The wig whisperer - the salon service you need to know about

Women are changing up their hair more often than ever with inspiration coming at them from every corner of the Internet. But going from black to platinum blonde to pink back to black will irreparably compromise the health of the hair. So many women are turning to realistic wigs and frontals to go for a different style, colour and cut without damaging their hair. Using good quality human hair and having the wig made bespoke for them however is a costly luxury with some stylists charging into the thousands for the service due to the longevity of the wig's style. When looked after properly wigs can last longer than any hair cut or colour ever would. However, other than the advice that they may or may not be given when they buy their wig there is no way for they hair to get the same treatment you'd expect as a client trying to restore a style or colour and bring it back to it's best condition. That's were Sade Popoola wants to shake things up with her service; Wigs Concierge. We interviewed her to discuss the service and how it benefits the salon's business... How did you come up with the idea? I was ill at home recovering from a double eye operation, had to stop work for about two months which was quite difficult for me. One of the days, bored out of my head I decided to get my wigs out and give them a clean it was then I realised that even though I wasn't running my salon I still loved styling. The lightbulb went on and thought a lot of women would welcome this, so I gave it a test run on Facebook and I was getting a lot of messages so I started going to a few networking events once I started feeling better. Women I spoke to were always delighted their wigs could be restored.

I had a lady who tried to wash her expensive wefts in the washing machine

One particular lady said she had a wig she really loved but it had started to look terrible and she had taken it to a salon and she was told to get rid of her wig because it could not be salvaged as it was synthetic. I assured her it could be salvaged but she didn't really believe me until it was done and she was amazed that her favourite wig, although synthetic, was back to her looking like new, soft, bouncy with lustre. I also had a lady who tried to wash her expensive wefts in the washing machine, it was all damaged by the time she brought it out, stuck together just really bad, I assured her it could be salvaged and I did to her utter delight she nicknamed me the wig whisperer. My school of thought is that 'a woman should only buy a wig because she wants a change not because she ruined it'. What is the payment structure? It will be an agreed percentage between the salon and Wigs Concierge. Wigs Concierge will have no direct contact with salons clients in order not to encroach on their clientele. What were you doing before this? I have a background in hairdressing and beauty which spans about 20 years in total in the beauty industry.. Before Wigs Concierge I ran my salon which a salon and a barbershop (which my husband controlled as he is also a barber). We ran that together for about 11 years in addition to that that I was head stylist and makeup artist for top television stations in Nigeria.  How do you foresee the service growing in the hair market? Wigs Concierge holds the science to restoring both synthetic and human hair wigs. This particular service I am providing is very niche. We will work alongside hairdressers helping them bring in extra revenue where we do all the work and no contact is made with the clients. So working as an independent party and partnerships with hairdressers there are two revenue income streams that will keep the business running. Most women have multiple wigs so I believe the service will be on a high demand when women know about us.