SIDNEY — Forty years ago, there was a hair salon called Vogue in downtown Sidney.
Soon, there will be another one in the same place, 107 Ohio Ave.
Allison Marlow, of Quincy, will open the Royal Parlour there as soon as renovations to the building are complete.
“I really want to be there in April,” she said.
A graduate of Upper Valley Career Center, she has 11 years of experience as a beautician at several salons in Sidney and decided to start her own business to help other stylists “have a positive, educated environment so they can learn and do the best that they can,” she said.
Marlow will rent out booths in the Royal Parlour, where her sister, Amber Blackford, of Piqua, has already agreed to rent.
“Had she not gone to hair school first, I probably wouldn’t have. She’s six years older than I, and she’s taught me a lot,” Marlow said. Four additional booths are still open for renters.
The new business owner has spent the last year studying and is now a Joico educator, qualified to teach stylists how to use the Joico brand of products.
Station renters in the Royal Parlour, however, will not be required to use that brand.
“They can use whatever brand they choose,” Marlow said. “It’s the brand I’ve been using for 80 percent of my time out of school. I like how they do things. It’s the healthiest brand I’ve seen on the market.” As an educator, she teaches stylists how to use the products before they decide to buy them or after they purchase products. And she travels the state to do it.
“I educate peer stylists in their salons in the Ohio area,” she said.
In her own salon, Marlow plans to set aside the first Wednesday of every month to be a wellness day for her renters.
“I’ll bring in a massage therapist or an education class to help us grow,” she said.
She’s looking forward to the freedom being a business owner will give her to be involved in the community, too. And she loves what she does.
“It’s like going and playing with crayons all day. I get to go to work and color all day,” she said.
The Royal Parlour will offer cuts, coloring, gel polish nails, facial waxing, permanents, corrective coloring and a service Marlow calls the royal treatment: a shampoo with steam towels and a scalp massage with a conditioning treatment. She expects her customers to be men and women.
“I do a lot of guys’ cuts,” she said. Services will be provided by appointment and to walk-ins.
For information, call 937-658-3001.
