SOUTH DEERFIELD — Those who are looking for a change in hair stylist have a new option in town.

Hair Apothecary, a new salon, opened in mid-April at 4A Sugarloaf St. and is now accepting clients for July.

Danielle Sullivan-Beck, Hair Apothecary’s co-owner, said she was driving to work in Amherst one day when she saw a “for rent” sign in the window in South Deerfield. Sullivan-Beck and her cousin, Jaime Young, were both looking to move on from their current hair salon positions and took the plunge as business partners.

“It’s much better to work for yourself. There’s more control,” Sullivan-Beck said. “We were both looking for a change where we were at.”

Sullivan-Beck said she has been lucky to be able to lean on her cousin’s 16 years of experience as they engaged with this new challenge.

“She’s my support system,” Sullivan-Beck said. “She’s the direct one who says, ‘Let’s do this.’”

She said “it takes a tribe” to redo a salon, as there were often multiple contractors working at once, but the process taught her a lot about the industry.

“You really don’t want to renovate a salon,” she joked. “I’ve learned a lot more about the business. There was a lot of online education.”

Sullivan-Beck said the renovation was to make the salon “modern and chic,” while also infusing some of her and Young’s own style.

Despite opening the salon in the waning months of the pandemic, Sullivan-Beck said having her previous clients follow her to the new business softened the impact of capacity restrictions.

“The pandemic didn’t scare me as much. We’re pretty established and we have great clients,” Sullivan-Beck said. “It was a nice security blanket.”

While the number of clients wasn’t affected by the pandemic, Sullivan-Beck said the permitting and approval process was “awful.”

When the pandemic-related restrictions were lifted on May 29, she said it was a “breath of fresh air.”

“It was the best day ever,” Sullivan-Beck said. “I love cutting around the ears again.”

Sullivan-Beck moved to South Deerfield in 2019, and said the people have been “super supportive” of her and her business.

“This town is amazing,” Sullivan-Beck said. Young added “everyone in South Deerfield is so welcoming.”

Hair Apothecary offers extensions, hair coloring and bridal work. Sullivan-Beck said she feels the services she selected are the best part of hair styling and she figured it was time to pick a specialty.

“You get to the point where you want to specialize in something,” Sullivan-Beck said. “Not every doctor does surgery.”

Warwick resident Anne Kilroy said she followed Young as a client to South Deerfield because she loves talking while getting her hair styled.

“It’s like therapy while getting pretty,” Kilroy said. “It was a bit of a wait (for the salon to open), but it’s worth it.”

Kilroy said she loves the style of Hair Apothecary and the great service makes the experience even better.

“It’s a really welcoming, artistic space,” Kilroy said. “They go above and beyond.”

The salon’s hours are 1 to 8 p.m. on Mondays, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. Those interested in booking an appointment can reach Sullivan-Beck and Young at 413-512-0731 or hairapothecary@yahoo.com.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.

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