The Alimond Show
Welcome to The Alimond Show --join us as we share our entrepreneurial guests' stories, uncover their secrets to success, and explore the unique paths they've taken to build thriving businesses in our community.
In each episode, our host, Aliyah Dastour, sits down with a diverse group of local business owners, from the corner cafe to the boutique shop, from tech startups to family-run enterprises. We peel back the curtain to reveal the trials, triumphs, and transformational moments that have shaped their entrepreneurial journey.
Discover the passion, perseverance, and innovative thinking that fuels these businesses, as well as the challenges they've overcome along the way. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur seeking inspiration or simply a curious listener interested in the stories behind your favorite local spots, The Alimond Show has something for everyone.
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Join us every week as we celebrate the unsung heroes of our local business community and explore the vibrant tapestry of entrepreneurship in our area. Tune in to The Alimond Show and get ready to be inspired, informed, and motivated to support and nurture the businesses that make our community thrive.
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The Alimond Show
Erika Amuedo of Flux Salon Loft - From Parental Encouragement to Cosmetology Innovator: Crafting Bespoke Styles, Embracing Digital Marketing, and Infusing Compassionate Animal Rescue into Business Endeavors
Join us for an insightful conversation with Erika Amuedo, the dynamic owner of Flux Salon Loft in Herndon, Virginia. Discover how Erika turned her parents' insightful nudge into a thriving career in cosmetology, specializing in custom color, balayage, and lived-in looks. Hear about her pioneering approach to salon services, including transparent virtual consultations, and learn how her strategic use of Instagram and word-of-mouth marketing has created a loyal clientele. Alongside her talented assistant Natalia, who excels in men's cuts and bridal updos, Erika offers a complete range of services, even extending to unique in-home experiences like children's birthday parties.
In a heartfelt discussion, Erika opens up about the powerful influence of parental support in pursuing unconventional careers and shares her profound passion for animal rescue. Be inspired by her experiences fostering cats and integrating her love for animals into her business, with a portion of profits supporting rescue organizations. We also explore the philosophy of adaptability and continuous growth, a guiding principle at Flux Salon Loft. From fostering a relaxing salon environment to the joy of unexpected moments, Erika's story is one of resilience, dedication, and a commitment to excellence in every endeavor.
My name's Erica Amoito. I own Flux Salon Loft. I mainly focus on color custom color, medium to long hair. I specialize in balayage and lived-in looks.
Speaker 2:Okay, interesting, so both.
Speaker 1:And I'm located in Herndon Virginia.
Speaker 2:Okay, Both men and women.
Speaker 1:Just women. My assistant, she takes on the men, Okay perfect, nice to know.
Speaker 2:And then give me a little bit on your background. How is it that you got here? Do you always want to do cosmetology, hair kind of stuff?
Speaker 1:Well, it's actually kind of something that found me, that my parents suggested to me. You know, when you're young, who knows? What they want to do. So they suggested going to cosmetology school and I fell in love with being able to make people feel good about themselves. So it's not so much the hair, like the skills are able to provide me with making people feel good and like feeling like them, their best selves.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um, can you dive in just a little bit deeper on like, um, the different kind of styles or different services that you may provide than other places might not be able to accommodate certain people with, or different stuff like that.
Speaker 1:Well, it all starts with a consultation, so I do everything virtually, so you would go to my.
Speaker 2:Okay, interesting, a little different.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but when you fill out that online consultation, you provide pictures of your hair and then pictures of what you want and from that I'm able to see where we're starting at, because that kind of depends on you know how long it's going to take the pricing and then, once I review that, I will get back to you with pricing availability. And it also creates that I can custom book out how much time you need and then to give pricing. Everything in this world, you know you go buy a purse and a price is on it. It shouldn't be that way at a hair salon, you know. So this way at checkout, there's no surprises. I pride myself on being transparent with pricing.
Speaker 2:Your customers know exactly what they're getting.
Speaker 1:You know exactly what they're getting you know exactly what you're giving them, and you don't end up with an awkward moment, you know, at checkout, because they might pay it the first time, but they certainly aren't, you know, coming back. That's not how you get repeat business.
Speaker 2:Yeah, tell me a little bit of what you are currently doing for marketing. I don't know if you do any social media stuff, any TikTok videos, any dances.
