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WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Anne Marie Sheeley couldn't think of a better way to celebrate her Salon Diva's 16th anniversary than to participate in the salon week the White Plains Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) organized. Sheeley said the 50 percent off promotion enticed many new customers to try out her Mamaroneck Ave. salon during its anniversary week of Aug. 8 through Aug. 13.
"It's non-stop. The phones are always ringing. We're actually generating a waiting list and this point, which is unusual for August," said Sheeley, a Rockland County resident. "BID does a fantastic job of promoting merchants in White Plains and it's been so good for the last 16 years that I wouldn't want to miss an opportunity to give back."
New customers can save 50 percent on a color job or haircut and blow-dry at six participating salons until the first annual salon week promotion ends on Saturday. Regular clients at D'Aprilla Salon, Salon Diva, Salon Flair, Salon Maffei, Selah Salon/Lounge, and Static Salon can cut their price tag in half by referring a friend to their salon.
Hosting salon week during the beginning of August helped local businesses such as D'Aprilia Salon catch a few extra clients during the typical summer stall, according to D'Aprilla co-owner Diane D'Angelo.
"The second week in August is traditionally our slowest week, so we thought it was a good time to try and get some business," said D'Angelo, a resident of Stamford, Conn., who has co-run the E. Post Road salon for 11 years. "People tend to go away in summer. It might be good to do one in winter when people don't want to go out."
D'Angelo's real complaint was not the calendar, but rather, the indefinite closure of the Waller Avenue and Lyon Place parking lot about a year and half ago, which she said cut her business down by a third.
"It's tremendously hurt businesses with no end in sight, said DAngelo. People pay a lot of money to get their hair done. They don't want to walk for blocks in the rain or snow.
John Picciano, of White Plains, owns Salon Flair, a few shops down on E. Post Road. He shared the same parking concerns, saying his staff personally parked cars for customers who drove around the block twice.
"Parking is a monumental problem. And we lost two-thirds of our customers during the recession, so we're trying to broaden our client base and we felt salon week was a good way to go about it," said Picciano, who originally chose his salon's location because of its proximity to the Waller Avenue parking lot.
However, Picciano said he wasn't sure if he'd participate in salon week again because he put more money into the promotion than he's earned back.
"We had a maximum of 10 calls about salon week, he said. Oddly enough, most of it came from neighbors who knew about me looking at signs and deciding this was the time to try us.
Have you heard of salon week? Would you take advantage of 50 percent off a haircut or color job? Where's your favorite salon in White Plains? Email thoughts to strangle@thedailywhiteplains.com or leave a message on the Daily White Plains on Facebook and we'll include your responses in future coverage.
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