Meet Tiffany Davis and Stephanie Pendlington | Salon Owners and Executive Cosmetologists

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tiffany Davis and Stephanie Pendlington and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tiffany, Stephanie, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
We wanted to create a space that welcomes all walks of life with an elevated experience in a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. There’s nothing worse than walking into a salon to feel better about how you look only to be judged by the staff who think you came underdressed, or don’t belong with them. Everyone deserves care and acceptance exactly where they are in life. Additionally, we wanted to create the same vibe for our staff. While we are a business, our staff’s well-being and work-life balance is a big deal to us. We deserve to be paid a fair wage and have a life outside of work. Our staff is like family, and no one is just a number on a spreadsheet. We invest our energy and resources into our staff so that they can feel empowered and strive in their workplace. This approach yields a return of loyal and committed employees for long-term success in business. After all, we spend most of our time at work, so we’d better be having fun while paying our bills!

“Empower your employees to do the job so well that they could do it on their own, but treat them so well that they never want to leave.”

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Stephanie and Tiffany both started as assistants/commission stylists at different salons working for owners who often over-indulged while on the job, giving them both a lacking feeling of safety and care. Those less-than-stellar experiences both led them to a local salon in Woodstock, Ga around 2014 where they eventually became booth renters. They were the only young stylists there and made fast friends after learning they were fellow Elder Emos after Tiffany played ‘The Used’ on her playlist. They would sit in that break room and daydream about how cool it would be to one day own a salon together. One of Stephanie’s conditions was they had to name it “Honey Bee Salon” to implore how important they are to the ecosystem and the fact that we should save them. Tiffany’s reply was, “I don’t care what we name it. Sounds good to me.” They had no idea that they were actually going to make that happen 6 years later! In those 6 years, Tiffany became the Hair and Makeup Department’s assistant at the Atlanta Opera, which led her to move to NYC in 2016 to pursue her dreams of working on broadway. She was able to start training with The Phantom of the Opera as a swing hairstylist within a month of moving. After 6 months, Tiffany decided to move back to Georgia due to personal reasons, but returned with a renewed passion for working behind the chair. Stephanie stayed in Woodstock to grow roots with her now husband, Ian, who is a musician. They purchased a home together and grew their successful businesses alongside one another, and welcomed their sweet child into the world in 2022.

After Tiffany came back from NYC in 2016, she worked as a commission stylist at an Aveda salon until she was ready to start her own business again in May 2018 at Phenix Salon Suites with a lifelong friend/coworker from her last employer. Unfortunately, that partnership dissolved after almost 2 years. Tiffany gave Stephanie a phone call in February 2020, where she told Stephanie “If we don’t do this now I don’t know if we will ever be able to.”
Stephanie then stepped into their place, and within 6 months Honey Bee Salon and Spa was born. It is by far the hardest thing they have ever done.

“The amount of tears, sweat, time and money invested into this business is far more than we ever expected, but it’s also the best thing that we’ve ever done.”
We learned how to actually run a business from a numbers perspective, how to have tough conversations with each other and our staff, and how to balance our empathy with boundaries. We are honest humans who try our very best everyday, and there are people who see that and want to take advantage of that kindness. However, there are also people who want to learn from that and live life with the same integrity. Those are the kind of people who make up Honey Bee Salon. We are so proud of the group of misfits we are, and the impact we’ve made on our community by being our unapologetic selves. Most of us come from humble beginnings, and we all choose to remember the lessons we’ve picked up along the way. That is the thing that sets us apart from anywhere else, and we will never settle for anything else.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Best spots to hit up in Woodstock, Ga would be:
1. El Ranchero for mexican food and cheap margaritas
2. Truck and Tap for signature cocktails and good vibes
3. Made Mercantile for homemade smell good candles and art classes
4. Pelican’s SnoBalls for the BEST snowballs you’ve ever had!!
5. Reformation has some amazing local brews and an outdoor lounging area with fire pits and comfy chairs
6. Doughnut Dollies for the tastiest vegan doughnuts (in Marietta)
7. Blue Frog has all kinds of hippie finds and unique gifts!
8. The Pothead Shed Pottery Studio for all of you pottery needs and 1:1 learning sessions
9. Madlife for all of your favorite cover bands and local music like Highbeams, The Daniel Lieving Band, and Cash Honey.
10. The Little Sober Bar in Downtown Canton is an awesome spot for anyone looking to buy fancy NA drinks and spirits.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Stephanie deserves a huge shoutout for stepping out on faith and a dream that we would be successful. We joined forces in March 2020, about a week before lockdown. We were so scared that we had made a huge mistake, but by October 6, 2020 we left our 200 sq ft studio and opened our 2,000 sq ft salon and spa! Which brings me to our next shoutout, our clients!!! We have changed our location, pricing structure, brand of product, inflation, added way more staff, and they have supported us through it all. We have clients that drive from all over Georgia, and other states because of who we are, what we stand for, and the bad ass hair we put out. We always say that we have the best clients in the world because well, it’s true! THANK YOU to all of our clients past, present, and future! Without you, we definitely wouldn’t be as successful as we’ve become.

Website: https://www.honeybee-salon.com

Instagram: honeybeesalonandspa

Facebook: honeybeesalonandspa

Image Credits
Cover to Cover Photography
Lotts of Memories Photography
Travosphere Photography
Haley Noelle Photography