MaineBusiness.com

Anybody who has been to a full-service hair salon lately can attest to the fact that most of the time, the air quality is not the best (to put it mildly). The strong, chemical smells can usually be blamed on a mix of hair color fumes, permanent solutions and often, nail polishes. In contrast to many traditional salons, however, Jennifer Leigh, of O2 Salon and Spa in Portland, has made a conscious decision to choose more natural hair and skin products. “We use green products when we can and strive to be cruelty-free,” Leigh says. Many of the salon's hair products are made from natural, botanical and even organic ingredients.

Leigh opened the O2 Salon and Spa at its Congress Street location about 10 years ago and has grown her business from a one-woman-show to a team of four. In addition to having 22 years of experience as a cosmetologist, stylist and teacher, Leigh also has a degree in furniture design from Maine College of Art. While her art degree is not always relevant to her current career, Leigh believes it helped to develop her creative eye. Currently, O2 offers salon services for hair and skin, as well as massage services and polarity therapy. Polarity therapy is a combination of yoga, nutrition counseling and Reiki energy healing. Leigh herself is a Master Stylist and color expert.

When Leigh was renovating her current space, she researched ways to be green as she began the remodeling process. Leigh says she learned that the greenest way to remodel is actually to retain as much as possible from the original space, reducing the amount of waste that is created. The result is a simple, sunny space in what used to be the State Theater building. As she has always been an avid recycler, Leigh and her team recycle everything at the salon that they can, from paper to shipping supplies to coffee cups. As there is no curbside pick-up for businesses in Portland, Leigh makes weekly trips to a recycling center. The salon has also gone paperless with some of its business practices recently, as Leigh has eliminated printed reports and customer receipts. When it is necessary to make printed copies, they use recycled paper. Leigh also buys locally whenever she can, choosing small companies like her own that share her point of view.

O2 offers low-ammonia hair color to its clients, that, while not considered “all-natural”, is a greener alternative to many traditional products. Not only is this kind of hair color gentler to a person's skin and hair, it also means that fewer harsh chemicals are washed down the drain during rinsing. Leigh chooses sulfate and salt-free shampoos, which are better for the environment as well as petroleum-free products. While O2 does not offer nail services at this time, they do sell formaldehyde-free nail polishes, which emit less fumes into the air. “Most of our products are scented only with essential oils,” Leigh says. “Many of them you could eat with a spoon, not that they would taste good,” she adds.

Leigh says she does not know if the ups and downs of the economy have affected her business negatively, as she has been growing slowly, despite the current economic climate. In fact, she applied for and received a small business loan last September, on the threshold of last year’s credit crisis. While Leigh offers green salon alternatives whenever she can, she is still able to keep her prices competitive. Her goal is to develop long-lasting relationships with her clients in a relaxing and stress-free environment. “By choosing cruelty-free and green products, I find O2 draws a kind and gentle clientele, so it's a win-win,” Leigh concludes.

O2 Salon and Spa
605 Congress St.
Portland, ME 04101
207-253-1550
www.o2salonandspa.com

For more info on what Maine businesses are doing to be more eco-friendly, see the MaineBusiness.com green guide.