Small Business Finalist: Rookie Small Business: Green Ginger Hair Design

Location: 10 S. Adams Drive, St. Armands Circle

Start date: The salon opened more than 30 years ago as Hair Design of St. Armands; the Halls took ownership of the business in December 2009 and renamed it Green Ginger Hair Design.

First job ever: Gordon Hall drove a bread van for a baker in college; Lynda Hall got her start as a hairdresser at 14 at a salon in Newcastle, England.

What is something you wish you knew when you got started in business? “To be aware of clients and be a people person,” Lynda Hall said. “You need to treat every client that comes in as if they’ve been here before, even if they’re a new client.”

Favorite way to spend a day off: Walking the beach

Biggest challenge: “To grow the business every year and to be a name that everyone knows,” Lynda Hall said.

Typical day on the job: Gordon Hall often works from home, spending much of his time on the telephone and computer, working on tasks such as purchasing and dealing with product representatives. Lynda Hall is in the salon around 8:30 a.m. preparing hot coffee. Then, it’s taking care of stylist and client needs, booking appointments and making sure everything runs smoothly all day, every day.

Business idol: Gordon Hall’s idols are Amway co-founders Richard DeVos and Jay Van Andel. “They started the company with one product, and that was soap,” he said. “Now, it’s a multibillion-dollar corporation. Lynda Hall’s idol is legendary British hairstylist and product tycoon Vidal Sassoon. “He is just one of the greatest creators in our industry,” she says. “He was always ahead of his time.”

Where do you see your business in five years? “Certainly we’ll still be (on St. Armands Circle) but moving into different areas such as hair extensions, permanent makeup and non-surgical facelifts and recruiting more local stylists and adding in other services,” Gordon Hall said. (The salon will unveil some new services, such as extensions and permanent makeup, over the next few weeks.)

Number of employees when started: Five

Number of employees today: Nine