Styling her way to success
Jun. 12—WILKES-BARRE — Erin Pikul took a leap of faith when she opened Union and Main Hair Design in 2016.
"I was working in another salon and I had been for quite some time. I think that I just had it in my head that I knew what I wanted to do," she reflected. And with that, she made her dream a reality and opened up the 87 N. Main location.
In the time since, there have been ups and downs, but Pikul and her team have stood fast in the face of it all and continue to not only be a go-to salon for life's biggest moments, but for the not-so-big ones as well. In addition to all of that and to having a family, Pikul gives back to the community — the same community her father served as a police officer — as best she can.
On the subject of adversity, Pikul acknowledged the growth her business had pre-pandemic.
"Within the first two years (of the business being open) we ended up expanding," she said. "And we went from three stylists to, by the time COVID hit, we had 14."
She said the pandemic was challenging, as was the truth for so many business owners, because a salon relies on hands-on service for its clients. Couple that with the fact that Union and Main was deemed a non-essential business, and, as Pikul succinctly put it, "It was difficult."
However, the team persevered and came up with ways to serve their clients. They were able to get color kits out to clients and maintained communication via various social media platforms over the three months they were unable to work.
"But I think it gave us a really good perspective on how we wanted to work when we came back," Pikul said with optimism. The shutdown also offered new perspectives in other senses as well.
"It was a bit of a learning curve for us because we learned that we could work smarter and not harder," she said, noting that the shutdown also showed the salon who their most dedicated clients were and who was willing to stick it out with them. Pikul and her staff were able to get together from time to time, and talk about the future.
Speaking of her staff and sticking out the rough times, Pikul remarked, "I've been very, very fortunate in that I've been able to keep a really good team of girls behind me ... And you know, in the 15 or so years that I've been doing this, I'm grateful that I've kind of been with the same group of people."
With the camaraderie and clientele well established, Union and Main was able to get through the pandemic with a little help from the Diamond City Partnership and the Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber of Commerce.
"I met Lindsay (Griffin — President & CEO of the Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber of Commerce and Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Business and Industry) years ago," Pikul said, noting that she now does Griffin's hair. Pikul hosts the Renal Race charity run, which aims to raise money to "kick kidney cancer" (one of her numerous philanthropic endeavors), and met Griffin through event planning. "She's been very helpful to me," Pikul said. "She and Joe (Boylan — husband) together were both so helpful in getting me grant money and a loan through the state. So, I've been really fortunate. I mean, they've been wonderful to deal with."
With things back to some sense of normalcy, Pikul said things at the salon are going well, especially with wedding season, and co-promotion between downtown businesses has been a key to that.
"I think it's something that we missed doing and we are a big wedding salon. So, it's nice to have those wedding parties coming again and being able to see people's faces again ... it's been fun," she said, noting that many clients are referrals from other businesses. "It's a huge compliment to us 'cause it's something that we really like to do to be able to be a part of someone's day. That being said, we've become such allies with the other vendors ... it's really become such a huge overall industry where everyone can help each other."
While Union and Main will be leaving downtown Wilkes-Barre soon, Pikul and co. will be just over the bridge at 447 Market St., operating under the same name. "Just because we may be leaving Wilkes-Barre, doesn't mean I'm leaving Wilkes-Barre. I'm born and raised here ... this is where my life is," Pikul said.
Union and Main's open date for the new location, in the same complex as Mattern's Floral and Furnishings, is June 21. You can visit unionandmain.com for a full listing of stylists and services, and be sure to stay up-to-date with Union and Main on Facebook and Instagram @ unionandmain.
