My personal journey started way back before I was born because my father was working in the professional salon industry. As a very young man just starting his working career, he answered a help wanted ad in the newspaper to work in a warehouse in downtown Charlotte, NC. He really liked the people he met through this company so he continued to work for them. After a few years his manager found out that he had some sales experience and recruited him to work in the sales department if he would move his family to VA.
I always thought my dad had an interesting career. My standing joke is that “he drove nice cars and talked to pretty women all day.” Seriously though, I always remember him speaking about his colleagues and customers as if they were his friends. They were his friends, work friends. We would see his customers when we went out. They would speak, they knew my mom and she knew them. They even knew my name and things about me. I didn’t really understand the ”work” part of the job but the people were fantastic!
Fast forward 20 years following college I also started my career in the industry. The people I worked with were all so interesting and kind. People from all different backgrounds and all age groups were brought together because they wanted to help the salon industry thrive.
After working for a manufacturer as a regional manager and working for a distributor as a salon consultant, regional manager and as a senior manager the opportunity of opening an independent distribution company was offered. The decision was not difficult. There was a
need for an independent distributor in the market since large corporations had purchased most of the independent ones.
Prestige was started in 2008. The odds were against a new business during the “Great Recession” but we found the salon industry being just as accepting and kind as it had always been. Salon owners and stylist were eager to support a new, grass-roots company that had a mission to offer the best products and support. As we grew, we started gaining additional associates that believed in the future of this industry. Many of these people were working with other much larger companies but were drawn to Prestige because of our win/win attitude toward the salons and stylist. We all believed and still believe that when our salons and stylist are successful, we are successful together.
Today after 14 years of helping the salon industry be successful Prestige has over 30 associates that have a passion for excellence so our customers can be successful. We represent some of the best product brands supported by people who also love this industry. We work with thousands of the best salons and stylist who are committed to providing the best service and products to their clients. What a beautiful industry full of beautiful people!