located. Which got vandalized & broken into daily. Beer bottles, condoms, needles, stolen soap & TP, piss everywhere were just a few things I had to deal with almost daily. I had it padlocked & they would break it in. I replaced that lock more times than I could count. I would have to come into the salon 45 min early to make sure the bathroom was 100% (or to clean up vomit on the outside steps) before I could start my day.

This was my reality. Yet I knew it wasn’t forever . I drove to work every day screaming mantras to myself.

I AM MADE FOR MORE!!!!!!

I AM DESTINED FOR GREAT THINGS!!!

I WILL BE SO GOOD YOU CANT IGNORE ME!!!!!!!!!!!

That one was my favorite. See I was told by someone; “ You know you need me, you will never be able to do anything without me. You won’t go anywhere.”

It was then I vowed to myself I would make BIG. THINGS. HAPPEN. I sucked & held every tear pressing at there back of my eyelids inward. Sucked my tongue to the roof of my mouth, sharply inhaled, and all I could do was nod, I promised myself I wouldn’t cry. I would just prove them wrong, I left for work the next day chanting to myself; BE SO GOOD THEY CANT IGNORE YOU. My mom got me a tiny key chain that I hooked to my salon key. It was a little arrow & she inscribed on it: GO FORWARD EVERY DAY- LUV U MOM. SO every day when I unlocked my Hole (yeah I know how it sounds) I said Thanks mom, Love you, You’re right.

I rented my salon space with a friend of mine for about 2 Years until I got blessed with an life-changing opportunity ( next blog post). I had told her one night, “Listen… the salon has to be named Heaven, Period. Please.” Or something to that effect. She was on board & Heaven Hair Gallery was born. The place we rented needed so much work & I put so much money into it that I didn’t have. The paint was terrible inside & out. I could only afford enough paint to do one wall when we first moved in. We were in a 350 Sq. ft space. the other walls I wouldn’t be able to afford to paint for another year. It sucked really freaking bad. But my mom always told me I would give the same haircut in a lawn chair or a $600 chair it didn’t matter.

I knew she was right. It didn’t make a difference on the outcome of the haircut, Yet it mattered to me. I knew in my gut God had a plan for me & this wasn’t going to be forever. I just put my head down and got to work. I busted my ass working 24/7, literally hustling to build my business from scratch. Do you know how many salons there are in Keene?? A LOT. I spent 1/5 of my divorce settlement on the plumbing (just the pipes!!) for the space. My friend Laura let me borrow a floor fan from her & I never gave it back. I took it to salon & used it both between my apartment and the salon. I carried this fan back and forth my apartment & salon every damn day. I lived on the THIRD FLOOR. I simply could not afford 2 fans, Period.

You cannot make this shit up. Laura captured a picture of me leaving work one day with my cat in my purse bag and my fan on my shoulder. It was comical, but I still had a smile on my face.

It was my hole. But it was still Heaven.

I worked my A$$ off promoting myself. I would meet people, get them in my salon & they would be shocked at where I was. I know I know…. It was a sight to see. Bright blue tile floor (desperately wanted to change it, but couldn’t afford it), Half painted inside, majorly chipped paint outside, weeds too big to pull by hand growing through the entrance, tiny, and no windows. But hey… Mom was right. I do the same haircut then as I do now. However the experience is so much better. However the lesson was there. thanks mom. ❤️

I talked a big talk, and I knew I would eventually walk the walk. Head down and eyes up to God. Pray, trust, believe, & you shall receive, also bust your a$$!

I eventually afforded paint for the other walls & it got finished. I know a can of paint isn’t expensive… but I couldn’t afford it, The outside was so awful as well. I hung some flowers, painted as much as the leftover paint would go & when I ran out… I just a piece of lattice on the rest to cover it up.

Lets skip ahead, Ill fill in the rest later. Last summer I needed new styling chairs in my new location so badly. The other were worn out & not high quality to begin with (sucks buying salon equipment off the internet) so I decided it was time to upgrade. I found the chairs I wanted & splurged $575 on a chair. Each chair. I HAD TO BUY 10. No sweat. Shipping? That was an additional $1,200 to ship from Georgia.

$6,950. 10 chairs. I paid cash & I didn’t even think twice about it, Afterwards the picture of me and my fan popped up on FB that same night. It was fate. I couldn’t believe how far I had come, I started crying. I just paid cash for 10 chairs than I had made in an entire year. It took me 1 hour to find the chairs & 5 min to enter my info.

Is it ok if I say Im pretty damn proud of myself & how much I grew my business???? FROM SCRATCH.

Little girls out there everywhere… Do NOT let anyone hold you back. Do NOT let anyone stifle your dream, You can do anything you want & be as big as you want. If this message hits home or pisses you off, then you are part of the problem. I am not ashamed to say I worked my ass off, but don you dare say I got it handed to me, I didn’t. I have a mission to empower women & tell little girls everywhere that we are capable of making BIG DREAMS HAPPEN.

When I finally got the chance to have fresh paint from day one. Look out my big beautiful windows into a spacious parking lot, with a stunning garden space. I had to pinch myself. Yeah…. I had to have my hole first to appreciate the little things. To have a bathroom that is always clean, safe, and complete with individual white cloth towels…. I just say “Ahhhh”

Ya’ll I had CARRIED A FAN UP 3 FLIGHTS OF STAIRS, EVERY DAY, WITH MY CAT IN MY PURSE, because I just couldn’t spend the money on a fan. I do not ever take the smallest thing for granted. I remember where I came from, what I sacrificed, and how rough it was for years.

My favorite place is called HEAVEN. Once you enter you smell lavender & eucalyptus. I have a freaking lemon tree! Then you are warmly greeted by our guest services & checked in. We help you with your jacket, hand you a mimosa, and take you someplace quiet to decompress while you wait for your day-maker. Once you settle in, you will never have to stress about us double booking you, or putting you under a dryer & forgetting about you. Scalp treatments, hand/arm massages, and aromatherapy are why were extra, Not to mention giving back to the community is huge for me. I know you have a gazillion choices for your hair, and there at a TON of fantastic hair stylists in Keene… so I ask you to choose the salon that gives back.

I am not done yet. This is just the beginning. I don’t see a glass ceiling, DO YOU??