Speaker 1:I wish I was that bold to be on TikTok.
Speaker 2:I'm an older millennial, it's okay, we don't all have to dance on social media, yeah.
Speaker 1:But I stick to mainly Instagram and I post like before and after so people can once again like, see where we're starting and how we got there, and that's pretty much how I've gotten all my client base.
Speaker 2:So it's a lot of like word of mouth.
Speaker 1:Yeah, word of mouth and Instagram.
Speaker 2:Okay, what is your online content mostly consist of? Is it just like before? And?
Speaker 1:afters Yep, before and afters. Sometimes I do some reels, but it's a lot of balayage, lived in, highlights those are the main things that I focus on. A lot of my guests don't want to be in a salon every two months, so I do a lot of like lived in looks, which means it's rooted, um, even working with with gray hair and being able to provide them with something that with grays a lot, yeah, yeah, yeah. And they don't you know when you have gray hair and you start covering it. That's every six weeks. So I try to do blending with highlights so they can get a little bit more longevity out of that does men's as, or some men's services as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so she um. Yes, so Natalia kind of excels in the areas that I don't.
Speaker 1:So she is great with men's cuts um. I don't do weddings she loves to do weddings and updos, yeah. So she kind of fills in the areas that I don't do, which is great. So we really like balance each other out.
Speaker 2:Okay, so you guys also do like bridal parties.
Speaker 1:Yeah, she would. I don't. You don't want me to do an updo.
Speaker 2:But that's part of all your services as well. Yeah, is it just you two on the team currently?
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Or do you have anybody else? Nope, just us two yes, or do you have anybody?
Speaker 1:else Nope, just us two.
Speaker 2:Okay, and what are your? What do you see happening maybe for you guys within the next, for you within the next five years? Do you see, maybe adding more team members on?
Speaker 1:or yeah, I'm definitely open to that, but it's really important for me to find the right person that works well well with you know everyone there. I don't want. I want someone that's going to be there, you know, for a while and just fills in the areas of the business that you know what I need gotcha.
Speaker 2:And then I did see somewhere online that you uh offer some sort of thing for birthday parties, but I don't know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so that's something we're open to. We do do like house calls or in-home appointments, so we're definitely open to like doing kids' birthday parties, like little girls, if they want to, you know, have kind of like a spa day and they want their hair curled and done, or like a princess party or something. We do love kids.
Speaker 2:And that's something different.
Speaker 1:That makes you stand out.
Speaker 2:Because not a lot of salons really do anything like that around here, or you just like go to the salon and do you know nails or whatever.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it just falls into like the home, like a home appointment, or, you know, if there's someone in a wheelchair or someone that just prevents them from getting out and leaving the house, like we can also come to you.
Speaker 2:Okay, nice, and can you tell me a little bit about the kind of products that you guys are currently using? I know there's a new DIY color kit or something like that in the works and other stuff. So tell me a little bit about that stuff.
Speaker 1:I try to be all about convenience and in this area we are all super busy, so I provide a DIY color kit that I mix. It's the same color I use on you in the salon and it's just something that you can do at home on your own time.
Speaker 2:A little more convenient.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so it's like you can put it on and then go to work or put your laundry in and so it. You know, for people with busy schedules that works for them, or if they want to cut costs, if they are, you know, in every four week or in every six week, because they have that you know they're 100% gray or they just don't like to see gray. They can kind of come to me one appointment and then they would do it at home.
Speaker 1:Yeah like one or two times and then you know, come back to me. That's awesome, Just provides them like flexibility. Yeah, I one or two times, and then you know, come back to me.
Speaker 2:That's awesome. Just provides them like flexibility. Yeah, I like that, especially for, you know, all the entrepreneurs, all the busy people out there, all the moms that sometimes can't get there, yeah, and a lot of people are really nervous the first time they do it.
Speaker 1:But worst case scenario is like you just miss a spot. It's never going to be the wrong color and I'm always available, so if they need to text me, yeah, if they need to text me, I'm available.
Speaker 2:Tell me a little bit. I'm going to backtrack just a little bit Because I remember you were telling me that your parents kind of guided you into the cosmetology world yeah tell me a little bit of like how is it that they kind of steered you that way?
