Today we’d like to introduce you to Tracy Musgrove.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Tracy. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
The first time I ever cut hair on a real person (oh my poor dolls), I was still in the single digits. My mother had always done her own hair and had a hard time reaching the back. There I found myself, six years old, standing on a chair in the kitchen, razor cutting my mother’s hair. As the youngest of three girls, as I aged, I saw both of my sisters interested in cosmetology. I was determined to be as different from my sisters as possible, so I stayed as far away from that as I could. I became a mom, and an Army wife, and explored other paths for the first decade of adulthood.
I came into the beauty industry by way of makeup. I have a deep passion for all things vintage and was a huge fan of the 40s and 50s pinup style. After taking several pinup style hair and makeup classes, I decided to branch out and teach them. I even managed to get published in a few niche magazines. I was perfectly capable of doing the work, but as the business I was building grew, I found myself having to hire a licensed hair stylist for our public events not associated with photography. I am a bit of a stickler for the rules. While I could do the makeup (one does not have to have a license in the state of Texas to do that), I could not legally do the hair.
One night, after a conversation with a bottle of wine, I thought that perhaps I could go to cosmetology school. It was about a year long course, and it would allow me to be both an administrator in my business, and work the hair and makeup when needed. I decided to enroll in the Ogle School of Hair, Skin, and Nails in Stafford the very next day, and after I began the course, I was licensed ten months later. I never had any intentions of working behind the chair full time and never in a corporate salon, but that is where I found myself. I told myself that I would pick up a little more experience on some things like color, and then go about my business.
Two and a half years at a corporate salon later… Well, I was growing weary in such a hectic atmosphere. I was working more time than I planned in an open retail/salon establishment, and I found myself, and my clients, becoming frustrated with some things going on around us. I needed to make a change for myself and my potential business.
I took a leap of faith and decided to rent a very small single suite in a salon gallery. It was all of 81 sq ft, but it was mine. Wildflower Salon was born out of the need to get out of the fast paced public salon space I was in and make a more meaningful connection to my clientele.
Has it been a smooth road?
I was primarily a stay-at-home mom when I decided to go to school. I have six children, some of who have special needs, and my twin boys were only five when I ventured out into school. I had to find reliable childcare, the money, the time, and I had to get over the guilt that came with walking away from my life as a 24-hour mom. For some reason, I had to convince myself that I could have something outside of the house for myself.
I had to teach myself a whole new way of life, starting with waking up far earlier than I was used to for my commute. I even had to learn to socialize with other adult people in an educational environment, all while learning a new skill involving chemicals and sharp objects wielded around the heads of perfect strangers. Piece-of-cake.
Once I broke through that barrier and made my way through the mass-market salon life, I had to leap away from the corporate umbrella of safety to open my salon. Money was obviously going to be an issue… I spent a year in my small salon suite alone. Luckily, a few weeks in, I was able to reconnect with a woman I knew from my time in cosmetology school who had her own space in the same location, Eve Gonzales.
Without any discussion, we decided that we would buy our time in our leases and then venture out together. Eve is an esthetician who provided facials and waxing, and we found ourselves with a similar mindset and thought that combining would offer our clients a wider range of available services. Waiting for that lease to end was a mental struggle…
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Wildflower Salon was named after a love of Texas wildflowers. You see, every wildflower is different. Some grow in spring, some in the dead of winter. Some wildflowers bloom, some grow like weeds, some have thorns, some smell sweet and fruity while others can smell like festering– well– lets say, less than pleasant.
Regardless, every flower grows in its own time, in its own location, and important to its environment. And boy, are they resilient. Anyone who has tried to get rid of the dandelions in the cracks of the sidewalk, or eradicate crab grass can attest to that.
Over the years, I learned to see the variety of each of my clients. The mother, who like me, felt guilty for taking the time and money to get her hair done. The young man in transition, who was unable to get a decent men’s cut from any stylist he previously knew because it always came out too feminine. The eight year old on the spectrum who had such serious sensory issues if one single hair touched him, he broke down in tears. Each one of these clients is special and they each deserve a space they can come into, feel comfortable, out of the prying eyes of a full fledged retail salon, where hundreds of people are able to watch them.
While we are a small boutique salon, we also tend to be very social, which is good because, as they say, “your vibe attracts your tribe,” and many of our clients are so similar. We occasionally hold get togethers both in the salon and out of the town (Wildflower Night Out) to encourage our clients to mingle and form those connections that many are lacking.
We specialize in customer service. That is what makes a salon experience unique, and what I feel really sets us apart from the crowd. There are so many amazing hair artists out there. What we offer is an experience in comfort, relaxation, and a little bit of pampering.
In an industry where a balayage is a balayage, and everyone wants a silver lob, being able to customize and personalize that experience to each customer is key. There is always some fun music going, and it is anyone’s guess what that might be.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
The greater Houston area is an amazing area for the salon and beauty industry. It is a huge area, and there are so many people that it is almost hard to keep up. I work in a salon gallery. This means that it is a large facility with many individual salons, barbers, and other beauty professionals. The wide diversity of our metropolitan area allows us to rarely feel in competition with each other. While we all work side-by-side, we each have a different target market, and plenty of clients to go around.
If being a military wife has taught me anything, it is that you bloom where you are planted. You plant your roots and you reach for the sun. The only thing I would like to see more of in Houston is a market for the abstract– the funky colors and cuts that you can find in places like New York or Seattle. While I enjoy doing traditional things, I wouldn’t be mad if someone asked me for a hot pink mohawk every now and then.
Pricing:
- Child’s Haircut $15
- Haircut and Style $45
- Full Highlight/Balayage Service starts at $175
- Brow Wax $20
- Bikini Wax $60
- One-Hour Facial $65
Contact Info:
- Address: 20260 C1 Katy Fwy Ste 124
KAty, TX 77449 - Website: wildflowersalontx@gmail.com
- Phone: 8324091077
- Email: wildflowersalontx@gmail.com
- Instagram: @wildflowersalontx
- Facebook: facebook.com/wildflowersalontx
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/wildflower-salon-katy-2
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