For Hope Doms, owner of Wair Studio Salon, there’s no question that loving who you see in the mirror and being mindful about your impact on the world go hand in hand.
It’s why she’s so dedicated to providing non-toxic, organic and environmentally friendly products and services that are all guaranteed to deliver head-turning results without harming the health of her clients, her staff and the Earth.
“I really feel that, these days, everything’s got so many chemicals that are harming us, which means it’s also harming the stylists – and we can’t forget about the people working behind the chair,” she points out. “If we’re going to eat as organically as we can, we might as well put into consideration what we’re putting on our hair and what we’re breathing in, too.”
She does admit, though, that it takes a lot of work to not only find truly clean products but also ensure that they’re good enough to offer Wair’s clients. Plus, it can be a challenge convincing some people that chemical-free items work just as well as their more mainstream counterparts, but that’s an effort that the Wair team usually sees pay off.
“It’s hard to say things are organic in a salon environment, but we try to eliminate as much as we can and still have a product that works,” Doms says, explaining that she only stocks her salon with products she tests, researches and trusts to ensure that she’s offering the best to her clients. “It’s really hard to get people to switch over, because everyone thinks organic or non-toxic hair color doesn’t cover gray, it doesn’t work as long – but it does. We’ve proven to so many clients that our products do cover gray and actually give your hair more shine. You’ve got to kind of introduce everyone to it, and then they love it.”
The fruits of those efforts often mean overhauling Wair’s in-store retail lines to best reflect the latest and the greatest, and Doms isn’t shy about acknowledging how processes like scouring ingredient lists, undergoing rigorous education and even assessing a product’s societal impact frequently result in entirely new creams, serums and sprays showing up on her salon’s shelves.
“People will say, ‘You really go through all these different retail lines,’ and I do – I just went through a whole cleaning-out and got rid of two huge lines,” she says. “I’m always in search of that next best product that’s going to be even better than the last. When a salon is carrying something for 10 years, has that product even evolved into something better in all that time?”
The thoroughly vetted selection currently featured at Wair includes hair products by Lakmé, a Spanish brand Doms raves about, and that even comes in a fully biodegradable bottle.
“I brought in a beautiful line from Barcelona, Spain,” she begins. “Not only do they have clean ingredients, but the way that they make their products, it’s good for the environment, as well. Their bottles are made from sugar cane, and their other products’ bottles for their hair color actually disintegrate and process into the Earth as a natural substance.”
And because keratin and smoothing treatments are such in-demand requests, Wair also recently began using a formaldehyde-free product called Aura that straightens and strengthens the hair without pumping smoky, acrid fumes into the entire salon.
For Doms, it’s crucial that she’s constantly reassessing Wair’s impact on people and the planet, as well as always looking for new ways to continually minimize her ecological impact. Those proactive efforts help her identify solutions that range from being as simple as switching to reusable salon gloves—a move that she adds also saves money while simultaneously reducing the volume of waste created by constantly tossing and replacing disposable gloves—to an even bigger initiative she’s planning for the new year.
“I’m still working on not throwing hair products down the drain, because that goes into our water system,” says Doms. “I’m trying to become part of something called Green Circle Salon, where all those chemicals and hair goes into a separate bin, and then we have a company that picks it up and disposes of it. t’s something I’m planning to do in January 2024.”
Of course, staying on the cutting edge of the salon world means delivering dazzling results that can only be achieved by a team of intensely trained, impassioned stylists. As Doms herself has earned national recognition and worked with countless celebrity clients, her high standards are reflected in the countless happy, loyal clients her staff has earned through personalized service equal to the team’s collective talent. Wair’s signature style, the calligraphy cut, remains one of its most popular options.
“That cut is done with a specific tool cut on a specific angle, and it’s great for volume, movement, the integrity of the hair, the haircuts last longer and people love it,” Doms says. “The training behind it is intensive. It costs a little bit more money, but you get a lot more out of it. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t give you another kind of an amazing haircut that lasts just as long.”
From that stellar service to a mindful approach to hair care, everything at Wair is aligned with the philosophy guiding every choice Doms makes for her salon. And it’s a philosophy that she’s proud to promise every client, whether they’re a first-timer or a long-timer: “Our philosophy is being able to provide an amazing service while having that standard where the health of the client and the stylist come first.”
Wair Studio Salon
Marlton
(856) 334-8231
WairStudioSalon.com
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Family Magazine, Volume 14, Issue 6.
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