Like other hair salons and personal care businesses, Nancy’s Salon in East Cobb was closed for several weeks in the spring due to emergency orders stemming from the COVID-19 outbreak.
Qamar Hisamuddin, who became the owner of the longtime Johnson Ferry Road four years ago, decided to stay closed a little while longer after state restrictions eased in April.
“We were closed for eight weeks,” she said. “We followed all the precautions, all the safety measures. We just wanted to make sure we were being safe.”
Those protocols include a number of social-distancing practices that Nancy’s Salon still observes today, several months later.
On Friday afternoon, normally a busy time, only three of six stylists were on duty. That’s how the staffing is remaining for now. A comfortable waiting area with plush chairs and a sofa are empty.
Hisamuddin isn’t taking walk-in customers for the time being, and those who make an appointment are asked to wait in their cars until their stylist is available.
Anybody who steps inside Nancy’s Salon—located next to the Publix in Woodlawn Commons—must wear a mask, and they are all asked health questions.
A temperature check is optional, and they’re encouraged to use a hand sanitizer station. After a customer leaves, the chair and salon tools used are all thoroughly cleaned.
Any customer who doesn’t feel comfortable during regular business hours can schedule a special appointment for Monday, when Nancy’s Salon is normally closed.
This is the reality for hair salon businesses, and it’s likely to remain this way for a while.
“Half of the business is gone,” Hisamuddin says. “Sometimes it’s very hard to get to the end of the month. But we want everybody to be safe.”
Trying to strike that right balance—between safety and boosting her small business’ fragile bottom line—figures to be a continuing challenge.
So is taking care of a staff of six—Zizi, Hanna, Mira, Nilu, Cindy, Selvie and former owner Nancy Vafaee—which is still getting its usual Christmas bonus.
Hisamuddin said she felt she owed it to her employees to do that, in spite of the circumstances. She’s also asking her customers to help her staff and her business during the holidays. Anyone who purchases a $100 gift certificate for salon services will get $20 worth of salon products. The certificates are valid for six months from the date of purchase.
It’s a common promotion in the industry, but it comes at a time when small businesses are looking to close out a very trying year on a positive note.
Hisamuddin qualified for a Paycheck Protection Program loan to help pay staff while Nancy’s Salon was closed, but it lasted only five weeks.
“It’s been nine months, and that just doesn’t do it,” she said.
In addition to continuing safety protocols she says go beyond what’s required, Hisamuddin says keeping that tight-knit staff together heading into a new year is important for her business.
A software engineer by training—she and her husband, also an engineer, have a son attending UGA and a daughter who’s enrolled in the Wheeler Magnet Program—Hisamuddin remains optimistic.
“We’re looking forward to better business in 2021,” she said.
Nancy’s Salon
1100 Johnson Ferry Road, Suite 200
10-7 Tuesday-Friday; 9-7 Saturday; 12-5 Sunday
770-371-0763
East Cobb News is profiling small businesses that have been affected by COVID-19 shutdowns. Let us know how you’re doing by emailing us: editor@eastcobbnews.com. If you’re a reader who wants to spread the word about a local small business you like, also get in touch.
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