by Sandy Sanchez
As Dorothy says in my favorite movie, “There is no place like home.” Home is Tremont. In 1990, I opened my first salon called Sandy’s Styling Salon, in Tremont. I found out really fast that the space I rented was just too big, so I moved to a smaller building on Professor. After a while, I cut hair for the whole neighborhood. Business was very good. After 8 long years of serving the community, I gave it up to fulfill my life as a mother of four. I had some wonderful memories of my favorite customers and can tell you some pretty wild stories of Tremont as the owner of one of the first small businesses growing in Tremont.
Well, I’m back! All of my children are grown, and I decided to re-open and knew of only one place I wanted to go, Tremont.
I found a small place on West 14th Street. Ricardo Sandoval, the owner of Fat Cats, took a chance and rented to me. I now called my salon, The Razors Edge. After three and a half years, I out grew my small place, so I moved to 2685 W14th Street. My friends say I finally got my “Big Girls Shop.”
We are a full serviced salon with a full time nail tech, booth rentals available for more stylists, a massage therapist and Reiki Practitioner by appointment, but still feeling like good old Tremont back in the 90s—its like I never left. Now cutting hair for the kids and grandchildren of the customers I did back then is just a blessing. It’s very special when I get that someone in my chair who asks me, “Do you know who I am?” I say, “No, tell me.” Faces change, hairstyles change, but I know I belong in Tremont, in my ” Big Girls Shop.”
Recently, I opened the Recycled Bowtique next door. If you know me, you know I love to shop and I am very thrifty. The recycled Bowtique is a co-op, with six of us, and we call ourselves the Recycled Chicks. We are all original Southsiders: Susie, Adrian, Sue, Sheila, Makia, Dagmar, and myself. We have a lot of stuff, new and unique finds. Every visit is a new adventure. We have new items daily. Without the support of the community and a lot of prayers, we would not be successful. Please support all small businesses—they are the backbone of our growing neighborhood.
Thank You Tremont!
– Sandy
The Storefront of Razor’s Edge at 2685 W. 14th Street
The storefront of Recycled Bowtique at 2687 W. 14th Street
