Reaching the Top

Salon Evangelene was chosen from 25,000 entries as one of Salon Today’s Top 200 spas and salons in the country. Here’s why.

By: Beth Newcomb
Date: 06/27/2008
In every profession, there are true leaders; those who have immersed themselves in the discovery of how to make what they do—better. They are responsible for helping take their chosen field in new directions, and for contributing to society by making our lives better, too.

In a world where change and innovation are more intense than ever, true leaders rise to the top—a place where the ordinary will simply never exist.

When you stumble upon a true leader like Angel Brown, owner of Salon Evangelene in Medina, you know it—instantly. You can see it on her face, hear it in her voice, and most of all, witness the results as you pause to admire and enjoy the magnificent establishment she’s been improving upon over the past seven years.
It takes guts to put yourself out there, take a risk, start a business, and then dare yourself to be successful.
She’s done that—and more.

“We’ve recently been chosen for the Salon Today 200,” she shares with pride. Salon Today is a magazine distributed to professional salons across the country and is considered to be a top business publication for salon and spa owners.

Out of a pool of more than 25,000 applicants, the magazine narrowed the field down to just 200. “The issue features the fastest growing salons with excellent customer service, innovative marketing, and top education for employees,” says Laurel Smoke, editor-in-chief of Salon Today. “These are spas and salons who keep their businesses competitive by establishing themselves in their communities as top places for beauty services and treatments.”

Salon Evangelene has made this year’s Top 200 as a result of its explosive growth over the past few years, despite what some might term a “challenging economy,” and the stage was set for success nearly a decade ago with Angel’s determination to be the best.

“Earlier in my career, I looked at a copy of Salon Today magazine and told myself that someday I would own a place of my own and make it into the Top 200,” she remembers with a smile.

But to get there, she knew that she’d have to set the bar high...really high. “I made the decision to assemble the absolute best team I could find,” Angel says. “All of our stylists have at least five years of experience. For our clients, that means they never have to wonder if the stylist they picked is good, because they’re all good.

In fact, they’re great.”

The hiring process is enough to send anyone who isn’t absolutely sure about how to wield a pair of scissors running to one of those budget places for a job. “We do no less than seven to 10 interviews,” she insists. “It’s not easy to become a stylist here. One of the interviews includes a meeting with the rest of the staff. The process isn’t complete until the candidate has cut, colored and highlighted, and styled the hair of four local models. The result is that our team knows they’re the elite and takes pride in it.”
It’s something no other salon in the area does, and is one of the reasons Salon Evangelene made it into the Top 200. Staying on the cutting edge is another.

“We’ve always been forward thinking,” Angel explains. “We were the first in Medina to have computerized appointment booking, and we were the first to showcase real models with color and styles that we’ve actually done—instead of stock photography. It gives customers a better idea of the caliber of talent we have here.” In fact, many of her stylists are booked months in advance.

Salon Evangelene continues to be a pioneer in the field and is revamping their entire website to offer their clients even better customer service with online gift purchase sales and online appointment booking. The new website should be operational by early fall of this year. Angel and her staff know that in order to appeal to the changing tastes of their clientele, they need to make regular changes themselves. The salon was given a makeover in December and now boasts a soothing metropolitan color scheme in grey-blue and brown. The concrete floors have been colored with dove gray paint and new mod leather chairs grace the waiting space. The open floor plan has been preserved and new art pieces dot the walls. “We know that it’s all about the experience when you come here, and that includes the look and feel of the place. We appeal to both men and women,” Angel says.

Confidence is a hallmark of the customers who frequent Salon Evangelene, partly because their hairstyles look as good the second and third day, as they do the first. Just as importantly, the stylists take the time to instruct the client on how to style their hair. “We don’t just tell our customers how to style their hair, we show them,” Angel says. “Every you change your look, you need to update your products and your styling techniques to match your new style, and we want you to leave with the knowledge of how to recreate your new style.” And through extensive educational in-services, the staff stays up-to-date on current trends, but always insist on offering real styles for real people.
With a full menu of services like a cut, color, glycolic peel, facial, makeup lessons, waxing, massage, manicure and pedicure, Salon Evangelene still offers prices that are among the most competitive in the area.
Not bad for a leader who just took her business past the $1 million mark for the first time since its inception. It’s another reason Salon Evangelene was chosen as one of Salon Today’s Top 200—they just keep growing.
But at the end of the day, really good leaders all know one thing—they couldn’t have done it alone. “I share every milestone, every victory, and every award with my staff,” Angel emphasizes. “They are the reason we’ve reached the top.”
But she’s just getting started.

Salon Evangelene is located at 4018 Medina Road, in Medina at the Foote Road intersection. The phone number is 330-725-1234 (Angel’s phone number when she was a kid). The website is
www.SalonEvangelene.com.

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