The Votes are in: Willo Salon is#1!

By Bob Cox

As the owner of three thriving hair salons, one might falsely conclude that Marilyn Sadeq has led a charmed and privileged life. Nothing could be further from the truth. Marilyn has worked her tail off for over 30 years while dedicating her life towards helping her client’s look and feel their best.

When she opened the first Willo Salon (formerly Mane Attractions) in Gold River back in 2007, Marilyn invested a great deal of financial, physical and emotional energy to follow her dream. For several years, she navigated her newly established salon through the longest and worst recession since the Great Depression. If that wasn’t daunting enough, she endured unbearable heartache when her 19 year-old son Keyon passed away. This tragedy followed the loss of her husband Ali 15 years earlier.

Despite these unimaginable losses, Marilyn’s heart has remained strong and full of love and gratitude. While Marilyn has made a major shift in her personal and professional life by working primarily from home, all three salons reflect Marilyn’s warm and kind hearted spirit. I asked Marilyn a few questions the other day and here’s what she had to say.

Q: How did you feel after learning about being voted #1hair salon by Style Magazine?

A: We’ve received many other awards in the past, but this one feels really good because I didn’t put any effort into it. In the past, I used to encourage the entire staff to ask every guest to please go online and vote. So, for our salons to be achieving awards and growing is a pretty big deal because I’ve completely shifted who I am and how I run my companies.

Q: Has the continuous growth and success of your salons surprised you?

A: Yes. We now have over 65 employees and several salon owners have said they don’t know how we’ve done it, because when that kind of tragedy in your life happens, the business usually suffers financially and fear shows up in staff, yet The Willo Family stuck together to keep the Willo brand strong.

Q: What are some other things that set you apart from other salons in town?

A: We’re an eco friendly salon and we want to leave the lowest environmental footprints that we can. Our line of colors are 98% naturally derived and very healthy for your body. Our stylists are Certified Aveda Stylists and Certified Aveda Colorists and they have the best products on the market to work with.

Q: What approach do you take during a new client’s consultation?

A: We have signature consultations and it’s really important for us to get to know who you are and understand your lifestyle to make the best decision for your hair. We take everything into consideration, such as your facial structure, your budget, how often you get your hair done and then make sure that it all fits your lifestyle.

Q: What message do you want to give to all of your clients?

A: I tell quests this all the time: We open our doors every day to make people happy. We could do this just for money, but we don’t. We do it for the pure passion of making a difference in people’s lives.

Q: What kind of culture have you created for Willo Salons?

A: We call ourselves The Willo Family, because we’re known for being kind. We hire the heart at Willo and everything else we can train. Our people just have kind hearts and they love to make a difference in this world, so I think we have a pretty healthy culture.

Q: Does being an eco friendly salon also help you attract kind hearted stylists?

A: Yes. We call our stylists living artists. They’re designers, but they’re mostly living artists as we have a living pallet.

Q: Has your management style changed since you opened your first salon in 1996?

A: Definitely. I have a new perspective since I lost my son. When someone comes to me with an unresolved issue, sometimes I’ll say, “Really, this small and simple issue is creating so much drama?” Most of the time, they will laugh and agree.

Q: What advice would you give people that want to have a healthier and more positive outlook on life?

A: For me, I’m committed to healthy conversations. What I teach people that are having trouble is to find something, whether it’s music or meditation that can help you just take a moment for yourself and breathe. I found some U-Tube videos and used them to help with meditation and find balance, gratitude and love. It really is that simple. If I can find gratitude, everyone can.

Editor’s notes: For more information about Willo Salon, visit their website at willosalon.com.