Byram native won't let "landmark" salon die

BYRAM — Vanessa Visceglia grew up in Byram and is one of the town's biggest fans. So much so, that she couldn't let a place in neighboring Stanhope that was near and dear to her heart die.

She worked at Hairloom Salon on and off over the years and when its owner told her and the other employees that if one of them didn't take it over, she would close it, Visceglia — with a little prodding and support of her coworkers — stepped up to the plate.

She's only owned what she is calling Hairoom Revitalized for a few months, but her relationship with the salon dates back to around 1993 when she graduated from beauty school.

Upon graduation, she was snatched up by a salon called Sandra's Finale which was located in Succasunna. It just so happened that the owner's best friend was a woman named Eileen Mazzarisi who was the owner of Heirloom. From then on, Visceglia said, "I just always knew Eileen." Hairloom has had a number of owners, and it fell into Mazzarisi's hands in the early 90s.

Years went by, and Byram Day in 2010, she ran into her boss from Sandra's Finale who promptly let her know that Hairoom needed a manicurist. Visceglia got a job at Hairloom, but after a few months back in the nail business realized things had changed. "It used to be that you got your nails done at a hair salon," she said. "Times had changed and unless you had a following of clients, most people were opting for the now-popular strictly nail salons."

With this realization, she decided to switch careers. She went to school to become a personal trainer and was just about to start a business when she got a call from Hairloom. Mazzarisi had been in a terrible accident and broken her neck. The owner/hair stylist needed help. Her manicurist, who had a following, had left. Realizing her passion was doing nails, Visceglia took on the manicure client base and was part-time at Hairloom doing nails plus, helping out Mazzarisi with everything from daily operation to banking to whatever was needed.

In October of 2012, Mazzarisi said she wanted one of her girls to take over the business. "The other girls had all owned a salon at one point, and they told me it was my turn and that I could do it," Visceglia said. She was wavering, and then, she got a fortune cookie that said, "Don't let the opportunity pass you by." That was that, she took over ownership of Hairloom.

Visceglia added a fresh coat of paint, rearranged and added stations and added pedicure stations and a private hair processing room. she said she has received many compliments from long-time clients. Since then, one of the salon's original owners popped in. "She lives out of the area but was visiting and came in. When she said she was 'impressed,' that made me very happy, said Visceglia."

"I grew up in Byram and there are so many vacant spots in the strip malls and places going out. I couldn't let that happen to Hairloom," she said.

Visceglia said she couldn't have done it without her employees and clients. "Everyone's helped me with a little something," she said. One client who went to school for computers even did a Web site for her, while another came up with business cards.

Though the name remains Heirloom, a banner that says Hairloom Revitalized hangs in front of the Route 206 store front.

Two of Visceglia's biggest fans are her sons, Rocco who is 12 and Michael who's 14. Rocco wanted a pink Mohawk to acknowledge Breast Cancer Awareness Month. When your mom owns a salon, that's an easy request. Once he got it, word spread and soon her older son, Michael, had one as did many of his friends on his football team. Other area teams followed suit.

Visceglia runs her salon with complete optimism. "If you're in a bad mood, you can't stay in a bad mood when you come in," she said. She also inadvertently discovered that there are soccer moms and others who really like the salon's new Sunday and Monday hours. "I know Sunday is supposed to be the day of rest, but with some of these women's schedules, there just isn't any other time. They come in and relax at the salon on a Sunday."

Visceglia had planned a grand opening but Hurricane Sandy caused her to postpone. Her new grand opening will be held on Saturday, Feb. 9 and be set to a Valentine Day theme complete with s chocolate covered strawberries and non-alcoholic bubbly drinks. The event will run for the entire day and feature games for kids and a big door prize to be raffled to a lucky winner.

Hairloom Revitalized is located at 21 Route 206 South in Stanhope.

The salon offers standard and specialty services.