We were lucky to catch up with Blake Attebury recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Blake, thanks for joining us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I set out to make a goth/alternative salon that was LGBTQ friendly and catered to counter and subcultures. Many places that do this have a ‘hint’ of this in their business. We’re full throttle. Rude, crude, obnoxious, and our genuine selves. By destroying and ignoring the client/employee barrier, we create an environment that allows our stylists to be their true and authentic self, which is often more comfortable and welcoming to our clients. What you see is what you get. I often tell people “We’re a dive bar that does hair”.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’ve worked on my own and and friends hair since I was a teenager. I worked in tech for 20+ years, but I was a single father and semi-pro musician, and I wanted to do something where hours could be more flexible.

I also get to work in a creative industry, which is a huge change from the binaries of the tech world. I’ve been doing hair for eight years and this is the second salon I’ve owned.

We offer hair cutting, coloring, and styling services. Our menu isn’t gendered, so you pay for the service and not the expectations set by society.

Our salon is full of tattooed and alternative people, many of them artists as well, and we have an incredibly diverse staff. This allows us to cater to more people as some people feel more comfortable with people that look like them or like the things they like.

We’ve been open two years, we’re one of the fastest growing salons in Las Vegas, we offer free classes for Trans people who want to know more about hair and makeup, we have local art on our walls that we sell and all the proceeds go to the artist, etc.

We also offer Plan B, Tampons, Pads, Condoms, Pregnancy tests, and Narcan free of charge in our bathroom to better serve and help our community.

Every day I and my employees get to go to a place that we create constantly, improving, growing, and expanding who we are and what we can do for the people we serve.

I’m proud to be able to do things our way, on our terms, and help our community.

Can you open up about a time when you had a really close call with the business?

We had a lot of these opening. I moved to Vegas and opened the salon a month later. We were no one. We had no reputation. We struggled to hire, and we would go days without clients. We’re in one of the most expensive areas of Vegas as far as rent goes. It was a huge risk and there have been several times I’ve wondered “How will we make it through this?”

We always do though and we learn from it every time we do.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Being genuine. We had clients that were at other “alternative” salons, but they dealt with the same issues they were trying to escape.. Judgemental stylists, catty salon teams, high costs, etc.

We treat our clients like people and not dollars. We love how unique they are. You can have your hair done anywhere. People come back because they feel safe, they feel seen and heard, and they feel appreciated, because they are.

It’s easy to manipulate people into thinking you’re someone you’re not, but you have to wear that mask 24/7. We don’t have to do that. What you see is what you get. We mean what we say and we appreciate our clients. I love being at work. Our clients love being there. Every day feels like lunch with your best friend or a party.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sinistersalon.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/Sinistersalonvegas
• Facebook: Facebook.com/SinisterSalon
• Twitter: Twitter.com/SinisterSalon