Salon Skanda

Salon Skanda is a family-owned boutique in Sandy Springs, run by owners Kristal, Jeff and Cheryl. It sits in the Abernathy Square shopping center beside New Balance. The salon names respect, happiness and teamwork as its core values, and describes its feel as warm, welcoming, fun and friendly.

Visits are team-based. Several designers may work on one client, and clients can ask for a specific designer as lead designer. The lead designer handles main services such as blonding, extensions and cutting, while support designers take on shampoos, toning and blowdrying. Pricing depends on how much time the look needs, and is shaped by hair thickness, length and condition on arrival. Exact prices are set at an in-person consultation, and the cost of a shampoo and hot-tool blowout or curly styling is included with every service.

Curly and natural hair is a central focus, with work ranging from swavy and wavy to super coily textures. The Custom Curly Cut is a dry cut shaped to each client's curls, using curly cutting techniques and aimed at visual balance rather than precision. It is required for first-time curly clients. Curl Therapy is a one-on-one session with a curl specialist covering product recommendations, application, and techniques for defusing and refreshing curls at home. Curl styling is done with a wash-and-go method only, without twist-outs or finger coiling. Clients who wear their hair curly most of the time are steered toward the curly cut, while those who wear it blown out or straight more than half the time are steered toward the Precision Cut.

Blonde clients can book highlights and balayage, and extension clients receive a custom quote after a consultation. New color clients, extension clients and specialty cases need a consultation, which includes a patch test for allergies. Consultations run from 15 to 30 minutes, and their fee of $25 to $50 is applied to services booked. New guests pay a deposit that holds their time and goes toward services. Out-of-town clients can book virtual consultations, while local clients book in person. The salon does not offer refunds, but clients can return within 10 days of a service for adjustments.

The salon has a few commitments beyond the chair. It offers organic and eco-friendly hair care, partnered with Green Circles Salons in 2015 to reduce its carbon footprint, and partners with Eufora, a company focused on ecologically conscious and fair trade business. New team members complete an intensive training program on the salon's signature systems, and the team trains with Cut it Kinky, Lorraine Massey of Deva Curl, Deva Curl, Scott Musgrave of Curly Hair Artistry, and Sally Rogerson. A Model Program offers services at a lower cost from team members in training.

A team-based salon where several designers may work together on one client, with a lead designer who can be requested for main services and support designers handling shampoos, toning and blowdrying.

The salon describes its setting as warm, welcoming, fun and friendly.