Zo Collective Salon + Spa opens downtown
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There's a new place in town for haircuts, colors and styles, as well as hair removal, facials, permanent makeup and nail services.
Zo Collective Salon + Spa recently opened at 13 W. Main St., Suite 104. It teams four gal pals who share a passion for beauty.
"We've all worked together for quite a few years now, probably around five or six years. We're pretty close, and we're all pretty experienced. I actually think I'm probably the newest to the industry," said Avery Smith, who serves as co-owner along with fiancé Jakob Zobeck. "We have all worked (in) different places around town. We actually all started out at aSPArations salon in Marshalltown, and then we all went independent. We rented space at Ambellish for a while, and then decided to kind of do our own thing."
Smith said the business name is a nod to her fiancé, whose nickname is Zo.
The foursome consists of Smith, Tara Swope, Edna Bremmer and Beatrice Davalos, who each bring their unique skillsets and experiences to the place.
"I am an esthetician and a nail technician," Smith said. "It focuses on sugar hair removal, a few facials here and there, and then on the nail side of things, doing manicures and pedicures, and then I also have a tattoo license as well. So I do some permanent makeup services, like lip blushing and microblading. And then the other gals that are there, they are all cosmetologists, so they do the hair services: colors, cuts. Some perms. Kids' cuts. Tara is a cosmetologist and esthetician as well."
Their tagline: "A collective of beauty professionals, all under one roof, to create, connect, & serve you."
Smith was born in Marshalltown and lived here until her preteen years before her family relocated to Albion.
"I went to Marshalltown schools up until I was in ninth grade, and then I graduated from GMG High School, and then from there I went to beauty school in Ames at PCI Academy, and then I graduated from there in 2017. Right now we live in Conrad," she said.
She worked as an esthetician at Meskwaki Bingo Casino & Hotel from 2017 until 2020. Smith noted she was into makeup during high school and originally envisioned a future career doing hair.
"But then I found out about the esthetics program at PCI, and it was kind of something new and different. Hair kind of started to freak me out because there's a lot of different outcomes. So I went for nails and skin, and I really liked that. And I work around a lot of gals that have the hair part covered," she said.
And while her salon and spa only just opened, she's already expanding.
"Right now we are actually working on Suite 105 in the Hellberg building, so it is right up the stairway from where our salon is," she said. "We have one spa room ready to go right now, but there are going to be three others."
She's seeking massage therapists, estheticians, lash artists, licensed injectors/aesthetic providers and spray tan artists. Smith may look into doing skin tattoos as well. She currently has a small boutique section of clothing.
Burgundy is a hot nail color for fall, she says. This time of year, people come into salons to tone down their blonde shades for the cooler months.
All four women set their own schedules, typically working Monday through Saturday. You may message the business Facebook page for more information, or call the provider of your choice directly: Davalos: 641-351-9649; Bremmer: 641-481-1035; Swope: 810-956-3514 and Smith: 641-751-6694.