Having a passion for hair, makeup and beauty in general, new salon owner Kristal Austin has stepped out of her comfort zone of teaching and decided to open a beauty salon of her very own in downtown Riverbank. With a team of stylists, the full service beauty salon offers the latest hair and color trends like balayage hair painting as well as cuts, extensions and waxing without losing the integrity of the hair and keeping it looking healthy.
“We specialize in color and your hair care needs,” Austin explained. “We want you to have the best outcome with your hair. Every time you come get your hair done we’re going to offer you beverages and it’s just really relaxing after work and your sitting down getting that scalp massage right after your color, then you get your hair cut.”
The love for hair began at a young age for Austin as she cut the hair on her life size Barbie and gave it layers. For her senior project in high school she decided to partner with a fellow senior on hair, makeup and fashion. This solidified that this was what she was going to do for living. After graduating from Riverbank High School, Austin took a tour at Paul Mitchell and fell in love with every aspect of cosmetology.
“I am very passionate about hair and making someone feel great,” said Austin. “I would say I wake up every day and it’s not a job. I am like, yay I am going to do some hair.”
At the age of 17, Austin went to beauty school right after graduation and in about 11 months received her license. Her first job was running her own station and then she continued working for other salons. For the past three years Austin got into education and has been teaching others how to do hair. She has worked for companies like Paul Mitchell and Bed Head.
“I would say I feel blessed and it feels great to set your own hours and to have freedom,” stated Austin. “I wanted to offer an experience to the community because I am from Riverbank.
“It is a full service hair salon so we do cut, we do color, we do waxing services, we offer anything with hair care – extensions – anything with beautifying your hair and ourselves.”
Glam has now been open for the past three months and although most clients make appointments they do accept walk-ins. The salon is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and they welcome new clients. They have social media sites as well so interested clients can message them through Instagram or Facebook.
“The best part is my coworkers and the support that I have received from my mother, clients, and my family,” expressed Austin. “Leaving my teaching job and just going for it, it’s actually been amazing because everybody around me supported me, especially my parents. So that’s the nice part. I’m not like struggling because I have such positive energy surrounding me.”
Austin invites the public to follow Glam on Instagram where her team posts videos throughout the day showcasing their skills because the stylists are all so different and all, said Austin, are very talented.
