When hair stylists and coworkers COURTNEY PETERSON and ALEX MAY decided to join forces and open Citrus Salon in downtown Wilmington, the duo had a vision in mind. Both women had previous experience with Aveda salons and found it an obvious next step to continue with an established brand whose values and products they stood behind. They also knew they wanted to create a business that felt welcoming to everyone who entered. “At the end of the day, our goal is always the same,” May says. “We want our clients to be happy, we want our employees to be happy, and we want everyone to not only feel welcome but know that they are.”
One huge step toward that mission was to instate gender-neutral pricing, where services are priced based on the time, techniques, and tools used to achieve a certain look instead of the gender of the client. When the team was gearing up to open by developing their website and online presence, a soon-to-be client reached out on Instagram feeling off-put by descriptors such as men’s haircut and women’s haircut. The suggestion led May to reflect on the gender-based pricing structure commonly implemented at salons and investigate alternatives. “Because when you think about it, it is strange that haircuts have been traditionally broken into women and men. It should be the length of your hair, the density of your hair, the texture and style, and how much time client and stylist are putting into it.”
At first, according to Peterson and May, the only real challenge with the shift was in how to communicate it effectively, and they worked to create wording that would be easy for clients to navigate when booking. “There was a little bit of confusion at first for clients asking, ‘OK, how do I book this?’” May says. “But nothing that was like, ‘Why do you have it like that?’ It’s really only been positive reactions.” In fact, some clients are drawn to the salon because of the gender-neutral pricing. “I feel like we’ve had a lot of people that come in and specifically say they’ve come to us because of that reason,” Peterson adds. “They like what we stand for.”
May and Peterson both credit this approach as a way to serve all clients more effectively, ensuring that no one is “put in a box.” If someone wants a buzz cut, a fade, a blowout, extensions – it’s all on the table and it’s all offered with a stylist who specializes in a type of cut, not a type of person. “Not everyone realizes what it might feel like to be transitioning or to simply want a more feminine or masculine styled cutting,” May says. “But we make it really known that whatever you’re looking for, you can find here in a safe and inclusive environment.”
The impacts of that are both far-reaching and deeply personal. As for that soon-to-be client who first reached out to May and Peterson pre-opening, they eventually became a dedicated client during their transition from male to female, looking for tips on how to grow out their hair and style it. “I remember them coming in maybe a year and a half ago,” May says. “They had completely transitioned at this point and were dressing super feminine. They were like, ‘I don’t know if you remember who I am, but you were a huge part of my journey.’ That was just – I mean, that was a really, really cool moment for me.”
To view more of photographer Aris Harding’s work, go to arisharding.com.
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