Springfield salons expand, diversify in recent years

Anyone who thinks spas are a big-city thing and would never make it in Spring-field has not taken a good look around.

Day spas and spa/salon combinations are becoming more common in southwest Missouri, attracting everyone from teenage girls to thirtysomething businessmen.

Each spa has its own personal touch, but the key to these businesses is their focus on simple rest and relaxation.

Artworx

Artworx, located at 938 E. Walnut in the Historic Walnut District, began as a salon in 1998 and only added a spa in January, according to owners Lauren and Robert Nava.

Winning an award in Modern Salon Magazine was the best advertisement for the salon, Lauren Nava said. When the spa opened, customers came "primarily from word-of-mouth."

The salon specializes in haircut design and coloring, according to Robert Nava.

The spa offers custom facials, manicures and pedicures, and waxing, and the Navas plan to add massage therapy.

"The atmosphere here is a very individual basis," Lauren Nava said. "It's really one-on-one and very low-key."

The Navas said they think their salon and spa is different because of its location in a 103-year-old house.

"We didn't want to have the beauty parlor feel," Lauren Nava said. "We want to be part of the downtown development and we want to see downtown flourish."

She added that clients seem to enjoy the location and personal atmosphere. "This is their house too."

The Navas moved to Springfield from Arizona. Their clientele come from as far away as Branson, Kansas City, St. Louis, and even Tulsa, according to Robert Nava.

He thinks that the most important thing is that "it's more than just a clientele it's personal."

Artworx opens at 9 a.m. Wednesday through Saturday and does not close until its last appointment is done.

Aundria Spa & Salons

Getting word out to cosmetologists about the opening of Aundria Spa & Salons was Sharon Mellers' main focus when she began advertising the new enterprise.

Located at 4303 S. National in the Aundria Plaza, which opened in late April, Mellers said her business is set apart by the fact that it allows individual business owners to come together in a group setting.

The individual salon and spa operations are separated into their own rooms, and each business owner has the advantage of bringing in his or her own clientele, as well as adding new customers.

The business owners at Aundria Spa & Salons include hairdressers, nail technicians, massage therapists, and persons specializing in facials.

"The technicians get the opportunity to run their own business and be part of the bigger picture and part of the spa," Mellers said.

The spa pedicure is the most requested procedure, according to Mellers.

She also recommends the chair massage for a person "on the go" who needs a massage in a short amount of time

In addition to salon and spa services, customers may select pastries, espressos and smoothies from the caf located within the building. There also is a gift boutique that sells original artwork, wall and tabletop fountains, spa headwraps, bath and body products and gift items.

Mellers encourages customers to use the hearth room, a private room that can accommodate luncheon meetings and provide a quiet atmosphere, she said.

Spa and salon services are not just for women, either. The clientele of Aundria Spa & Salons is currently about 70 percent female and 30 percent male, Mellers said. "We are striving to be a spa atmosphere, but we want men to be comfortable," she added.

Aundria Spa & Salons is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday and Saturday; 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.

Esthetiques

The husband and wife team of Jene and LaDonna Rodriguez are the owners of Esthetiques Skin Care Spa & Clinic, 1335 E. Republic Road in the River Plaza Shopping Center.

Jene Rodriguez's parents own several day spas in Texas, and LaDonna and Jene worked for them before deciding to open a spa of their own in Springfield.

Esthetiques offers facials, massages, spa body treatments, manicures and pedicures, hydrotherapy and waxing.

It also offers microdermabrasion, which is a skin peeling process, and permanent cosmetics in the form of brow liner, eye liner and lip liner.

LaDonna Rodriguez said their spa is different from others not only because it is one of the only skin-care facilities in the Midwest, but because of its atmosphere.

"Customers can come to truly escape," she said. "They are in complete relaxation with our cocoa-colored walls, aromatherapy, and fountains in each room."

Many of Esthetiques' customers are female and people "in desperate need of relaxation," Rodriguez said.

Early spring is a busy time of year for the spa, and according to Rodriguez, the three major rushes of the year are around Christmas, Valentine's Day and Mother's Day.

Esthetiques is going on its second year in business and "looking for growth," Rodriguez said.

"There's a market we haven't even tapped into," she said. "This business is still new to the area."

Esthetiques, which means "skin boutique" in French, is open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday; 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday.