When Farrah Foroushani recalls the time her go-to salon, Doan’s Hair and Spa, closed down because of a 2021 fire, it felt like a true catastrophe. Foroushani has been a loyal patron for nearly two decades—so loyal, in fact, that after being sent to Kentucky on a years-long work assignment, she continued to fly into Fremont to visit family and schedule monthly beauty appointments.
This August, the shop reopened in the same Walnut Avenue shopping complex, near a Smart & Final grocery store and several restaurants. “We knew we’d be back,” said Tammy Cao, co-owner and wife of Doan Nguyen, who started the salon in 1997. “We love this area, and all the customers here.”
The place looks brand new, but the clientele is not. “Don’t think that I’m a veteran,” Foroushani said, as Cao and sister-in-law Nikki Tran worked together to style her hair and paint her nails. “I met a lady who had another 10 years on me…She was so excited, for a whole week she was coming in every day…‘I just miss it so much,’ she told me.”
Other customers seem to feel similarly. On a sunny Tuesday afternoon, two tidily-dressed ladies sat patiently for an interview at the shop’s sleek new waiting area, singing the praises of their favorite beauty parlor.
“I’ve been coming since 1997,” said Margaret de la O, explaining that she liked how Doan’s offered a single convenient location for multiple services. “Everything’s in one space, so you don’t have to get in your car to go here and then there,” she said.
“I’ve had everything done,” chimed Phyllis Sheng, another Fremont resident with a quiet demeanor and an impeccable haircut. Sheng appreciates the establishment’s cleanliness and familial atmosphere.
Rising costs in the salon industry
Doan’s prices remain reasonable despite rising business pressures from increasing wages and costs. According to the spa menu, kids’ haircuts start at $15, while women’s haircuts are $30 and up. Regular manicures and pedicures are $25 and $30, with extra offerings for gel or acrylic nails and dip powders.
These rates seem like an especially good value when compared to high-end hair salons in larger cities like New York and Los Angeles, which can charge over $500 for a cut and color, according to the Wall Street Journal. Throughout America, the consumer price index shows that the prices of haircuts and other personal care services have risen over 27% in the last five years.
But value and consistency alone don’t seem to fully explain the powerful affection that customers feel for Doan’s. The business has done no advertising since reopening, shared Kalena Cao, who works alongside her sister Tammy. Some clients tried to book appointments before the new phone line was even set-up. Without being asked, others started a new Yelp listing for the updated location. One even facilitated the interview with this very newspaper. The business is open seven days a week, and looking to hire a massage therapist to expand offerings.
What’s the secret to such a strong following?
“When you find the right salon for you, with services you like, and you connect with the people, it’s hard to replace them,” Foroushani said. Doan’s Hair and Spa exudes a calm, amicable atmosphere. The place feels clean and bright, with large airy rooms and a wide assortment of beauty products. But more than anything else, there’s a tone of familial camaraderie.
Many longtime employees returned to the store after it reopened, and their children, who sometimes visited as kids, are now grown up. Foroushani’s daughter Mahsa, who’s been to the parlor since she was a teenager, reminded her mother of the time Doan Nguyen spent hours dyeing Foroushani’s hair platinum blonde for a Marilyn Monroe costume. Clients also remember the salon staff from decades ago: “I remember when the sister [Kalena] was still in high school,” de la O laughed.
A good deal of time is spent listening and chatting during the quiet work of preparing facials or painting toenails. Clients seem to know that when they come, they will feel heard and taken care of.
“It’s your time to just relax,” de la O said, adding, “You go away and come back happy.”
Doan’s Hair and Spa
3367 Walnut Ave., Fremont
510.793.6706
