Winner: Look Salon
7701 Broadway, Suite 139
(210) 826-5665
Hairstylist Damian Gonzales has always dreamed of opening his own business. While he had experience in other salons in the region, he wanted to manage and train his own team. So, in 2018, he opened Look Salon. “It’s something I always want to do, and I realized it was time,” Gonzales, 44, said. “I like to make customers happy every day.” Look’s two “most expensive items” are balayage and hair extensions, the former being a technique in which a stylist hand-paints highlights onto the hair to create a natural gradation of lightness. Gonzales considers it an art form. “It’s like you’re painting a canvas,” he said. A 1996 graduate of South San West Campus High School, Gonzales said stylists — in addition to knowing how to style hair — should bring a terrific personality to the job. This combination of skill and personality may explain why he booked six to eight weeks in advance. “You get to know people well,” he said. “You become friends with most of them.”
2. Elena Salon Studios
2193 NW Military Road
(210) 467-2562
3. Quite chic living room
238 N. Loop 1604 West, Suite 205
(210) 410-4684