WILLIAMSBURG– Style by Design, a salon with locations in both Williamsburg and Yorktown, is run by not one, not two, but four women. Here is their story.
Style by Design has been in business for 34 years and was originally owned by someone else before offering to sell the salon to his employees in 2007. At the time there were eight stylists who bought into the salon and created a corporation, now it’s down to just the four owners after several retired. The current owners are Melissa Davenport, Kim Forrest, Cindy Elliott-Semrau, Ann Sears.
“We wanted to establish an environment that we knew and liked and everyone was comfortable,” Forrest explained in an interview. “We wanted to create and keep that environment.”
The owners all love different aspects of working and owning the salon. From helping clients feel amazing about themselves to helping each other grow as stylists, all of the owners have a unique reason and passion for why they do what they do.
“I think our salon is unique because we have a ton of people that work there that have been there for 10, 15, 20 years. We don’t have a big turnover,” Davenport noted.
The women at Style by Design believe it’s a great career when one becomes established, but stress that you better love what you do.
“You better love what you do, because if you don’t you’re going to be miserable,” Forrest explained. “It is an industry where you either love it or you don’t do it. I think that’s why we have such a good crew of people, because most everyone loves what they do.”
Forrest and Davenport also stress that cosmetology school isn’t a necessity. There is also the option of finding a reputable salon that will apprentice as well. Style by Design has apprenticed approximately 20 state-registered apprentices over the past 20 years.
Style by Design has two locations, one in Williamsburg and one in Yorktown. For more information about the salon, please check out the official website.
