Ambrosia Services

This crop of employees makes beauty salon a shear delight

By John LeptichTribune

Five hair stylists at a trendy north Scottsdale beauty salon give volume to the word permanent. Beverly Anderson, Maureen Steg, Dorothy Larkin, Kandi Massey and Mary Zieder have worked at Scottsdale Strands in the Scottsdale Promenade at 70th Street and Shea Boulevard for 20 years this month. Unlike many salons, turnover is nonexistent at Scottsdale Strands in part because of the family atmosphere encouraged by co-owners Anderson and Steg.

The women, all Scottsdale residents who started at the former Shampoo Plus, have watched each other marry, have children, divorce, remarry and share good and bad times for two decades. It's an unusual mix of women who are not only colleagues, but friends.

That atmosphere has permeated the salon, where customers notice it and keep coming back for more.

"They are truly friends and you notice it right away," said customer Dolores Madden of Palo Verde. "It's just a really homey shop. People like each other. There's a happy-golucky atmosphere. I've been coming here for many years."

Steg thinks employee and customer relations are vital to a successful business. To that end, she encourages stylists to have rapport with each other and their customers.

"We all really do work together and care about each other," said Steg, 62. "When we left the other place we were at, we all moved together."

Talk about sticking together.

"We've been like sisters all these years," Steg said. "We can pull each other up when we're down. When one girl is sick, she can expect calls from the others to see how she's doing and if she needs anything. We rally around each other."

Steg says a lack of jealousy is a key factor in the group's longevity.

Customers come first and there's no fighting for business.

"Everyone thinks we're unique," Steg said.

Even short-timer Claire LaVelle, who has worked at the salon for only three years, realizes the value of kinship and camaraderie.

"When I first walked in for a job, I had a feeling this was the last place I was ever going to work," said LaVelle, 57. "I was getting out of a bad situation and this has been a fantastic change for me."

Zieder, who has worked at the shop since she was 18, said it's a happy place with a good customer base and truly service-oriented.

Anderson, 45, said honesty has been an important part of the equation. If something is bothering someone they let it out rather than allowing the situation to fester.

"People have a sense of warmth," Anderson said. "When you come into our shop, you know instantly that you're welcome."

Massey, 40, Larkin's daughter, says the longevity is definitely unusual.

"Most women can't get along anywhere near this long," she said. "I don't know of any place else that has what we do."

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posted by Cheryl Levesque @ 4:27 PM