Local hair salons join ‘Strands for Trans’ network, pledge to welcome LGBTQ community
Erica Thompson, The Columbus Dispatch
4 min read
Citrine Hair and Skin in Franklinton is part of the international "Strands for Trans" network of trans-friendly salons and barbershops.
Some salons are saying goodbye to gender-based haircuts.
Traditionally, assumptions were made about a “woman’s cut” and a “man’s cut” — and the former was always priced higher.
Now, salons such as Citrine Hair and Skin in Franklinton’s River & Rich building, charge based on length of hair. Others, such as Hair By Sarah Turville in Gahanna, charge based on length of service.
“(It) is a huge stereotype to break in our industry,” said Citrine co-owner Meghann DeWees, 39, of Harrison West.
“They assumed that all men's haircuts were shorter and quicker, and women had long hair and it took longer, but that's not always the case. So, when we recognized that leaders in our industry were starting to shift to this, we said, ‘This is just what we have to do.’ It makes total sense.”
Strands for Trans: Network affiliates offer inclusive hair styling
That change is just one way salons and barbershops are being more inclusive of their LGBTQ clients. Some have taken the additional step of joining Strands for Trans, an international network committed to providing a welcoming environment for transgender customers.
Both Citrine and Hair by Sarah are members.
Salon owner Sarah Turville participates in the Strands for Trans network of salons and barbershops that offer safe, inclusive spaces for trans clients.
“I was excited to find Strands for Trans," said Sarah Turville, 28, of Gahanna, who opened her shop inside The Collection Salon last September.
“Being a cancer survivor, being a second-generation American and also being a part of the LGBTQ community — just seeing the ways that marginalized people are impacted by the choices that you make with your business, and how you can encourage and uplift them, is important to me.”
A national movement
Over 7,500 businesses have joined Strands for Trans, according to the network’s Instagram account. Customers can visit strandsfortrans.com to find trans-friendly salons and barbershops in their city.
About 16 businesses in central Ohio are currently registered.
Because of the growing interest, the network has paused new sign-ups while it upgrades its map software and adds educational resources to the website.
The Dresscode Project is another global network of LGBTQ-friendly businesses that customers can access at dresscodeproject.com.
Strands for Trans recently partnered with actor and singer Billy Porter and influencer-poet Lynae Vanee to produce “Transphobe Takedowns,” or videos calling out politicians for introducing legislation that negatively impacts the LGBTQ community. The Strands for Trans website provides email templates that people can use to communicate with legislators.
Each Strands for Trans business receives a sticker of a barbershop pole featuring the colors of the trans flag. Citrine Hair and Skin placed the sticker in its window, along with a rainbow flag.
Meghann DeWees, right, and Lizzy Doke, left, are owners of Citrine Hair and Skin in Franklinton, which is part of the international "Strands for Trans" network.
'Loud and proud'
The business also has a sign outside that condemns “racist, sexist, homophobic and transphobic” behavior, and criticizes U.S. Supreme Court Judge Samuel Alito, who wrote the majority opinion overturning Roe v. Wade.
“We decided that we were going be loud and proud about it with our sign out front,” DeWees said.
“If you feel uncomfortable with any of these things, this is probably not the space for you because we are going to have conversations with our clients about things. We talk about political issues. We talk about the abortion ban. We talk about it openly with our clients because it’s things that are affecting us every day.”
Citrine also has resources for everything from LGBTQ wellness to sexual assault posted in the bathroom. And the business donates to local LGBTQ organizations.
Co-owner Lizzy Doke said she has a trans friend and customer who initially came in with a wig, which she would take off to get her natural hair styled.
In other salons, her friend may have received stares, said Doke, 40, of the Northwest Side. But at Citrine, it’s a “non-issue."
“Now, she's wearing her own hair and comes in here and is very comfortable,” Doke added. “She said, ‘Thank you for giving me a place where I feel pretty, like I don't feel less-than.’”
That ability to empower customers is what drives Sarah Turville, who specializes in styling curly hair. She said her private salon suite has helped customers feel more comfortable to express their desires for their hair.
“I feel like a haircut is a form of bodily autonomy,” Turville said. “It is a form of consent. It is trusting someone with your expression to the world."
A barbershop pole sticker, featuring the colors of the trans flag, is pictured on the window of Hair by Sarah Turville, a salon that participates in the Strands for Trans network.
Parents of her young trans clients also seem to appreciate the salon, she said.
“I can tell that it's very meaningful for them to be able to provide that for their children, and for (the children) to be affirmed at that age, (and feel) that they can be who they are.”
