Conversations with Kendra Gailey

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Kendra Gailey.

Hi Kendra, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
My name is Kendra Gailey. I am 33 years old and now reside in Grand Rapids, MI. I am a licensed hairstylist of over 13 years and have been self-employed since I was 22 years old.

I am happily married and madly in love with my high school sweetheart, Kyle; we have been together for 18+ years and married for 12+ years; we have 3 beautiful daughters, ages 8, 7, and 5. My youngest daughter is deaf, and we are all learning American Sign Language to help give her a sense of pride in her identity and foster language and close relationships with each other.

It has always been important to me to encourage females in both my personal and professional life to reach their full potential, feel beautiful and powerful from the inside out, and find their fire. I was blessed with three daughters and am determined to show them that they can do the same. I had worked in the Mason area for five years before opening Red’s Hair Studio in December 2017 in Leslie.

What started as a small, three-personal hair and nail studio quickly bloomed into a successful full-service salon and spa. I broke through walls, doubled the size of my space, and opened that part on February 8th, just four days after the shocking news that my 20-month-old daughter was identified with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. She had been Deaf since birth, and we had no idea. My professional life was exploding, while I felt as though my personal life was imploding all around me.

The next year was a juggling act of trying to manage a busy salon and keep it thriving while also constantly running my daughter to the many doctor’s appts, therapists, surgeons, etc. I was trying to advocate for my daughter In a world that I knew nothing about.

We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
In July 2022, I moved from Leslie, MI, to Grand Rapids, MI, and then closed my salon of over five years in February 2023. My youngest daughter, Kennedy, is deaf and needed to be in a better school district that was able and willing to provide her with equal opportunities to be successful. Unfortunately, the school district we were in was putting up a fight in terms of providing the proper resources for her and not respecting her as a Deaf individual.

Rather than wasting her early critical learning years, my husband and I decided we needed to uproot our lives and our children and move to Grand Rapids in order to give her the life she deserves. Unfortunately, that meant I lost everything I had worked for. I had a solid clientele that I had built up over the last 12 years, a large and successful salon that I had created from scratch, our dream home, and a huge and wonderful support system.

The dream that I had worked so hard for was shattered, and I had to start rebuilding my career in a new city. I had so much of my identity and worth wrapped up in my booming career, and now it was gone. What am I worth now? I gave myself a year of trying to get my bearings at a new salon, and then, once I was ready, I decided it was time to reinvent myself. I threw myself into lots of education, rebranding, and working to drum up some buzz over my name by really putting a strong focus on curly hair cutting and styling.

Because I no longer had a super full book and a 10-station salon to manage, I was able to really find what I was passionate about again and remember why I love what I do. Connecting with people, helping to restore inner confidence and self-esteem, and showing them the true beauty in how they were designed to be. It’s showcasing the beauty of their curls, but it’s really so much more than just the hair. It’s breathing love into a place where there was none.

I now am a curly hair specialist, and I focus on giving my clients a realistic and regular routine so they can fully understand and embrace their hair and fall in love with it again. I also have recently found a passion for educating, and I have started offering curly cutting and styling classes to my fellow hair professionals, so they can feel confident in helping a curly client in their chair. Curly hair is an underrepresented area in our industry, and my goal is to give both stylists and clients alike the tools to take care of it.

Although I have gone through a huge season of loss and change, it has also been a huge season of growth. My Deaf daughter is thriving, my family is growing closer and stronger, and I have found that my worth and identity are so much more than just the hair. I would lose it all all over again if it meant that my daughter had what she needed. Her being Deaf has completely changed me as a person for the better. I am a better wife, mother, friend, and business owner because of it.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I enjoy spending quality time with my husband and three girls. We love to travel and experience new things. Our most recent trips have been to Scotland and Iceland!

I am very passionate about advocating for the Deaf community, learning more about Deaf culture, and growing my ASL skills. I truly love my job. It is a passion of mine. I also enjoy binge-watching Netflix with my husband, crocheting (a new endeavor!), and trying new restaurants!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @kendragaileyhairartist
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/kendragaileyhairartist
• Other: https://linktr.ee/kendragaileyhairart