Elmhurst resident opens hair care salon

ELMHURST – Martha Alvarez, an Elmhurst resident, has dreamed of opening a hair salon in Elmhurst.

“What better than the town that you live in?” she said.

She now has achieved her goal with G L Hair Design, 257 N. York Road, which she opened in early November.

She started out in the beauty business about 20 years ago, including experience at Great Lengths Hair Design, a salon she owned in Berkeley for about five years.

However, she didn’t always dream of being a cosmetologist even though she often helped her mother, Rita Ortiz, with Ortiz’s salon.

Alvarez said that she thought it would be overwhelming to listen to people’s problems as she took care of their hair needs as some of the conversations that her mother experienced with customers were “intense” since people “felt closeness” with her mother.

But Alvarez learned that she loves working with people.

“I never felt overwhelmed. … I do enjoy listening to them,” she said about her customers.

She added that her clients usually just want somebody to listen to them and are not necessarily asking her for the solution to their problems.

Seeing the transformation that occurs when a new customer comes in for hair care who hasn’t done much for his or her hair is another highlight of her work, she said.

“It’s really rewarding,” Alvarez said.

For now, she is seeking to get established in Elmhurst and increase her customer base, she said.

“I want to go home tired at the end of the day,” Alvarez said.

Services at the salon include haircuts for the whole family, wedding hairstyling, hair coloration, waxing, makeup, manicures and roller sets.

For information, call 630-807-9159 or visit https://www.facebook.com/stylesbymartha/.