Bridget Davis, owner of Bridget Davis Salon, styles Madissen King's hair at the salon on Lifestyle Way in Chattanooga.Map
2545 Lifestyle Way
• Name: Bridget Davis Hair Salon
• Location: 2545 Lifestyle Way
• Contact: 423-710-2118
• Service: Full-service salon, including hair coloring, haircuts, French- and Italian-style cuts, manicures and pedicures
• Age: Opened Jan. 4
• Startup investment: Owner Bridget Davis said starting up a salon can cost as little as $20,000 and can easily reach hundreds of thousands of dollars.
• Target market: Those looking for cutting-edge hair styles and coloring
• Biggest hurdle: Becoming an American Board Certified colorist. Davis said becoming an expert colorist takes a lot of studying and experience, but it helps her make sure she's giving customers the correct product. "It's an eight-hour exam," she said. "It's tough, but it's the best thing I've ever done."
• Biggest reward: With her own salon, Davis is able to offer classes to aspiring stylists. One of the things she loves about her job is the chance to interact with people all day. Teaching allows her a new type of interaction. "I really enjoy mentoring and to me, that's been a part of it," she said. "Help other hair stylists to promote their career."
• Lesson learned: Make sure to study all aspects of a business before opening up. "Get as much information as possible, talk to as many people as possible, find out the downsides as well as the upside," Davis advised. "I'm not a huge risk taker, but there is some risk in it. The more you know about it, the more you're prepared."
• Five-year goal: Six of Davis' 10 chairs are used by stylists. She hopes to have all 10 rented and regularly filled with customers in the coming years.