EP #1: La Sabrina Hair Design Story with Amy Button

The below is an auto-generated transcription from the podcast. Please excuse typos and grammatical errors.
​ Charlie McDermott 0:00 It's time for the La Sabrina hair design podcast with Amy Button. Hey there, Charlie McDermott, co host of the show, but you're not here to listen to me or for that matter. Watch me. We're here for Amy, we have Amy button, our real star and co host of the show, Amy, how you doing? Good. Amy, one. Congratulations. I always applaud those who go above and beyond in business family who you have a lot going on. But yet you take the time out to share your insight, your expertise and and, you know, podcasts and what you're doing is a perfect way to help folks not only in your neck of the woods, Southwest Florida, but all over the country all over the globe. So are you ready for your first podcast? We need we need to add effects. We need that drum drum roll. I know you have a lot of folks, a lot of clients, friends family are listening to this episode. But you also have those who are familiar with you and want to learn more. So let's start Amy with one your business. La Sabrina hair salon. Fill us in on what you're doing there and not just in the Naples location. But I know you you go even beyond that. 
Amy Button 1:17 La Sabrina hair design is a hair design. And we do a lot of elegant wedding work here in this salon, as well as makeup. But then we also take care of everyone's cuts color, barley, Ash, anything that your hair needs.
Charlie McDermott 1:36 Anything that my hair needs. What do you recommend for me? No, just kidding. Yeah, to that point. I know, there are folks out there. And I'm sure there are guys as well. I mean, it's getting your hair cut, although it's temporary. But you know, you don't want to leave a salon and go, Oh, my goodness, where's that hat, you know, or the bag. I don't want to go out in public for the next two or two weeks, right, you know, eventually grows back. But you know, you excel and just just making folks feel comfortable. And with so many people up north coming down to Southwest Florida. That's important, you know, because I know, in my case, Barb with my wife in Pennsylvania, you know, she had a relationship with a stylist for decades. You know, it's like once you find one you don't want to leave. And then you move in Yes. Like oh, no starting I think it's easier to find a husband than it is a great start.
Amy Button 2:36 A lot of my clients, I've heard them say things almost like I didn't want to move because of my hairstylist.
Charlie McDermott 2:45 Yes, yes, I think I've heard that a few times, fill us in on your background and, and the background and history of your company.
Amy Button 2:53 So me personally, I've been in the wedding industry side of Cosmetology for 19 years now. It's something that I've always loved to do. From the time I was tiny playing with my Barbies, I would do up dues on their hair, and just the passion never went away. And I love everything about weddings, but that's only on the weekend. So it's being behind the chair. I've been doing that for 11 years cuts color, stuff like that. And then we my husband and I opened our salon with a mission about it's almost been five years ago now. And the salon, the whole purpose behind it is to provide hair needs while meeting needs. And so we raise a lot of awareness for human trafficking survivors and try to provide practical things for them as well. So it's kind of a two fold thing I wouldn't be doing I wouldn't be a salon owner if it wasn't for the mission behind the salon.
Charlie McDermott 4:03 You know, it's at higher why right? You know, it's it's in business, it's easy for a lot of outsiders to look at business owners as well. It's all about the money and and I love doing podcasts with business owners like yourself who just want to share their expertise and it's amazing, so many of them have the same kind of passion to help others both within their business and using the business as that foundation to help others who are struggling. So fill us in on that mission. Yeah, how did that begin? 
Amy Button 4:38 so it's something that just it really started bothering me um, I used to be a Short Term Missionary. So I've been overseas and I've seen things that make you feel uncomfortable like are you know you want to you want to change it, it kind of makes you stay up at night kind of thing. Then being stateside I'm starting my own family. And then hearing reports that, you know, human trafficking is a thing within the states and made me so angry, like something needs to be done about that. But that is not I'm not physically myself able to help survivors or rescue people or even provide the counseling out aspect, even though I sometimes feel like a counselor behind the chair. It's not a practical need that I can meet. So I decided, you know, I, if I feel called to that, then I might as well use what I have. And that's a cosmetology license.
Charlie McDermott 5:41 Wow, wow. And what I love about it is you bring both the, you know, the financial means, which, which it's easy for any of us to say, ah, you know, I'm angry, this shouldn't happen, but you actually took action, you're doing something about it both financially and awareness? I'll bet you? Well, I'll do that. Because, you know, but you know, so many of your clients come in, and they're not even aware that this human trafficking problem, right, you know, it's, you know, we live in paradise, you know, you know, life is so good. But I've talked to individuals involved in in, you know, that side of the policing of various cases, and I was done by the amount of trafficking that goes on in this area.
