When we heard about hot new colour-only salon Hue, we just had to check it out. Billing itself as a specialist colour salon, Hue say they don’t do ‘do’s, only colour – pure, gorgeous, fabulous colour!
Tee headed down there with some of the girls to chat with Hue’s owner Jenny about the Hue philosophy, the ins and outs of what makes a fabulous colouring experience and to try out the Hue experience for herself….
When you chat to Hue’s owner, Jenny Aiken, you realise this is a lady passionate about creating great hair colour for nzgirls. Originally from a beauty background, Jenny dreamt up the concept of Hue after deciding what it was that she enjoyed so much about getting her hair done at a salon; spending time in a nice environment, feeling welcomed by the staff, being able to chat with your girlfriends while you’re being pampered, enjoying a nice cup of coffee or vino and flicking through great magazines.
Overall, it was about a luxury experience with a glamourous result – gorgeous hair colour! It doesn’t take much convincing your average nzgirl to take up said experience.
However, Jenny’s next task was to think about the barriers that stopped women from colouring their hair regularly at a salon:
- Pricey treatments and services were hard to fit in a monthly budget
- Having to pay extra for styling (blow dry, straighten) you don’t want/can’t afford/don’t need if you’re going home to watch TV in your trackies.
- It can take hoooooooooooours to get everything done – who has time for that?
- Some ladies experience discomfort from the chemicals in traditional hairdye
In Jenny’s experience as a colur customer she found that there was no middle ground between the pricey salon experience that set you back $200+ and the haphazard at home job that cost $10. Where was the happy medium? Like every kiwi success story, she saw the gap in the market, garnered up some support and went for it…
Hue conquers these traditional hair salon barriers by:
- Offering affordable treatments (without sacrificing quality), prices start from $45 for foils and up to $85 for a full head of highlights.
- Providing a DIY style booth, set up with the latest tools and products to ensure you leave looking glam but without paying an extra $70
- The services offered are fast and professional to ensure you’re in and out looking great with an average appointment time of under an hour!
- Hue offers organic colours so that pregnant ladies, those with medical conditions that prevent traditional hairdye treaments or those who are careful about what they put on their bodies are able to still enjoy a colour experience.
When Jenny first announced the concept, the timing meant it was April 1 and many potential clients thought the concept was an April Fool’s Day joke because it sounded too good to be true! Once of the biggest points of differnece for Hue is price. With most other luxury objects many everyday woman usually have the chance to pick them up at reasonable price during sales or end of season – when does your local hair salon run a special or sale on hair colour?
Two years in the making, the salon is now open in Auckland’s Mount Eden – tucked in the Bodytech building on Normandy Road near Sabato and CAC.
The only thing left to do was try for ourselves…
Nadia had her roots touched up with blonde foils with colourist Jade , Ramarea had hernaturally dark locks enhanced and a warm base by Hayley and Kelly looked after Tee with an organic colour adding shine and gloss and some sassy red foils underneath.
We loved:
- The movable mirrors that meant we could all sit around the same table and chat while we waited for the colour to set. Perfect for a girlie catch up!
- The Hue extra treatment – Kelly has magical hands when it comes to the massage!
- The stunning chandeleir that lit up the middle of the room
- The Allpress coffee on offer – delish!
- The great array of international magazines – perfect inspiration
- The organic colour experience: no nasty chemical smell or itchy/burning sensations, with the same glossy, long lasting result!
If it’s time to get those roots looked at, or your hair’s in need of a winter pick-me-up, head down to see Jenny and the team at Hue for a colour experience that will leave you with beautiful tresses, without the stresses! Check them out online, www.hue.co.nz
For those of you out there, not based in Auckland, don’t worry, Jenny has plans for global domination – we’ll keep you posted!
And say nzgirl sent you …
Tee
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