Morgan Hill - As the owners of not one but two family businesses, Julie and Dave Wolfsmith have extremely full schedules, yet it doesn't feel like work, they say, more like family time.
The warm-hearted way the Wolfsmiths conduct their business brings customers into their lives on a regular basis, making them feel like one of the family.
The couple owns Dezign Salon, 17300 Monterey Road, which specializes in Aveda hair products, as well as a fitness business. Their gym and the salon are located on the corner of Monterey Road and East Third Street.
Julie's career began when she was still in high school when she first learned the art of styling. After finishing Gavilan College where she received her cosmetology license, she opened the salon in Morgan Hill in 1997.
She's celebrating Dezign's 20th year this April, the 10th in its current location.
"We get more intimately involved with our customers, because of the nature of our businesses, more so than some other business relationships," Julie said. "So it's only natural that over time, if our customers stay with us, that we all become close."
Every time a customer comes into the salon or the gym, it feels like home, only partly because the building is also a second home for the Wolfsmiths. With food and drinks in the refrigerator, extra clothes and a shower, the family can spend their whole day at the facilities.
While they are used to hanging around as their parents work, son Lance, 15, and daughter Lauren, 14, also have responsibilities. They know that their education is a priority, yet they are expected to be a part of the family vocations.
People have asked when the Wolfsmiths have time for fun, but what they don't understand is that this is what they enjoy, Julie said.
Lance and Lauren work out with their friends and their parents' customers. Lance is a member of the cross-country and the track-and-field teams his dad helps to coach at Sobrato High School. Lauren has been active in sports at Britton Middle School. Both Wolfsmith teens are a part of the "Wolfpak," Dave and Julie's triathlon group that includes kids and adults.
"This lifestyle is just perfect for us," Julie said. "Maybe everyone wouldn't enjoy being with their customers as much we do, but we love it."
The teens come "home" to the businesses after school and begin their day there.
Most of the business is referral-based, Julie said, and that gives the family a good feeling about new customers.
"We just really enjoy being around our staff and our friends," she said. "It's a very comfortable atmosphere, in the salon or in the gym. The kids are at home here, and we feel comfortable with who they meet here because we have developed a relationship with our customers."
Longtime client and friend Cindy Mode said the Wolfsmiths manage to keep just the right balance in their businesses.
"Professional with a personal touch," she said. "The feeling is not cold, it's very warm and welcoming."
Dave said he sees the benefits for both the customers and the kids in the congenial atmosphere at the salon and the gym. If he is training someone and Lance or Lauren come upstairs to the gym, he said, he's not worried about who the kids will meet there. Many times, "Wolfpak" kids or students from the track or cross- country team will be using the exercise bikes alongside his adult customers.
"The really great thing about it is it's good for our customers and our kids," Julie said. "Some of the adults may not have the opportunity to spend that much time with teenagers and kids."
And, Dave said, it gives the kids an opportunity to interact with adults other than their parents, to have other role models. Having a large "family" of clients is good for the self-confidence of his kids and the "Wolfpak" kids, Dave added.
Along with other salon services, Dezign sells Aveda plant-based hair, skin and body care products and makeup. The Wolfsmith's fitness business offers personal training service as well as a "boot camp" training program.
DEZIGN SALON
- Address: 17300 Monterey Road, St. 120, Morgan Hill
- Phone: (408) 779-1077
- Services: Haircuts, coloring and styling
- Aveda plant-based hair, skin and body care products.
Marilyn Dubil Marilyn Dubil covered education and law enforcement for The Times.
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