Our Story
In 1984, Mary Lewis and Debbie Marc, a dynamic mother-daughter duo, set out to make Elkridge and its surrounding areas a little more beautiful... one head at a time.
They started small, working from just a couple of rooms upstairs in our current building while the downstairs housed a mix of businesses, including a baseball card shop and a doctor's office. Over time, their dedication to their clients and strong ties to the community allowed them to expand until they eventually occupied the entire building.
And that little salon became The Hair Station.
While Mary and Debbie were building their dream, I was growing up just down Route 1 in Elkridge.
I graduated from Long Reach High School in 2003 without really knowing what I wanted to do with my life. I gave college a brief (and unsuccessful) try, including failing accounting miserably, before eventually finding my way to the beauty industry.
In 2005, I graduated from The Fil-A Academy, a Paul Mitchell Partner School, earning my barber license and officially beginning my career in hair.
Over the next several years, I worked at Hair Cuttery, Ulta Beauty, and a small family-run salon and spa. I experienced everything from corporate salon life to booth rental and learned a little bit from every place I worked.
Eventually, those experiences led me to The Hair Station.
I found the salon through a Craigslist ad in 2013. I grew up in Elkridge, so the location immediately felt familiar. I started as a booth renter and quickly fell in love with the salon, the clients, and the feeling of being part of something that had already been a part of the community for decades.
I had no idea then that I'd eventually own it.
The Next Chapter
After seven years as a stylist at The Hair Station, my husband and best friend, Christopher, encouraged me to consider something I never thought I wanted: becoming a salon owner.
I'd always been perfectly happy managing myself and my own business. Owning a salon, and being responsible for other people, was definitely not on my career bucket list.
But I am also always asking myself, “Okay, what's next?”
After a few conversations, a husband who believed in me way more than I believed in myself, and honestly, a pretty strong desire to decorate a salon exactly the way I wanted to, we decided to ask Debbie if she would consider selling us the salon.
She wasn't looking to sell.
But it just felt right to ask.
In November 2019, we officially took ownership of The Hair Station.
A few months later, COVID-19 changed everything.
Like so many other small businesses, we had to figure things out as we went. I was one of those salon owners selling color touch-up kits out of the back of my Jeep, and we did whatever we could to get through those months.
Thankfully, we did.
And when we were finally able to reopen, we came back stronger than ever.
Where We Are Today
Today, The Hair Station is more than just a place to get your hair done.
It's a place where creativity, expertise, self-expression, and community come together.
We're a team of stylists who specialize in hair color services from blonding, gray coverage, and everything in between. But what we're most proud of isn't just the hair we create... it's the experience we create while you're here.
As a business owner, I've stepped away from behind the chair so I can focus on something I have grown to love just as much as doing hair: building a great team.
I've spent years learning how to become a better business owner and leader, and I've had the privilege of working with some truly amazing people along the way. Our team has grown, our stylists have grown, and I've grown right alongside them.
We've watched apprentices become stylists, stylists become busy stylists, and one of our apprentices grow all the way into a salon manager.
Our goal is to create a beautiful place for our team to work, grow, and build a career they love, while giving them the support and education they need to create amazing experiences for their clients.
Carrying It Forward
The Hair Station has been part of the Elkridge community since 1984.
That's a pretty amazing legacy to be trusted with.
We are proud to carry forward what Mary and Debbie started while continuing to evolve, learn, grow, and make the salon our own.
And I still smile when I think about my first official day as the owner.
November 1, 2019... the day after Halloween.
Debbie was famous for her creative and over-the-top Halloween costumes every year. The day before my first official day as the new owner, she walked into the salon wearing something completely unexpected:
A simple T-shirt with the word “Employee” printed across the front.
After years of being the boss, she had officially passed the torch.
And, in true Debbie fashion, she made sure to mark the moment with humor.
It was the perfect way to begin a new chapter, honoring where The Hair Station came from while looking toward where we could take it next.
We're so glad you're here.
Curious How I Got Here?
The short version is here, but there’s a much longer story behind how I ended up owning The Hair Station.
It involves a lot of learning, starting over, a few questionable decisions, one move to Georgia, a Craigslist ad, a pandemic, and more than a few lessons I never expected to learn.
I Never Planned on Owning a Salon is the full story of my career, the people who helped shape it, and how all those twists and turns eventually led me here.