Go to a bad hairdresser
for the shock of your life. Book at Sin Den if you prefer your special effects to be
professional, artistic, and kind to your locks. The scissorhands at Sin Den can get you
ready for a fashion shoot, do you right for Saturday night, fix a botched color job, even
extract a hair curler from a Gordian knot on your top. Kit Pancoast Nagamura interviewed co-owners Estelle
Viskovich and Elissa Galbraith about how Sin Den came to be and where it' going from
here.
Kit Pancoast Nagamura
Sin Den's master
fixers Estelle and Elissa
What distinguishes
Sin Den from other salons?
We're run by foreigners and owned by foreigners, and we use a mix of Japanese and foreign
products, but in a foreign way. We travel a lot to places like New York, London, Sydney,
LA and Hong Kong to pick up new styles and methods. So, we're not a Japanese salon but an
international salon in Japan.
What are your specialties?
Color. We're cut and color-trained technicians, offering the full extent of color work.
When someone comes to the salon, we don't just go, oh great, let's slap a color on; we
talk about things in more depth. We're like 911 (or in Japan, 119), an emergency hotline
for hair color. When people have a really big problem, like when they've done it in the
kitchen, or tried to touch up roots with something they bought at the chemist, like those
intense pigments designed for black hair, they come to us to fix it.
What's it like working in your salon?
Fun. We have a really good time and we're relaxed. Our style standards and training are
very specific and all of us are working to improve. As a result, clients can relax because
they have confidence in us, and our stylists feel relaxed because they know that they are
offering the best service and products available in a comfortable environment.
What kinds of people are you looking to employ?
We want stylists who are genuinely enthusiastic about their work, and recognize that
fashion is really important. We are primarily a fashion-involved salon. We also want
stylists who are self-motivated, and who are good at communicating. You have to be able to
develop a good relationship with clients, listen to them and offer a fresh approach, but
also tell them the truth when a treatment or color won't work for them or damage their
hair, for example.
We currently have an opening for a bilingual salon coordinator. The job involves being
part receptionist and part manager. Ideally this person will run the salon efficiently, do
scheduling, accounting, and organize things. Also, because the coordinator is the first
person many clients encounter when they call or walk in, having the "good"
skills associated with hostessing would help.
What are the perks of working at Sin Den?
You get to have great hair. You also get insider information on all the fashion sales and
parties.
For job info contact Estelle or Elissa at Sin Den, 3-42-12 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
150-0001; tel 03-3405-4409; fax 03-3405-4408. You can also email them at hair@sinden.com or see their website www.sinden.com