Speaker 2:because I know, when I was younger, I know I would always tell my mom I want to be a cosmo, I want to be a makeup artist, or I want to, and she's like you can't do that, that's not gonna make you money, that's not going to make you money that's not going to, but that is something you know. It is a career that is needed all the time. People do want you know to look their best. They need somebody like you that can guide them there. So how did your parents kind of guide you into that direction?
Speaker 1:I wasn't an easy child but but my parents don't necessarily believe and you know everyone should go the college route. They are, like, firm believers and, like you, can make careers in trade and I think my mom saw me growing up and you know I was always trying to do my hair and do my makeup and she was like, hey, like let's, let's give this a shot. And I think it was one of those situations where sometimes, like your parents do know it's best, maybe you should listen to them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they kind of they got me where I wanted to be right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like it was something that they saw that I didn't see at the time.
Speaker 2:Okay, is there anything that we haven't covered that you would kind of want our audience to know about you, to know about all the services that you provide?
Speaker 1:I do do rescue work. I'm really big into animals. I foster.
Speaker 2:Tell us a little bit about that. What kind of animals? Where do you go?
Speaker 1:It's mainly cats, and I foster for a couple different organizations.
Speaker 2:Love you, one of our other girls who who's with us. Usually she loves cats.
Speaker 1:I am like. I'm like a diehard cat lady.
Speaker 2:So some of the money that my business does make goes back into the rescue. Okay, so where, where do you find?
Speaker 1:these rescue animals, or so. I foster for a couple different like organizations. So I foster for fairfax county. I foster for forever haven and to the rescue. I'm not necessarily loyal to any rescue group.
Speaker 2:It's just kind of whoever needs me. Is there any rescue groups out there that need somebody?
Speaker 1:Yes, I really like taking on the medical cases. I do fluids. I really love the sick ones. They pull on the heartstrings, yeah, and like the babies yeah.
Speaker 1:So um, tell me a little bit of a case you've had with with one of your fosters so our most recent case uh, we didn't know her name at the time, it was sammy joe, so we started calling her bella. She really adorable. She came to me, wasn't really walking lethargic. We did probably two days of fluids like around the clock and she ended up, you know, pepping started eating on her own. She was such a good, sweet little girl and she got adopted to a really like great family. That's awesome.
Speaker 2:Yeah, if we didn't have three already, like I was about to say how many do you have?
Speaker 1:I have three, but in my house there's there's always more because I'm fostering, yeah, but three's it for us.
Speaker 2:What's the max amount you've had in the house at once?
Speaker 1:I'm scared to answer that.
Speaker 2:Hubby. How do you feel Hubby's?
Speaker 1:there's been, especially when it's like kitten season, and I really have a hard time saying no. Like a rescue reaches out to me, like the answer is almost always yes, especially if they're sick, yeah, where he's just like there's cats in every room so she just like texts, pictures of them to you and she's, he just comes home.
Speaker 2:He comes home, there's, there's like the new cats in each of the bathrooms and I'm like we can't, we can't turn him away. Yeah, that's so cute though I love that. I love that you take even, like you know, a little bit of that of your time and, you know, do this to help I've even brought from humans like my sick ones into work with me before. Yeah, and my clients, they, they love it like well, they have those little like kitty shops, like yes that's like the dream, that's what's in the future.
Speaker 1:Okay, I would love to have yeah, the cats will be around.
Speaker 2:What are they um?
Speaker 1:emotional support animals yes, kind of so yeah, that's cute, I would.
Speaker 2:I like that. I think lots of people definitely like to come by and just relax yeah.
Speaker 1:Get your hair done. Get your hair done and leave with a cat, exactly.
Speaker 2:Awesome, anything that you go like, you hardcore kind of go by, that you, you know, try to live your life by, or just any kind of quote that you loved over the years and has inspired you so actually my business name is flux, which means like ever-changing, and then I say like ever-changing, always growing.
Speaker 1:So any, you know everything. You have to adjust your business what people want. The styles change, so it's just a reminder. Every day, when I open my front door, it's like do your best and try to do better than you did yesterday.
Speaker 2:Yeah, awesome. Well, thank you very much for being with us.
Speaker 1:Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2:Of course.