Opening the Doors to More Than a Salon When I opened the doors to Shag Noir Salon in March 2022, I wasn’t just inviting people in for haircuts and color. I was inviting them into a proposition—a challenged norm within the beauty industry, especially in East Austin: that a Black-owned, radically inclusive space—free of toxic chemicals, tip jars, and superficial expectations—could thrive on its own terms. That our relationship with hair, especially as Black and brown people, is layered, emotion...

Shag Noir: More Than a Salon—A Radical Proposition for Community and Care in East Austin