We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Maddy Cauthen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Maddy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Crazy stuff happening is almost as certain as death and taxes – it’s technically “unexpected” but something unexpected happening is to be expected and so can you share a crazy story with our readers

My story starts in another country, and continues in Jackson Mississippi. I’m Canadian! I went to hair school in downtown Toronto. I worked at a major salon in the greater Toronto area and specialized in haircutting for 5 years. In that time I travelled the world a bit. On a trip to visit my best friend in Sydney, Australia, I ended up meeting my husband. We were in a long distance relationship for 3 years from Canada to Australia and in April 2021, I made the move to Jackson Mississippi. Why Jackson? My husband was born and raised there! In my first year and a half of living in America, I was going through the immigration process. In doing so, I was not allowed to work. For that year and a half, my few family and friends at the time, were my hair guinea pigs. I was doing their hair in my kitchen and they had to quite literally lay on my kitchen counter for me to wash their hair. once I finally received my work permit, I chose a small salon in Jackson to work at and build a clientele starting with 0 clients. Within 6 months of working, I built an entire full clientele on my own. I busted my butt and 1.5 years later, I ended up buying that same salon and became the owner. The day I started as the owner, EVERYONE quit. 4 girls. gone. I was back at ground zero with an even bigger weight on my shoulders. Within my first year of ownership, I’ve hired all new employees, rebranded and built a space where clients and stylists love to be and work. It’s still a work in progress, and we’ll be expanding as of next year. But I’d say that’s all quite crazy lol. As a young female business owner, the odds are stacked against you. we have to hustle a little more than most, but I refuse to let that slow me down!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I touched on a few things in the previous question, but I’m a 27 year old Canadian Salon owner in Jackson Mississippi. I met my husband in Sydney, Australia and we’ve been together for 7 years now. I’ve been in the hair industry for 10 years. I had my start in Toronto Ontario at the Aveda Institute of Toronto. I’ve been a business owner for just over 1 year now. My Salon is called “The Salon at Fondren”. I’m very passionate about diversity. Jackson is a very diverse city filled with tons of different cultures. The hair industry can be quite segregated. Different hair types come from different backgrounds and not everyone is experienced in every hair type. I wanted to see a salon where ANYONE from any background could walk in, and know they will be serviced well. We have stylists that specialize in natural hair, curly hair, straight course hair, short hair, AND skin care! We offer services from silk presses, extensions, braids, color, cuts, weddings, botox, skin care and more! We’re small but mighty lol. Diversity drives creativity. that’s our motto! We carry Davines hair care products. Davines is an Italian family owned business, that is all natural ingredients and caters to all hair types from course and curly hair, to fine and straight hair! We also have our nurse practitioner in house providing ZO skin care. We also like to support small local businesses. We have Studio Chane printing our salon merch and Borderland Candle Company providing our salon candles to use and sell. Both businesses are local to the Jackson metro area. I’m proud of the family of stylists and clientele that we’ve built here. Everyone comes from different backgrounds and cultures and that is so important to me.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Social media is huge for building a business these days. It’s free marketing! Especially in the service industry, consumers want to see your work. so show it off! A post a day. That being said, let’s not underestimate the power of on foot marketing. Always carry business cards and exude confidence in your craft. I walked door to door to local businesses, enrolled in local events and gave out my info any chance I had. Building clientele takes time, but if you’re consistent, it pays off! Say yes as much has possible. Get comfortable being uncomfortable and push yourself to step out of your bubble to make your work known.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

A key I’ve learned with social media is consistency over aesthetics. A post a day of your work builds engagement, which is the most important! I often posted my availability on stories for clients to see and utilize. Posting at peek times of the day (10-11am) added more engagement. Quality photos of your work is more important than the aesthetic of your instagram page. Aesthetics can be built with time, but at first, show. your. work! Also having a social media manager is so helpful! social media can be a full time job. we have a social media manager (Hillary Ravick) and she has done wonders for our social media and engagement. She builds us timelines, films and creates content, sends inspiration and guided advice for us to run it ourselves as well. She’s wonderful!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thesalonatfondren.com
• Instagram: @thesalonatfondren @maddyatfondren @fondrenaesthetics
• Facebook: The Salon at Fondren

Image Credits

Image Credit : Brandon Shaw Photography