FXBG Neighbors Podcast
Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast
FXBG Neighbors Podcast
EP #85 From Chair To Community: How Haven Salon Builds Careers And Confidence
What if a neighborhood salon could change the way a city feels about itself? We sit down with master stylist and educator Ruby Brown from The Haven Salon and Beauty Bar to explore how craft, mentorship, and community care can live under one roof—and why that mix builds confidence that lasts longer than a haircut.
Ruby shares her path from earning a license right out of high school to becoming an educator and collective leader at Haven Prestige Suites. We talk about the training that shaped her—Wella color mastery, Vidal Sassoon technique—and how deep education translates into healthier hair, stronger careers, and clients who feel seen. If you’ve ever wondered what it really takes to open a salon, Ruby gets specific about passion, purpose, business acumen, and the unglamorous consistency that carries you through slow weeks and tough calls.
We also take on the biggest myth in beauty: DIY fixes can replace professional care. Ruby explains why “restoring the value of hair care in a world of DIY” matters for your color, texture, and long-term hair health. Beyond the chair, she lets us into the practices that refill her tank—solo travel, food adventures, and time with her four kids—and how that balance fuels a customer experience built on warmth, education, and trust. You’ll leave with practical advice for aspiring salon owners, a fresh view of client service, and a reminder that hair is a crown worth protecting.
If this conversation resonates, follow the journey and help others find it. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves great hair and good community, and leave a review with your favorite takeaway so we can keep spotlighting local stories that make a difference.
Ruby Brown
The Haven Salon and Beauty Bar
info@thehavenbeauty.com
+1 540-993-1111
305 Hanson Avenue, Suite 170, Fredericksburg, VA, United States, Virginia
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 FXBG Neighbors Podcast, where we share the stories of our favorite local brands. I'm excited to introduce you to my guest today. We've got Ruby Brown joining us, and she is with the Haven Salon and Beauty Bar. Ruby, welcome to the podcast. Hi, Dori. Good morning. Thank you so much for having me. Sure. Well, I'm excited to have you and excited to learn more about you and your business. So let's start there. Share with us a little bit about the Haven Salon.
Speaker 1:So the Haven Salon and Beauty Bar, and also now incorporated with the Haven Prestige Suites. We are a local hair salon and suites where we have a business collective amongst other business individuals, and we like to host cohorts that will help and grow each business individually as well as collectively as a unit here at the Prestige Suites. But Haven Salon and Beauty Bar as an individual, we've been in business for about eight years in the local Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, and Stafford areas. And so we provide overall hair care services as well as mentorship to local high schools. We usually are partnering with JM, James Monroe High School. We've partnered with the Cosmetology and Career Center down in Spotsylvania, Virginia. And we usually just try to outreach and reach back to the community as well as obviously growing professionals to help them understand what business looks like, career looks like in the beauty industry, as well as training. It is so important to train those that are coming behind us so that they can make a substantial and influential career for themselves. So that's who the Haven Solana Beauty Bar is. Definitely all about community and providing beautiful hair in the process.
Speaker 2:I love that so much. And congratulations on eight years. That's a big deal. Not easy to make it eight years. So congratulations on that. Thank you so much. I just love how much you give back to the community. And you know, not only are you creating your own future workforce, right? But uh you're providing so many opportunities to uh our young people. And so congratulations on that. That's really cool that you do that. I love that.
Speaker 1:Thank you. It's definitely where my heart resides. So yeah, anything I can do because I know that there was a season and times where I didn't have that availability or that those resources provided to me. So it's super important for me to reach back and give wherever I can in those areas for sure.
Speaker 2:That's awesome. Well, let's let's dive deeper into that. Tell me more about you and your background and what led you to starting this business.
Speaker 1:So I've been a professional, licensed professional uh hairstylist for about 22 years. Uh, got licensed directly out of high school, and uh it's always been literally in my blood. Like I knew it was my purpose to do hair. Um, just not obviously sure how that would play out throughout my life or you know what that would look like for the future. And so um I became licensed, and then furthering my community uh my career, I began to become a licensed educator as well. And so that's where it began to unfold for me was was when I added that extra level and that aspects of aspect of education in there. Um, and again, I was as I said before, always wanted to reach back and provide something that I never really had access to. And when you get in the industry, you realize it's a doggy dog world out here. Like you're you're a standalone guy when you're in the beauty beauty industry if you're not reaching for that community and creating your own community around you. So uh so my journey has been longstanding and I love it. I've I've gotten training by some of the best in the industry, um becoming a master certified colorist with Wella. Uh, I've been certified through Vidal Sassoon. And so it was just important for me to really hone in on my skills, my craft. And again, in order to be able to relay and pass that down. Like I think you just have to be your ultimate best and really desire to perfect those things that are already living on the inside of you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you've had a very impressive career and it's a big jump going from being a stylist and being an employee to owning your own business, and that's a whole new animal there. And so uh my question to you is if someone came to you and they're thinking about taking that leap and starting their own salon, what advice would you give them?
