Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/74664
RET AILING TODA Y Quick fix BLOW-DRY-ONLY SALON DRYBAR WANTS EVERYONE TO HAVE A GOOD-HAIR DAY By Renée DeGross Valdés M 28 SCT / AUGUST 2012 ANY WOMEN ARE PICKY about hairdressers, and once they find the one they want, they typically stay loyal. They may be still more difficult to satisfy when it comes to blowing out their hair, however, which has given rise to a blow-dry-only concept based in Irvine, Calif., called Drybar. The chain, which includes celebrities Cindy Crawford and Zooey Deschanel among its clients, operates 15 shops, most of them in California plus some in Arizona, Georgia, New York and Texas. "It's unbelievable what has happened in just two years," said founder Alli Webb, who started her own business by doing clients' hair inside their homes. Webb opened the first Drybar unit in February 2010, in Los Angeles, with her brother, Michael Landau, a former Yahoo marketing executive who put in $200,000 and is now the company's CEO. "I can't believe my little mobile business turned into this empire. I couldn't have foreseen all of this." Part of the growth of this empire ini- tially came through franchising, though the company has pulled back from that, choosing to open just company-owned units going forward. The company ex- pects to be operating 25 shops, including one at Santana Row, in Silicon Valley, by year-end. "Drybar will keep our shopping options new and fresh," said Jeff Kreshek, vice president of West coast leasing at Federal Realty Investment Trust, which owns Santana Row. "Being a man and be- ing bald, I don't profess to know a lot about hair, but it's a very hot concept and not a passing fad. When it opens, Drybar will keep us relevant with our younger female customer." Federal Realty opened a Drybar also in Plaza El Segundo, near Manhattan Beach, Calif., in March, and a unit is pending for Bethesda (Md.) Row, though there is no opening date there yet. A blowout at Drybar costs $35, except in New York City, where it goes for $40. Why this spe- cialty now? "We're getting