Today we’d like to introduce you to Ginger Hexum.
Hi Ginger, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Ooof. This is a fully loaded question and I have a fully loaded answer. (I’m known to be quite chatty haha) I grew up in a small town and have always been drawn to art and music. I cannot draw and I knew my chances of being a rock star were slim, so I searched out other creative outlets. I always experimented with my hair and makeup and was known to rock a pink mohawk from time to time.
When I was younger my aunt would always take me to her hairstylist in the city. I loved everything about it. The salon had amazing energy and was filled with people from every walk of life. I instantly became hooked and enrolled in cosmetology school as soon as I graduated high school.
I spent the first 12 years of my career as a hair-cutting specialist working for a prestigious salon in Minneapolis. It was an amazing experience. I became an educator for them and assisted in training new staff and working with beauty school students in the area. Then the pandemic hit and like most people, I sat at home and decided to reevaluate my life. That’s when I decided to take the leap and open my salon, The Hair Creative.
I’ve always been the person that gets frustrated if I don’t know how to help someone. By opening The Hair Creative, I knew I could pursue my passion and help people along the way. I have a few main goals for The HC, the first one is to help my fellow stylists. I love working with them and helping them find their passion and turning that into something profitable. I want to be their biggest cheerleader and help them find their limitless potential.
My second goal was to create a space where any guest can walk in and feel comfortable. Our mission is “Intentional beauty for all humans.” For so long, beauty standards have been defined by others for us, and through our work at The HC, we want to change that. The Hair Creative is a safe space where we support and encourage individuality, it’s a space that allows you to choose how you show up to the world.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Honestly, I would like to say it’s been easy, but it never truly is. I was very blessed to work with an amazing non-profit to secure my financing for the build-out of the salon. Through them, I attended small business courses, and I learned a ton. It was a little overwhelming, but I’m glad I did it.
Once I secured financing, then it was on to looking for a retail space, which I thought after the pandemic wouldn’t be hard to find. I was so wrong, I would find a space I liked, google what information was out there in it, and cold call the landlords. It took forever to find a space.
I first toured the space I’m at in May of 2021. It was the middle unit of 3 retail spaces all in a row. (It was the only unit I could afford) At the time I was the only one who wanted to move into the building, and the landlords did not want to build the middle first, So I waited, and called, waited some more, and called on it weekly.
I think they finally got sick of me calling, and they offered to make the corner unit smaller so I could move in there. I’ve now learned the construction process is a lot of hurrying up and waiting, but it was so worth it. I was finally able to move into the space in January of 2023.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Hair Creative was founded in 2022 with the idea of building a community based on acceptance and inclusion. We work hard to maintain a safer space where both stylists and guests alike can feel welcomed and accepted for who they are and where they are in life. As a business owner, my goal is to nurture new staff through continued education, unbridled support, and a true work/life balance.
We have partnered with The Dresscode Project, which is a super rad global alliance of salons committed to providing positive, gender-affirming services for LGBTQ2S+ clients. Their education provides stylists with the tools to give guests haircuts that make them look the way they feel, which is reflected in our gender-neutral service menu,
We are currently still adding talent to our team.
Our goal with staffing is to have multiple specialists in different areas – color and cutting specialists, locations, and extension specialists. We want anyone who walks in to feel a connection with their stylist beyond just hair. Our hair is such an important part of who we are as people, and it can affect us emotionally and spiritually. This is why we say that The HC is a place where everyone has the right to feel authentically beautiful.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I’ve pretty much always been the loud, outgoing person I am today. I had a high school teacher tell me that I’m more energetic than a social butterfly, and he called me a social alligator, which if you know me, makes total sense. I’ve known since I was a teenager that I would be a hairstylist and always did my friends’ hair and makeup for dances and events.
I’ve also always had a love of fashion, even though my entire wardrobe is black and filled with band t-shirts. I have been and will always be a huge music fan, and have built my style around some of my favorite artists. Even as a kid, I would save as much money as I could and drive to the city to go to a concert, then of course wear my new band T and brag about it at school the next day. To this day if I’m not in the salon, you will find me at any event with live music.
Pricing:
- Current haircuts start at $70
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thehaircreative.com
- Instagram: @thehaircreativempls
- Facebook: @TheHairCreativeMpls
