My name is Darla Di Grandi-Aguilera, I have been licensed since 1986 and a salon owner since 1989. I started in this business when it was commission only and an environment of .. that's my client not yours so don't even look or talk in my direction. If I worked all day and didn't have a client, I didn't make a dime. And God forbid if a client was to dare get caught trying a different stylist. I knew back then I wanted to change the way hairdressers and clients were treated. I didn't understand why all other jobs came with respect and benefits and hairdressers were treated as a lower working class. I wanted to own the first salon that paid an hourly wage, offered a benefit package, treated hairdressers as real employees with rights & respect and cared for clients the way they should be. So one day another hairdresser and I opened a salon together. Over the next few years I toyed with ideas, gradually implemented benefits, went from rental to commission and started building a new type of salon mentality.

Nine years later, my partner and I decided to go our separate ways. This is when I was able to fully implement my concepts on how clients should be treated and hairdressers should be compensated. Let me share my journey with you.

The day my partner and I split my top producer went with her and it was also the same day my husband of 9 years and I filed for divorce. After 11 years into the business, I was starting over. Amidst all my emotions, I dove head first into hiring, training, building, educating, and moving as fast as I could towards creating my new Salon. I was going to open Cathedral City's first Day Spa. I was unable to get a bank loan and had to get creative to raise the construction funds. Through all the support of those that believed in me I sold memberships to my new salon for $500 - $1500 each for a lifetime discount as a thank you and raised enough money to open my new salon.

Three months after splitting with my partner, I was hospitalized in intensive care with Peritonitis, a major organ bacterial infection that I developed while on a mission in Mexico. I had to have 6 major organs operated on. This was a very serious illness and I endured a long recovery, but my business and I survived. One year later, I opened the doors to Cathedral City's first Day Spa. Just ten days after opening, I was struck by more illness. I was unable to walk so I called the ambulance and off to the hospital again I went. I was admitted once again into Intensive Care but this time with blood clots in my leg, from my ankle to my thigh and the blood clots had broken off and were traveling through my body. The doctors couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't go to my brain or heart and kill me. Luckily they settled in my lungs instead of my heart. As I lay in the hospital, not knowing if I was going to live or die, I came to realize that my new way of business was working just as planned.

Ten months after I fully recovered, I was struck again. This time, ten years of ailing back problems had caught up with me and I was diagnosed with Degenerative Disc Disease. I was given no choice but to undergo major back surgery. I had been in my salon less than one, and the prospect of missing three to six more months of work was grim to say the least. But I knew I could make it work. The entire time I was laid up, I watched my changes working even more and knew then that I was on to something BIG for salon owners. Little did I know, how much it was going to save my own business.

Six months after returning to work, I was given the miracle that I had been chasing for over twelve years. I was pregnant. Four months into the pregnancy I ended up in the emergency room again. I was told that I would have to be hospitalized in complete bed rest until I delivered. That was potentially up to five more months. How many people can say they can keep their doors open through that!!!! Unfortunately, one month later, on my birthday, I delivered a premature baby girl. So after getting over the loss of my little miracle and missing another two months of work my changes have proven to be invincible.

Back to work again and exactly six months to the calendar date and 2 weeks before Christmas, I was back in the emergency room unable to walk and paralyzed from my chest down. After an MRI, I was told I had a 9mm lesion on my spine and they wanted to test for cancer. They admitted me into the hospital for further tests. An MRI of my brain showed 5 more lesions, which gave the doctors the diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis, not cancer. That was wonderful news to me at that point. But I knew from that day forward, my life was going to change. I convinced the doctors to let me out of the hospital for Christmas and during my three month recovery, my passion for sharing my ways of business grew so strong.

In my mission to share my success, I had been given an opportunity to speak to a large group of salon owners to share my some of my secrets to success. During the planning of this event, five months after recovering from my first bout with MS, I was blessed again with becoming pregnant. I was on cloud nine with the joy of being pregnant and the excitement of planning my biggest speaking event ever. One month before my scheduled event I went for a routine check up and was sent directly to the hospital where I was admitted for complete bed rest, again. After one month in the hospital, on the morning of my event, three days before my birthday, I gave birth to another premature baby girl. Three days later, on my birthday, I buried my little girl.

After mourning the loss of another child and dealing with the heartbreak and depression, the only thing I could do was focus on the good. So back to work I went again, realizing that I had a business that was completely self sustaining. Meanwhile I still had the ever burning desires to become a mother some day. I was able to convince my husband against doctor's orders to try one more time for a child.

The doctors told us that if I did become pregnant again that I would be bed ridden for the entire pregnancy and that there would be no guarantee that I would make it to full term. Yes, I became pregnant one more time. Now a very high risk pregnancy due to my age as well as the previous losses, I was bed ridden immediately. I was not about to lie in bed and do nothing, so I built my business even stronger through strategies, systems, education, motivation and inspiration. I planned, designed, sketched and organized our next new salon. I had also started coaching other salon owners on how to "step out from behind the chair" and how to "take back control of their salons". All this from bed.

As they say, from all bad comes something good. I completed my pregnancy and again had a baby girl, who is perfect!

So, here I am today, never knowing where I will be tomorrow. I can't imagine anyone hearing or reading about my journey and saying they can't do something because of their situation in life. I have taken my little hair salon from 1100 sq feet and $100,000.00 a year to an Aveda Lifestyle Salon and Spa and doing over $1,000,000.00 …..all in a period of 6 years. Today I offer the best benefit package with medical, dental, paid education, 401K, paid vacation, paid assistants, paid station supplies, positive team huddles, year end bonus, receptionists, salon coordinator and an incredible salon management team.

It's been an incredible journey and I wouldn't change a thing. I hope you've found this inspirational and realize with faith and the will to win you can achieve your dreams too!

If you are a salon owner and are inspired by my story, let me help you achieve your dreams by visiting www.SalonCoaching.com.

Have a wonderful day,

Darla Di Grandi-Aguilera

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