Speaker 1:I would definitely tell them to make sure that the passion is there. As we know, you can easily start a business, you know, that takes about five minutes online. So I would say the passion number one definitely should be there. Um, the passion, the purpose. It will be kind of ever changing and evolve over time and go into possible different avenues. But uh the passion, the purpose, uh really honing in on your skills, as I said earlier, like through education, uh, furthering your skill set, furthering your business acumen and knowledge and um consistency. It may sound very simple, but it can be really hard when you're in the trenches to stay consistent. So, with those other elements combined, it it helps you, but staying consistent and disciplined because when days are hard, when you know appointments may not be there, the money may not be there, that discipline and that love and that passion should be able to drive you every single day. So just make sure and really take an assessment of yourself to see do these elements apply to me? Is this my mindset? How do I get up every day and say, I'm choosing this for me because I love it so much and I have a purpose in what I'm doing?
Speaker 2:I love that advice so much, and the purpose helps get you through those really hard days. So I appreciate that advice. Really good. So let me ask you this do you find that there are any myths or misconceptions about the industry that you're finding? A lot.
unknown:A lot.
Speaker 1:I would say a lot, especially when it comes to the the hair care part of it or even just beauty overall, you know. Um one thing that we say here at the salon, uh kind of one of our mantras, is um restoring the value of hair care in a world of DIY, do it yourself. Uh so that's one of the biggest misconceptions, like, oh, I can just do it at home, and that's so easy, and you know, so easy a caveman could do it. Uh, and so I would say one of our another purpose uh and mission that we have is to really educate our clients, not only provide great styles and you know, a beautiful end result, but to educate our clients through it and to give them better understanding of why the DIY doesn't quite work so well. You know, your your hair, I believe, is your crown. It's it's the number one thing that someone can attribute a lot to you when it comes to your esteem, when it comes to how you think and feel about yourself and the presentation that you want to give to the world. So to me, it's like you can do it yourself, but is it necessary? You know, there's nothing wrong with partnering with a stylist and a professional who you can trust. So, yeah, that's the biggest one is DIY. You can, but just try not to.
Speaker 2:So we don't have to fix it. Yeah, right, right. As someone who's made a lot of DIY mistakes, I trust the professionals.
Speaker 1:Exactly, exactly. We're here to help. We're here to help, I promise.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, yes. It's it's worth it in the long run, right? Yes. So clearly you work really hard on your business and you're doing so much in the community and you're educating uh so many. So when you do finally get a break, tell me what are you doing for fun?
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh. Uh, anybody that knows me knows I'm a traveler. Like a traveler and a foodie. I will literally travel just for the food. Like I like to consider myself like the Anthony Bourdain of hair. I love it. I love it. Um, but no, I love to travel um and just finding stillness and peace. So when I do travel, I'm a solo traveler as well. So a lot of that time is spent just like rejuvenating, restoration, uh, exploring new things, um, new cultures, new places, again, new foods. So that's that's number one where my heart is. But also, um, I have four children, I'm a mother of four. So taking time with my children, um, introducing them as well to a travel lifestyle, um, and just having fun, as much fun as I can with them, because you know, some of these times they're of the essence, and um, they're not gonna be young forever. So it's important for me to have a really good relationship with my children and spend a lot as much time as I can with them outside of business and um since it's so demanding. So yeah, my children, they're my best friends for sure.
Speaker 2:I love that. I love that. So, what is something that you wish the listeners knew about the Haven Salon?
Speaker 1:If I could say anything, I would say it is our love for community. If you even just Google us and take a look at our reviews, and a common theme that you'll hear is the level of customer service that we provide and how we make people feel special, we make them feel seen. So it's not just your run-of-the-mill everyday hair salon or a service that you'll be getting and you know, fly by night. We really do take the time to get to know our clients as best we can and build those real sincere relationships with them. And we have a huge list of longstanding clients because of that reason. And even if you never come back, at least you we were able to provide you with love, attention, care, concern, um, and just a genuine feel when you come into our salon. So it's definitely about family and community here with us for sure.
Speaker 2:I love that. That's why you've been in business for eight years.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Yes, you treat your your your clients right so they keep coming back, you're creating loyal fans. Yes. I love it. I love it. Well, thank you so much, Ruby, for joining me on the podcast today. If the listeners want to reach out, if they want to come visit you, if they want to learn more from you, where can they find you?
Speaker 1:Yes, we are on Instagram at the Haven Salon. Very simply, no hashtags, no asterisk, no nothing. The Haven Salon on Instagram, as well as our direct website is www.thehavenbeauty.com. And our telephone number, if you have any questions, if you want to speak to me personally, I'm the lead and master stylist here. It's 540-993-1111.
Speaker 2:Amazing, amazing. Ruby, thank you so much for joining me on the podcast and sharing the Haven with us.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much, Dori. It was such a pleasure and thank you for the invitation.
Speaker 2:You're welcome.
Speaker:Thank you for listening to the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to FXBG NeighborsPodcast.com.