BUSINESS
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Friday, March 21, 2014
Local stylists make clients feel right at home BY SERAINE PAGE SPAGE@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
Esdee Waldo’s isn’t a typical hair salon. As soon as a guest walks in, they are greeted not by a receptionist, but a sweet golden retriever named Gianni. They sit in a plush, cozy parlor, waiting for their name to be called by one of the two hair stylists. Then, when it’s their turn, the magic happens in the black swivel chair, under the warm gallery-style lights. Owner Steve Walton is so well loved that his clients have followed him for the last 40 years. And if there’s one thing that comes with time, it’s complete honesty, which is
exactly what Walton will give his customers. “I’ve had to give a lot of people reality checks about their cowlicks,” said Walton. “I can’t fix them. I tell people that’s the start of their universe in the womb.” Walton frequently tells his clients not to be overachievers with their hair. They bring him clippings of magazines with hairstyles they want him to create. He’ll peer over his black framed glasses at the client, his intense, yet kind blue eyes asking the question more so than his voice: “Can you really handle fixing your hair up every day just like I show you?” When he knows they’ll upkeep their hair with touchups and daily blowouts, he’s
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happy to give them exactly what they want. Highlights, he said, will often give thin hair a certain fullness and more body. Sandy Tyrian, a client for 15 years, tends to agree. Every six weeks, like clockwork, Tyrian plops herself into Walton’s chair. “I guess I always wanted to be blonder. The gray wasn’t coming in fast enough,” joked Tyrian, whose original hair color is far from blonde. Tyrian noticed her neighbors’ haircuts and asked where they went. Esdee Waldo’s, of course, they said. Now, when women stop her on the street in Bremerton, they’ll ask where she got her hair done. When she tells them, most reply, “I should have known it was Esdee Waldo’s.” The salon focus is on perms, shampoo and cuts, and, of course, lots of color. It’s unlike any salon chain — there are large ceiling to-floor mirrors in front of every chair. Framed artwork dots the walls, lit by the modern lamps that dangle from the gray lattice-type ceiling decor. Warmth and enthusiasm flow evenly through the salon where photos of family and a vacation home in Mexico tell a little bit about the pair who
owns the shop. Walton, along with business partner Randi Cox, don’t mind that there’s a full-service salon right next door, named after the sassy movie Steel Magnolias. Cox and Walton have plenty of their own sass and style that keeps their customers — both male and female — entertained. “I sass you, you sass me, and we have a good time,” Walton joked with a client early one morning. Women flock to the pair to get their six-week touchup color, cut and chatter about life like they were in therapy. But, the salon doesn’t just attract women, although that is about 75 percent of Esdee Waldo’s clientele. Men, too, get their hair styled by the charismatic duo. Long before Cox met Walton, he worked at a downtown Bremerton hair salon. That’s where Tom Walloch met him 29 years ago. Walloch’s car had broken down, and he needed to get a haircut. He knew of a small salon right up the road, and walked in. Cox was working, and ever since then, Walloch has been a dedicated customer. “After he cut my hair, I’ve never gone to anyone else,” Walloch said. “He’s more than a guy who cuts my hair.
Randi Cox styles a client’s hair at Esdee Waldo’s in Bremerton. He’s a good guy.” And just like he did the first day he met him, Walloch never walks into Esdee Waldo’s with an appointment, even though most clients book two months ahead. Cox joked that Walloch
always seems to know when he’s got downtime, because that’s right when he seems to walk in.
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Seraine Page /staff photo
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