How Salons Are Giving Back This Holiday Season

Whether you drop a few bucks into the bell ringer’s bucket, pack up old winter coats and donate them to Goodwill or volunteer at a local food pantry, the holiday season is all about giving back. In the spirit of the season, many salons around the country find ways to band together and do good in their communities. Here’s how BTC Facebook Fans are making the holiday season a little bit merrier and brighter.

We're having a big festival of trees at our school—The Hair Academy. Local businesses donate decorated Christmas trees to the school, and then we have a big event to raffle off the trees to people in the community. The proceeds of the event go to Shop-with-a-Cop, a local charity where police officers take underprivileged children holiday shopping. The school is about to be covered in Christmas trees!
Teresa Jack
The Hair Academy

Our salon adopts a family every Christmas; we have been for a few years now. The entire staff (38 employees) chips in and adds something to the gift hamper. As the owner, I contribute gifts and food equal to what my staff puts in.
Michelle Lisa Pargee

Were doing a food drive! For every item (up to five items) a client brings in, they receive a $1 credit towards their bill. We send out emails to our customers so they know how long the drive is going on for.
Got Hair Salon

At our salon, a group of us get together and go to a women's recovery house and do holiday mini-makeovers—haircuts, style, nails, etc. It's the most terrific day and we meet really amazing women.
Krishna Koch

We will be donating $1 for every gift card sold at The Cutting Room to The Coalition to Salute American Heroes (disabled soldiers). We are going to ask other local salons to contribute to this charity also.
Lynee Rosado
The Cutting Room

We are opening the salon on a Sunday to host a cut-a-thon, where a portion of the proceeds go to Toys For Tots. We will also have a drop-box for clients to bring in toys throughout the season. I LOVE giving back! If we can donate our time and skills without a cost attached, why not?
Jessica VanSumeren

My students and I do “Haircuts for the Holiday,” which is a day of donated time giving haircuts to the less fortunate. It’s a great way to show my current students how important it is to give back to the community!
Julie Lee Merriner

Instead of a salon gift exchange, we throw the cash in a pot and have a drawing to select one staff member who gets to pick a charity to send the money to. 
Kelli Paffe Lackman

I've been giving my clients $15 off their total bill for donating an unwrapped toy or blanket.
Tamika N Edwards Brown
Maven Hair Studio

Our salon believes charity and giving back should be a year-round effort. We have a program, called Cherish Studio Sessions, where we give haircuts to women who are unemployed. They must be going through a job program that we partner with. I started the program in June and it has been a huge success. Each session we do something a little different. Last time we had a photographer take pictures after the haircut and makeup for profiles like LinkedIn to help aid in the job hunt. Nothing helps more than a bright and happy profile picture when job hunting! We also are collecting clothing, jackets, bibles, hats and socks to give to the homeless this season. Happy Holidays! 
Chante D Newcomb
Ego Salon & Studio

We are giving free eyebrow waxing to any client who brings in a non-perishable food item.
Michele Sagal Julian

We partnered with a local non-profit that gives personal hygiene products and school supplies to abused and neglected children. Now through Christmas, clients can donate and in return, we offer them a complimentary conditioning treatment.
Cortney Robinson Forster

I work in a nursing home/rehab center. Every year I give haircuts to those whose families aren’t there to visit with them during the holidays.
Nicole Kendra Bolen

All year long, we pay $5 to wear jeans on certain days and the proceeds go to charity. In lieu of exchanging gifts at the salon, we collect money all year, every week from the staff and adopt local families to give it to. We also work with First Step, Toys For Tots and other charities throughout the year; we select a new charity each month to support. I’m very proud of our salon! Charities need help all year long and we work hard to support them.
Andria Kingins Lamberger
En~Unison Salon

I work at a beauty school and for an entire week we give a free haircut in exchange for any new unwrapped toy of $10.00 or more value for Toys for Tots.
Annette Aviles-Zuniga

We’re collecting blankets, coats, hats, scarves—anything warm—and donating to our local Cut It Out shelter (SafeHouse).
Lacey LaRose Mason
Regency Beauty Institute, KS

We have a food drive for the local food bank.
Vickie Malone
Snippits Hair Studio

We’re working with the Fire Department and Girl Scouts doing Toys for Tots and we also work with Look Good…Feel Better.
Sandy Merschrod Aab
New Hair Concept

We are participating in an area holiday food drive that will service our community. We’re also participating in an event night for Friend of the Family, where we do makeovers for women who are looking for jobs. I cannot wait to see the strength and confidence given back to these ladies after their makeovers.
Daphne Arrington

Everyone at our salon is going to a shelter and passing out food to the homeless!
Dylan McClellan

We’re having a food drive for Loaves and Fishes. We are also collecting coats for the Crisis Assistance Ministries.
Shannon Langley
Salon Piper Glen

We’re collecting coats for kids and pop can tabs to give to schools that are raising money for the homeless.
Jessixa Rieske

We have a Christmas giving tree for the kids and we have teamed up with a local women's shelter to give makeovers to the women who "graduate" from their program.
LuAnn Salter Bean

For November we took in canned food items and for December we are taking up gloves, scarves and hat donations for the local school to give to kids in need.
Kandice Samuels

We have casual dress on Fridays all year long, but you have to donate one food item towards our food bank donation to dress down.
Terri Sides