A Killeen couple has been providing beauty services to local residents for more than 25 years — starting with a facelift for an antique building.
Building off her vocational training as a stylist, Shelley Pardon began styling hair in a single chair at a tanning salon.
“I always wanted to be a stylist and provide an upscale type of service for the community,” Pardon said.
After two years working as a stylist, she and her husband, Craig Pardon, opened a salon together, serving the community for the past 25 years.
“I keep my license current, but I don’t do hair anymore,” Shelley said. “I have run the business for the past 12 years.”
The Pardons purchased a 1920s house that had been relocated from downtown Killeen in the 1980s to the current location at 4605 Trimmier Road.
“We did not personally relocate it, but it was cut in half and moved,” Pardon said. “Initially when we purchased it there was no central air, heating or plumbing. It was a complete remodel.”
Pardon said their attempts to research the history of the house have not panned out, and because of the relocation, they have not been able to obtain a historic marker.
As the history of the building remains lost in a haze, the Pardons continue to look ahead to the future of their business, providing educational opportunities and career advancement for their employees.
Four years ago in March, the Pardons expanded their business to a second location in Belton. Between the two locations, Shelley’s Hair, Body, and Skin employs 40 beauty professionals and offers a wide range of styling and pampering services.
“Our most popular services are hair coloring — your highlighting and all of your color,” Pardon said. “We are a complete hair salon and day spa offering upgraded services such as hydrafacial. We do a lot of body hair removal as well — and a lot of hair extensions.”
A full range of services is listed on the company’s website at https://shelleyshairandspa.com. Patrons can book appointments online or through an app on Google Play, or they can call either location to request pricing for the services they would like.
“We consider ourselves to be a market leader: we place a high priority on education,” Pardon said. “We are a summit salon — we offer a career path for our people. That is very important to me and my husband.”
Shelley’s Hair, Body and Skin offers health insurance benefits for their employees, which is not an industry standard, Pardon said.
“We’re not just about the hair and the skin and all of those things,” Pardon said. “We are all about growing our people personally, too. We focus on their mental health and what they can achieve if they pursue it. They have the ability to be some of the top earners in our industry.”
Stylists from Shelley’s train on 5th Avenue in New York City, and at the pro lab in California, Pardon said.
“We are a Redkin Black Elite salon, which is their top tier level,” Pardon said. “There are only about 400 of those in the U.S., and we are one of those.”
For the past 14 years, the Pardons’ salon has been a Summit Salon, following the Summit Salon business program.
Because the Pardons strive to provide the best opportunities for their employees, they have had dedicated and loyal staff, many of whom have worked with the company for 11 to 18 years.
The consistency in their staff allows the Pardons to provide consistency for their clients.
“Wednesday we celebrated 25 years in business in Killeen—that was the actual day,” Pardon said. “We honored 23 clients that have been with us for 25 to 27 years, and gave them some nice gifts from us. It was a really great day.”
Keeping up with ever-evolving education keeps Shelley’s a leader in the industry, Pardon said.
“The first tenant in our code of honor is to commit to personal development,” Pardon said. “Place yourself in great classes and be continually learning—we never stay stagnant. That keeps us growing through the years.”
In addition to industry development, the Pardons offer holistic development classes to their staff, from finance to mental health development.
“Through the years we are always trying to find the best products and the best new thing,” Pardon said. “We own two of the latest hydro-facial machines, and we hand-select all of the products that we sell retail to the guests. We are very grounded in what we choose.”
Shelley’s stocks the exclusive and luxurious Kérastase brand, Pardon said.
Although they were forced to close their doors for nine weeks during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pardon said their business came back stronger with additional training and enhanced sanitation practices.
“During that time we handled all of our staff’s paperwork for TWC,” Pardon said. “I filed a mass claim and we met with our staff pretty much every day on zoom for several weeks trying to keep them calm and informed. They were getting payments some of them the very next week.”
Pardon said her husband built screens to provide protection to their guests as well as their staff when they re-opened.
“Covid taught us a lot, we came together as a team,” Pardon said. “Some of our staff were very scared—we touch people for a living. We put a lot of systems in place—for the guests and for our staff as well. We thrived through COVID, it wasn’t this horrible thing for us.”
Born and raised in Killeen, Shelley and Craig have enjoyed being a staple in the local community, with loyal guests who help their business flourish, Pardon said.
The Pardons have also embraced the revolving nature of the military community, with guests who come in for a short time and then move away.
“Guests will PCS away for four years and then come back and find us,” Pardon said. “They tell us how much they miss us as a company because they love our people. I think that makes a difference. We have enjoyed being part of the community for such a long time. We are grateful for the local people who have kept us successful.”
