By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – Jen Baudier remembers when she was in the eighth grade and how attracted she was to the “glamour” of the hair style and beauty business.
“I got a job in the eighth grade at Fantastic Sam’s in Slidell and right away I loved it. There was something about the glamour in the business—I used to think about traveling and being on stage with it all,” she said.
Those early feelings never went away and led Baudier, 33, to become a very successful businesswoman in Slidell, now with an upscale, glamour business of her own with Bella Style Salon: Slidell’s Premier Hair Salon and Make-Up Studio.
Baudier was in beauty school by the age of 18, then spent two years working in a non-Aveda salon before making the decision to work for several Aveda Salons in Slidell. But she said it was working for salons that carried Aveda that gave her the insight and direction about how to create a truly special salon experience.
“Aveda is a very disciplined company in the way they train their people,” she said. “They are very structured and teach you all the details about how to run your chair. They provoked me to think about the smallest details to provide a great experience for my guest.”
Baudier looked forward to the day she would have her own salon and felt she was ready after her six years of on-the-job training. She opened in 2009 in a small location on Gause Boulevard with 900 square feet of space, determined to begin with the image she had envisioned.
“From the beginning I wanted our clients to know that we roll out the red carpet for them. We wanted a high-end look and we wanted to be seen as a special brand for Slidell,” she said.
“I don’t think everyone gives people in Slidell enough credit. Our guests saw a difference in what we offered and they were willing to pay a little extra to get it,” she said.
After almost seven years on Gause Boulevard it was time for Baudier to make her big move, and that is the new location at 2265 Carey Street in Olde Towne. With much success behind her over six years in location number one she was able to get bank financing for a $500,000 project to purchase and renovate the historic building in the busiest section of Carey Street.
Her willingness to invest and commit to Olde Towne resulted in a fabulous location with 3,800 square feet and still more room to grow. Bella Style offers all styles of haircuts for men and women, hair coloring, makeup services, nails, hair removal, lashes, facials and spray tan.
But perhaps the most important thing with Bella Style is the level of customer service Baudier insists on from her staff of 13 employees.
“We want our guests to see that we are professionals and want them to walk out feeling good about themselves,” she explained. “Most guests don’t really know what a good haircut is so they trust us to provide that. But they do know what a good experience is and we make that the top priority.”
Her approach has paid off in a big way. The salon saw 45 percent growth in its business the first year, 22 percent in its second year and is projected to do another 30 percent growth in 2018. And that is happening in the Olde Towne area where Baudier said there are 12 different hair salons.
For the business and experience they offer, Bella Style was ranked in the top 200 salons in the nation in the annual honors by Salon Today magazine.
“I’m a goal oriented person and very driven,” Baudier said. “But I also really care about people and that goes for my team and our guests. I think that is clear by what we have done in Bella Style—we draw from the entire region, including Covington, Mandeville, New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
“I see Olde Towne as a place that is growing and we have proven that if you put a good business here the people will come,” she said. “I want us to keep growing until we are a household name and I think that will happen as long as we continue to make this a great experience for our guests.”
Baudier has been married for four years and has four children in their “blended family.”
For more information, visit: mybellastyle.com, or call them at 985-214-0035.
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