Amy Button 6:26 Yes. Yeah, it is. It's definitely it's a need everywhere. But I think Florida currently is, I think, number three, for the amount of cases that they're they've found. So, I mean, probably things hide in secret places. So they definitely, you know, I'm proud to live in southwest Florida, because, you know, the law enforcement is doing a lot to try and locate human trafficking victims and making sure that they get what they need. So there's a lot being done here. And I think as a result, you hear about more cases here, rather than other places where they're kind of hiding. But yeah, definitely a need all over the states. And with that comes all kinds of needs that come after that. And so, yeah, we do a lot of raising awareness behind the chair, we, we try to make sure we have our facts straight so that we're able to give up dated information. But then we also have relationships with nonprofits that are actually working with survivors. So we're kind of have a idea of what it is that they need. And if they need hair brushes, or scrunchies. Or just practical toothbrushes toothpaste, we also do like a fundraiser around Christmas, where we try to get those things for them, make sure they have something fun to open on Christmas, everybody likes every girl like something under the tree that's got like a hairbrush or something that makes them feel pretty. So we try to speak to that. And then we do a lot of blow dries and 10% of all of our wash and blow dries year round, goes straight to nonprofits that are doing the things that I can't physically do.
Charlie McDermott 8:23 Wow. Thanks for getting into that. That's a really important message. You had mentioned you did mission work prior to where did you travel to,
Amy Button 8:35 um, it was through an organization called Youth With A Mission. And I've been to Lithuania that was a super short trip. And then I was in Malaysia traveling around all over Malaysia into that part of Malaysia that most people don't know about, which is called saba. And that was, yeah, three months of doing whatever it is that people needed.
Charlie McDermott 9:00 Wow. Yeah, places. I know many of your listeners, myself included, haven't even heard of let alone been to and wow, wouldn't experience. Yeah. So. Yeah, yeah, we're doing the podcast. You know, I spoke to when we started, you know that, how great it is for you to share your knowledge. You had mentioned you started the business really as as a stylist for weddings. Right. So and, and you travel a lot for that, right?
Amy Button 9:33 Yeah. So I started the business on Cape Cod in Massachusetts, which is where both me and my husband grew up, which is also a beautiful place to get married, but the season is really sure. People don't typically want to get married in January up there. So we gave it a shot. Doing the whole Snowbird thing. I think there was a moment where I turned and looked at my husband I went all my clients leave me for the winter, like, does there an age limit on being a snowbird? And he goes, No, I don't think there is. Let's do it. So. So we did. We traveled back and forth. I had weddings up there and weddings down here and up there. All the states are so small. So I've been traveling to Rhode Island, New Hampshire. And so still on occasion, I'll do some weddings up there. But we are proud southwest Florida is now.
Charlie McDermott 10:30 Great. Yeah, yeah. So you stay close to home now.
Amy Button 10:33 Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Owning a brick and mortar kind of courses.
Charlie McDermott 10:37 Yeah, yeah. But now you can share that knowledge again, which speaks to future episodes. What do you what do you have in mind for your podcast?
Amy Button 10:46 I find there's a lot of just frequently asked questions. When people call the front desk to make an appointment. If they're first time client, they have several questions that they they ask. There's also questions that we get about hair care. So I want to speak to a lot of practical needs, if I can, as well as raise awareness for human trafficking and kind of keep people up to date about what it is that we're doing here. Because people are just dying to get involved. How can I get involved, and we're trying to provide that for people where they can come and get something that they also want, and you can come and get a wash and blow dry and provide for more than just your need. Yeah, that's that's kind of what I was thinking for the podcast. Yeah. Yeah. Like keep people involved in what's going on here.
Charlie McDermott 11:42 Yeah. Well, awesome. Well, I'm looking forward to it and being a part of it. And, again, great job. I know, the first episode is always the toughest and and you did very, very well. And that it's, again, so important to get the word out for that mission. Speaking of which, I know you have information on your website. And if there's any other place, both for obviously, your salon as well as your mission, go ahead and share that.
Amy Button 12:12 So our website is www.la Sabrina hair design.com. And there's lots of information on there. Everything from you know, pictures of our work, reviews of our work. And then there's a whole page on blow dries for a cause, which is what we've kind of tagged, named, our blow dries. And then there's also a service menu. So everything that we offer behind the chair is on there. And then if you have any questions, you also can always call and our phone number is 239-537-9315. Charlie McDermott 12:52 Well, super well Amy. Great job again, and we'll see you in the next episode. All right. Thanks for listening to the law Sabrina hair design podcast. To learn more about the La Sabrina hair design experience. Go to www.la Sabrina hair design.com or call 239-537-9315