Rembrandts is a salon on the Boreenmanna Road in Cork. They have a big spacious hair and beauty salon with ample parking and love great hair. We spoke to Samantha the owner about her journey from Shannon Co Clare to London, Manchester and back to Ireland where she settled in Cork.
Samantha, tell us a little bit about you and how Rembrandts came about?
I am originally from Shannon, Co Clare and started an apprentice there at 16 years of age after a summer job in the salon. Rembrandts opened in 2002 on High Street in Cork.
I moved to a bigger more spacious premises in 2010 due to increased business and I wanted to introduce nails and beauty also. I liked the idea of the salon being called after a famous artist hence where the name ” Rembrandts” came from!
Tell us about your team?
Rembrandt’s will be open 17 years this June and we pride ourselves on providing a top-class service to all our client’s and all my staff are highly trained in all aspects of hair. We have done some work with RTE that we were delighted to be involved in, seeing our work on the TV was an incredible accomplishment. There are 14 staff members on our team, stylists, trainee’s, 2 receptionists, Inga who runs “Nail Envy” and Martina runs the beauty clinic.
How do you keep such a big team motivated?
They regularly attend training seminars to keep up with all the latest trends. We believe education is key. There is no point in being trendy unless you upskill to match. We are always evolving as a team, but we have many team members who are with us a long time. As a result, we have built up a fabulous relationship with our clients, making a relaxing, enjoyable, atmosphere all around. All our stylists have completed their colour masters through Alfaparf.
We do free consultation and skin testing on all our clients and do packages for all occasions including bridal. This includes early opening to ensure our clients have plenty of time to get to their occasion. We have an extensive array of hair treatments including Olaplex, Hair support, Alfaparf, Joico and an ammonia free Organic colour that is popular. They are very hardworking and enthusiastic and love seeing their work and new skills being used on the salon floor.
How do you promote your business?
We have excellent parking and access to all main roads, we are on Facebook and Instagram and run monthly offers on both and post our latest work, trends and our new products also. Winning Hi’s Most Stylish Large Hair and Beauty Salon was a great boost for the team and business also. Word of mouth is important to our business too. People telling their friends and family is a big way of gaining new clients, they are our walking advertisements.
What are your predictions for hair for 2019?
Our hair predictions for spring 2019 are still natural looking roots with brightened ends even adding pastel colours for example dusty pinks, lilacs, silver and icy tones. Beauty waves are very popular or effortless easy sleeked back styles, buns and ponytails. Bridal hair is evolving also but perhaps at a slower rate than occasional styles.
How do you advise people to keep their hair in good condition?
We love offering our advice on new styles and trends in colour and cutting, we love seeing the results and always advise our clients on how to maintain their hair at home to keep it in perfect condition. We retail a full range of products and all our team are trained to offer aftercare advice. We look forward to seeing our regular and new clients coming into our salon for pampering.