OUR STORY…

Parlor was founded in 1994 by third generation hairdresser and style doyenne, Gwenn LeMoine in the then “edgy,” now trendy East Village. Parlor was conceived to be much more than just a hair salon. Parlor was to be a nexus for culture and conversation. Uptown meets Downtown, Eastside meets Westside, Democrat meets Republican. Well, let’s not go that far. But you get the picture.

Wanting to branch out from the uptown “salon scene” Gwenn desired to create something intimate and personal. Having lived in Alphabet City since 1989 Gwenn was a pioneer in establishing the East Village salon scene. Parlor began in a 100-sq-ft space on 9th Street and Avenue A in 1994. Sarah joined shortly after in 1997 after graduating Aveda Institute in their home town of Minneapolis. By 1999 they began busting at the seams requiring expansion to Avenue B.

In 2009, following the economic downturn, Gwenn was offered to take over a failing Aveda Concept Salon on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. Unable to turn down the challenge, she opened Parlor’s second location. The Brooklyn salon grew at a similar pace as the first, having grown in tandem with Brooklyn’s downtown area, and in 2018 necessitated an expansion. In winter of 2019, Parlor in Brooklyn relocated to its newly renovated salon in order to help expand its artistic capacity, and is now even more central to the boutique area of “Brooklyn’s Main Street.” 

In 2026 we wanted to go back to our roots in Manhattan and for the first time downsizing for our next chapter as Parlor West located in Chelsea. Just the two of us sisters in a more intimate intentional space offering more connection.