Located in the legendary Peabody Hotel in downtown Memphis for more than 30 years, Gould’s Salon/Spa has delighted hotel guests with an array of beauty and spa services. But with more than 50,000 people moving downtown to live in the past several years, the Salon/Spa became fully booked with locals, with few appointments left for hotel guests. With no extra space available for expansion within the Peabody, Philip Gould, president, and his management team went to work and found the perfect new location just a block away.
After beginning construction Labor Day weekend, last month, Philip and his team soft opened their beautiful new 6,500-square-foot location with a team of almost 50. The new Gould’s Salon/Spa features a full-service hair salon, complete skin care, including Medi Spa services; massage therapy, a luxurious mani/pedi area and a men’s barbershop, complete with an old-fashioned barber pole for authentic flavor.
“We’re now in prime, high-visibility space, on two floors on the corner of Main and Union, one of the busiest areas of Memphis,” explains Philip. “We remodeled an old building, giving it a contemporary edge with open ceilings, lots of glass and a unique LED track lighting system with custom-painted tracks to match our décor. Also important, we have an attached parking garage, which is critical to our success.”
He adds, “The barbershop, which is a first for our company, has been very well received. Barbering is smoking hot, as evidenced by the growing men’s concept salons around the country. We wanted to test the waters after discovering a high demand from the new downtown residents. Because it’s a legitimate barbershop, we can offer in-demand straight razor shaves, plus hot towel treatments, as well as traditional men’s hair care.”
The Salon/Spa also has a strong emphasis on retail, with Bumble + bumble, Pureology, American Crew, a large private label line, Murad, Pure Figi and more displayed prominently.
The new Salon/Spa brings Gould’s company to 11 Salons/Spas plus one school. As more evidence of the Memphis boon—and the quality of the Gould’s operation—the school is starting a capacity class of 32 on March 1. With a curriculum that includes Sassoon Cutting, the MUD makeup curriculum and a separate esthetics program, there’s something for every student pursuing his or her dreams in beauty.
Philip is very optimistic about the growth potential. “We were very fortunate to hire an excellent team, which includes 90% new hires,” he explains. “We have more stylists, estheticians and nail technicians who want to work at this location than at any time in Gould’s history. Plus, the growth of Downtown Memphis shows no signs of slowing. For example, there are several new hotels on the drawing board and a huge new lifestyle center in the old Pyramid Athletic Arena, which used to seat 18,000. It includes the Bass Pro Shop’s U.S. flagship store, a lake with alligators and a hotel that Forbes named to its list of the Top 10 in the world. That’s on top of all of the new downtown residents.”
