FXBG Neighbors Podcast
Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast
FXBG Neighbors Podcast
EP #31 Hair Revival: Redefining Salon Culture
Step into the warm, welcoming world of Hair Revival with founder Cassandra Matus, whose 24-year journey through the hair industry has culminated in a boutique salon experience that's changing how clients view professional stylists.
Cassandra takes us behind the scenes of her four-chair studio, explaining why the intimate setting creates a calming environment where guests can truly relax. "It's very chill," she shares, differentiated from the chaotic energy of larger salons. With specialties in custom color blonding and their own hybrid weft extension line, Hair Revival combines technical expertise with personalized attention.
The conversation dives deeper than just hair techniques, though. Cassandra passionately challenges the misconception that hairstylists aren't business professionals. "We're highly intelligent. We use chemicals on people's heads," she points out, highlighting how stylists function as entrepreneurs, scientists, and even therapists for their clients. This multifaceted role requires education, creativity, and business acumen that often goes unrecognized.
Perhaps most compelling is Cassandra's candid revelation about entrepreneurship: "The most surprising lesson I've learned is getting over self-doubt." Diagnosed with ADHD at 37, she discovered that business ownership doesn't require having all the answers upfront. Her philosophy of giving yourself grace while learning on the go offers wisdom applicable far beyond the salon walls. For anyone considering visiting Hair Revival, Cassandra promises total authenticity – what you see on social media and their website is exactly what you'll experience when you walk through their doors.
Ready to experience the Hair Revival difference? Connect with Cassandra and her team at www.hairrevivalfxbg.com or follow their journey on Instagram, where they "hang out a lot."
Cassandra Matus
(540) 395-6452
hairrevivalfxbg@gmail.com
11926 Cherry Road Fredericksburg, Virginia 22407
This is the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Dori Stewart.
Speaker 2:Welcome back to another episode of the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast. We love introducing good neighbors to great businesses, and today we're talking to Cassandra Matus of Hair Revival. Cassandra, welcome to the podcast. Hey, thank you so much for having me. Well, I'm excited to talk to you and excited to learn all about your business. So let's start there. Share with us a little bit about Hair Revival.
Speaker 3:So Hair Revival is a boutique hair studio. We specialize in custom color blonding, dimensional color, and we also have our own hybrid weft extension hairline. Oh well, that's exciting yeah.
Speaker 2:So I hear the term boutique hair studio often, so tell us, what does that really mean? So a boutique?
Speaker 3:hair studio is designed more for like an intimate setting with your guests. We only have four chairs. Right now we have four stylists, so it really provides our guests with a more one-on-one experience. It's a little bit more calm, a little bit more quiet, like. The vibe is very chill. It's not like a bustling 20 chair salon. It's very intimate, that's nice.
Speaker 2:I love that you can be relaxed and yourself and not intimidated. I love that. Yes, okay, perfect. So tell us, how did you get into this? Tell me about your journey.
Speaker 3:Okay, so I have been a professional hairstylist for 24 years so since dinosaurs roamed the earth and I have done it all. I started out as an apprentice when I was 16 years old. I was homeschooled, so I was able to work full time and do my homeschooling and from there I was a commissioned stylist. I've worked in a booth rent salon, I've been a studio suite owner and then now a team based business model, and so through those 24 years I've kind of just done it all.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's exciting. And then now you're into we've created your own product now too. So that's a whole nother revenue stream for you. That's exciting.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it is exciting.
Speaker 2:So do you find that there are any myths or misconceptions when it comes to your business?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think sometimes when people look at hairstylists, they don't look at us as professionals, as business owners.
Speaker 3:You know each individual stylist and this is what I always tell my team is that you know, when you graduated from cosmetology school, you were given almost like an associates in business, so you learned a skill and then now you're going to use that skill to build your own mini business within someone else's, essentially because you are the talent you're doing the work. So I think a misconception is that hairstylists aren't business savvy or that it's always drama and it's a bunch of women and stuff like that. And I can definitely say that hair revival like we've built a culture to prove that wrong. You know we're highly intelligent. We use chemicals on people's heads. You know like you have to have a level of education for that, and so I think that that would probably be the biggest myth is that maybe it's not taken so seriously. It's like, oh, you play with hair all day. It's so much more than that. You know we're like mini therapists with our guests, and so there's so many layers to what we do.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I can see that. I mean, you're basically a scientist with all the chemistry and you're a therapist and you're also very creative, so I feel like you got to have that right brain, left brain thing going for you.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, for sure I love that.
Speaker 2:So can you describe a hardship or a challenge that you've been through, either in business or personally, that you feel like, now that you're on the other side of it, you are better for it?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So I think the most surprising lesson I have learned in entrepreneurship is getting over self-doubt, and that was something that I was really surprised by, you know, going in to owning a business and actually in the midst of all of that, at 37, I was diagnosed with ADHD and I thought, wait a second, my whole life now makes sense. So I would say I don't know if I would call that a hardship. It was definitely a discovery that you know when you go into something like this, you feel like you need to have all of the answers and you have to have everything done. You know right up front and you know, know exactly what you're doing. And so I think that that's something that I've definitely overcome is learning to go with the flow, and learning on the go and giving yourself grace when you don't have it all totally figured out, that like you'll get it.
Speaker 2:That's really good advice and I think so many people can relate to that. You don't have to have all the answers right away. You can figure it out as you go along and businesses grow and you you have to adapt and learn as you go. I mean that's. I think you kind of have to be adaptable in that way.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2:So what is something that you wish the listeners knew about your business?
Speaker 3:Um, something that I wish, um they would know is that, um for us, um, what you see is what you get when you visit our um social media, when you visit our website. Um, nothing we've done on the internet as you're doing your search for a new salon or new hairstylist, we haven't churched it up and we 100%. I mean. Our biggest compliment that we get from new guests and returning guests is that as soon as they walk in the door, it's so welcoming. We 100% base everything we do about our guest experience. From the time they read our reviews, visit our website, go to our socials, you're learning exactly who you're going to be seeing and the type of experience you will have when you come to Hair Revival.
Speaker 2:I love the transparency you have. Yeah, absolutely so clearly you work very hard on your business and congratulations on your success, Thank you. But when you're not working hard, tell me what are you doing for fun?
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, I'm doing what I'm doing right now. I'm sitting by my pool, I am hanging out with my kids. My husband and I, we have four children, two dogs, and so we're always busy. It's funny. A lot of people are like oh, what do you do for fun or a hobby? And I'm like well, we're just always going. We love to travel. My husband and I are the worst food critics because we'd give everybody 10 out of 10. We love going out to eat and visiting new restaurants in Fredericksburg and just trying new things.
Speaker 2:Wonderful. Well, if the listeners want to learn more about you and your team and connect with you, where can they find you?
Speaker 3:You can find us on our website it is www. hairrevivalfxbg. com, and then also on Instagram. We hang out on Instagram a lot, so you can learn a lot about us and see us there.
Speaker 2:Amazing. Thank you so much for joining me on the podcast today and sharing Hair Revival with us.
Speaker 3:Yeah, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to fxbgneighborspodcast. com. That's fxbgneighborspodcast. com, or call 540-534-4618.