Velvet Salon merges with Bella Wellness for a new future

Owner Tahnie Macdiarmid is sad to see her salon on Main St. close, but she is looking forward to a new future in partnership with another salon in the city.

The decision to close her doors was one that Macdiarmid made for personal reasons. Business ownership is a busy endeavor, and she was looking to cut back and spend more time with her husband and two kids. 

She noted that owning a business involves a lot of risk, and while she was ready to step back a little, she wasn’t quite willing to give up the profession completely.

“I think that I've been ready for this for a while, just to kind of step back and just do my own thing,” said Macdiarmid. “My clients, they all know kind of what I've been going through, with the change and they all are completely on board.”

Macdiarmid is still offering her usual beauty expertise at the new salon — and is already booked up and busy for the summer. She’s also doing hairstyle examinations for the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade, and considering offering some hair styling classes in the future.

Macdiarmid and her staff are officially settled into their new spaces at Bella Wellness, now that the moving dust has settled, and are looking forward to the new partnership with Bella’s owner, Michelle Seida-Dodd.

“I've known Michelle pretty much my whole life. . . I just thought that this would be a good match for me,” said Macdiarmid. “All of us are really excited to be joining with the Bella girls, and I think there's a lot to offer at this salon.”

Bella Wellness has also welcomed the new additions with open arms. On June 14-15, the salon is even hosting a celebration to welcome them to the team, with a variety of pop-ups from local businesses.

Macdiarmid is proud of her success with Velvet Salon. The business was open for 12 years and received the Marketing award at the Moose Jaw Business Excellence Awards in 2009, and was also nominated for the Customer Service award this year.

Additionally, Macdiarmid was also nominated at this year’s PRISM Awards for both the Mentor and Successful awards.

Velvet Salon’s former location has sold, and Macdiarmid isn’t sure what will be going in the space — but she knows it won’t be another hair salon. 

“That’s kind of the sad part of it, it's been a hair salon since the 1940s, and I was the last one in there,” said Macdiarmid. 

And although she has left behind the Velvet Salon marquee, Macdiarmid has kept the spirit intact and is looking forward to the flexibility of her new space.

"We're a very accommodating group of people and that's what people need, nowadays, because everyone's schedules are so crazy," said Macdiarmid.