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

Mara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

This Salon/Collective is the most meaningful project I’ve ever worked on. For so much of my life I’ve felt very lost. Never felt like I REALLY fit in anywhere although I did become pretty good at faking it. I always knew my brain worked in a slightly different way than my “successful” friends. I watched the people around me pursuing their passions… something in myself I had yet to discover. I was always told I wasn’t living up to my potential but I didn’t know what that was or how to do it. In my 20’s I started doing hair and discovered that was a way for me to express myself. To let that sideways brain of mine to speak and to connect with humans from all walks of life and kind of explore the world and myself through them and their stories and experiences and realize that I wasn’t as weird or different as I thought. That turned out to be the foundation for finding a sense of purpose and my place in society. In my 30’s, after a bunch of life experience and therapy, I started to realize that I NEEDED to be creative… but I could do that in all kinds of ways… and it was the humans that really fed my soul. The relationships and connections. The sense of community and sharing of experience and knowledge. The realization that humans are all so different and special and can do such amazing things for themselves and each other. My respect for the human condition in all it’s forms and beauties and ugliness grew and grew and I knew I needed to make my little imprint on the world through my love for humans and desire to support them in their amazingness… And quite honestly share and revel in that amazingness! So when the opportunity to build and run this salon my way fell in my lap, I just thought “the universe is giving me this chance… no this RESPONSIBILITY to be creative and create a safe space and a community and a platform to learn from and lift up some fascinating folks who have been misunderstood or not given a fair shake in life or are overcoming trauma and I’m going to pour myself into it”. So this project is not only meaningful because it feels like a huge part of my own sense of purpose, but because it has an impact on the community and the beautiful people that make up the world we all live in. At least I hope it does.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Above the Gym is a collective of some seriously solid humans all running their own beauty/wellness oriented businesses. We’ve got a bodyworker and a tattooer in private rooms and the main space we have the hair salon/barber shop where we do everything from cuts and colors to extensions and braids. We have about a million years of experience between all of us so if you can think of it, we’ve either done it or want to learn it. I run the space as a whole but I also do hair so I’m like a kid in a candy store. Humans and hair projects! What else do you need?
The biggest thing that sets us apart from other salons is our focus on and commitment to being a safe space for all. It is my goal to run a space that makes everyone that walks through the door feel safe, comfortable, seen and represented. I’ve held art shows that benefit marginilized folks, joined an alliance of salons that work to create safer spaces and gender affirming services for LGBTQ2S+ folks, held a Narcan Training where we learned how to recognize an opioid overdose and how to handle it as a few examples. I try to do an event at least quarterly. When I started the shop, I worked with an extremely talented wordsmith to create an ethics statement that outlines what we stand for and how we aim to make our community and world a better place through everyday action. It talks about the ways in which we embrace and promote diversity and nourish a healthy and positive company culture as well as how anyone can donate to our “Offering of the Month” where we collect money all month and then donate it to a different non-profit at the end of the month. It really is very beautiful and you can check out the ethics statement in it’s entirety in the shop or in the story highlights on our Instagram @Above.the.Gym. Not only are we a crew of creatives that love pushing limits and making the world more gorgeous one head at a time, but we get to make an even bigger impact as an integrated part of our community.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

There are countless things society can do to support creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem. First things first, BUY ART! Even better, buy LOCAL art. Go see shows and performances (Hook and Ladder has some great ones), get your hair/nails done, attend craft fairs or commission that mural you’ve always wanted on your garage. Support candidates that want to keep art programs in schools, With the shortage of educators and educational funding these days, schools are cutting art programs to save money. Helping young creatives find and explore their artistic passions early in life helps kids express themselves in a healthy way and adds to a thriving artistic community. Make sure and interact with art and artists by sharing art with friends and family! If we can recognize how art of all kinds is woven into the fabric of all our lives, we will make choices that support a thriving creative ecosystem and we all appreciate and benefit from.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

That the more I sacrifice for my craft, the better artist/human I am. I think it’s a concept that many people can relate to. I think it’s engrained into our society to wear our sacrifice and misery as a badge of honor. The harder you work, the more respect and abundance you deserve. But the truth, for me, is that the most important and productive thing I can do is to do whatever is necessary that day to show up as my most grounded, open, authentic and honest self. For me, my family and all the unique and beautiful individuals that I work with and come across in daily life. At Above the Gym, I don’t need to have the busiest schedule and be doing the most hair and show up at 8 am to bust my butt until 8 pm to show that I am worthy of my role at the salon. I need to use my time efficiently sometimes take a step back to facilitate the success of the team I work with in the salon and in the community. When my co workers are successful, the salon is successful and the community is lifted up. Hard work doesn’t always look like sacrifice. Sometimes it means working smarter not harder. Sometimes it means finishing up and going home to chill with my family (I love when it means that). Sometimes it means taking time for my own education. Sometimes it still means just putting my head down and putting in a good old fashioned day of hard work. But it always means caring for myself mentally, emotionally and physically so that I am able to handle whatever the day throws at me competently and I continue to foster a trusting relationship with all the folks I am lucky enough to share space with.

Contact Info:

• Website: Rivaltwins.com
• Instagram: @above.the.gym @rivaltwinshair