Beauty Bar by Shawna owner Shawne Glover expanded her business to include hair, brows, manicures, pedicures, body waxing and lash extensions.
Mackenzi Klemann | The Lima News
Beauty Bar by Shawna owner Shawna Glover became a mental health advocate after hearing about her clients’ daily struggles.
Mackenzi Klemann | The Lima News
CELEBRATING OUR SPIRIT
Small businesses make the world go round. The Small Business Administration reports 99.7% of all firms with paid employees are small businesses, accounting for 46.8% of private-sector employees in the United States.
Celebrating Our Spirit celebrates a handful of these businesses, showcasing examples where the little guys are accomplishing big things. Read more stories online at LimaOhio.com/tag/spirit.
LIMA — Shawna Glover is offering a unique style of customer service, focusing on mental health advocacy.
Glover opened the Beauty Bar by Shawna in 2016, six years after obtaining her cosmetology license. Her salon has steadily grown by word of mouth, the only advertising Glover relies on.
But years of owning and working in salons taught Glover that her clients may need mental health support, even if they don’t realize it.
So, Glover sought training to learn how to navigate conversations and support her clients without judgment, sharing her own stories and gently pointing clients in need of support to services already available in the community.
“We pretty much are counselors,” Glover said. “Everybody lays everything on you, and you have to learn how to listen and give advice.”
She added, “A lot of people need (help), and they don’t realize how many resources are out there.”
By the time they leave the Beauty Bar, located at 1519 N. Main St., Suites 1 and 2, Lima, Glover said her clients often feel “refreshed and enlightened.”
Glover always enjoyed playing with hair, a hobby that started in childhood. It never felt like work to Glover, who didn’t initially consider a career in cosmetology.
“The Lord saw different,” Glover said.
Glover told herself she would open her own business five years after she earned her license, but Glover is still surprised by her success.
The Beauty Bar started as a hair salon, gradually offering other beauty services such as manicures, pedicures, brow and body waxing and eyelash extensions. Each new service required new certifications and training for Glover, who works with an aesthetician and manicurist.
Glover’s success comes from a loyal client base that has followed her for a decade and is willing to vouch for her to friends and family, bringing new customers to the Beauty Bar without direct advertising.
But the best part for Glover is seeing clients who came in feeling “down and out” leave the salon feeling refreshed.
“It’s nice to have that one-on-one time and relax,” she said.
