Local woman branches out to open her own salon

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Listening to her beauty school instructors has led Angie Hunley to achieve a longtime goal.

While attending Indiana Cosmetology Academy in Bedford, she said she was told to work under someone else for at least five years before going on her own.

After 15 years of working in beauty salons, she opened her own, Glamour Zone, on Dec. 4 and celebrated the grand opening Saturday.

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“Over the years, I have seen too many girls come right out of school, go into being self-employed and they are there maybe six months and gone,” Hunley said. “I wanted to make sure I had many years of clientele. That’s what I was told to do in school. So far, I’m very successful. I still have all of my clientele. If you listen to what they tell you in school, it will work.”

Hunley said she always had an interest in being a cosmetologist because there were hairdressers on both sides of her family, but she waited to pursue that career until her children were older.

Then she enrolled at the school in Bedford and went full time for 10 months.

Her first job was at SmartStyle inside Walmart Supercenter in Seymour.

“It worked out great because my mom worked there. She retired from Walmart, and she would send me a lot of people that she knew, and I still have some of those customers with me,” Hunley said.

“I started out there like they told me to do in school, and that was to work on my speed to just get familiar with being a hairdresser because being at school is totally different than being in a salon,” she said. “I picked up a lot of different things, and that’s how I learned more about being a hairdresser is by watching others in the salon.”

Hunley then became a cosmetologist at the salon inside JCPenney in Seymour.

“That’s where I really learned,” she said. “I learned a lot of stuff by watching others that have been doing hair for a long time.”

The next stop was Accents Hair Salon in downtown Seymour, where she was self-employed for the first time.

After being there for 12 years, Hunley decided it was time to look into having her own salon. She looked into some buildings in Seymour, but she opted to build new.

Glamour Zone is at 2716 Montgomery Drive, just south of the intersection of U.S. 50 and U.S. 31 on the far east side of the city.

“The first week, it took me a little bit to get adjusted after staying in one spot for that many years and then you switch over,” she said. “The first few days were a little adjustment, but I like it. My customers love it because there’s parking. There was a big parking issue where I was. I love that there’s convenient parking, it’s a good location and it’s pretty easy to find.”

Hunley and cosmetologist Kristina Sullivan both can do hair color and hair color corrections. Hair extensions, formal hair and basic hair care also are available, and they serve children, men and women of all ages.

Aarika Birch also will join the staff once she graduates from Hair Force Beauty Academy in Seymour.

“I can accept one more cosmetologist or a barber,” Hunley said. “Kristina is really good with guys’ haircuts, but it would be nice to have a barber here for that, as well.”

Hunley said she also plans to offer nail services and may add other services in the future.

“I’m pretty satisfied with just having a shop,” she said. “I may plan to expand later, maybe bring in someone to do eyelashes and microblading eyebrows and things like that, but it’s something down the road. Right now, I’m just pinching myself like, ‘Is this real?’”

Hunley and her staff are focused on making customers feel glamorous.

“I really enjoy that transformation when someone comes in and they are not happy and just seeing a transformation because their hair looks good makes them feel good,” she said. “Anything that we can do here to make people feel better about themselves is our personal goal.”

Having a lifelong love of art and being creative, Hunley has the perfect occupation.

“Being able to be creative with someone’s hair, that gives me a feeling of accomplishment,” she said. “It’s a passion I have to make customers feel their best. When I do the color and I see the color and it looks amazing, it’s a feeling … it’s like painting and creating, so to me, it’s an art. It’s not a job, really. It’s an art for me.”

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Glamour Zone beauty salon is at 2716 Montgomery Drive, Seymour.

Angie Hunley is the owner. Kristina Sullivan is the other cosmetologist, and Aarika Birch will be joining the salon soon.

The shop opens at 11 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Call 812-523-5500 or 812-530-6313 for an appointment or walk-ins are welcome.

Information: Visit glamourzone.biz or find the business on Facebook

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