Deja Blue at 20: A Cut Above the Rest
Deja Blue owner-stylist Marisol Roesel puts the finishing touches on a hairstyle for San Lorenzo resident Greg Kraft. The salon is celebrating 20 years in business.
Drop into the Deja Blue salon on Castro Valley Boulevard, and the first chair on the left is where you'll find the owner, Marisol Roesel. She is celebrating her 20th year in town in between her busy client schedules.
"Twenty years ago, I was only one of four formal women's hair salons in Castro Valley. Now there are several around town," Roesel told the Forum. "I love doing this because of the people. I am not afraid of sharing my talents with my stylists. I tell them that I want them to succeed, and some of them have gone on to open their own salons."
Last Friday, Roesel hosted a celebration for staff and clients where she acknowledged their continued support for her through good times and lean times.
"I'm so grateful to my family, friends, staff, and clients who have supported me over the years," Roesel said. "Even during COVID, many of my customers asked if they could pre-pay me for future sessions so that I could keep afloat. I really felt the love during that time."
Roesel purchased the company in 2001 from its previous owner, Fun Cuts, which was known more for cutting children's hair. After a year, she did a remodel and then started inviting the mothers of the children to get their hair done instead.
"I've always been more passionate about cut and color," Roesel said. "I told these mothers that I would color their hair, and if they didn't like it, I wouldn't charge them for it. All of them came back. We provided a full-service salon with nails and facial treatments for about ten years, but then we scaled back to just hair because I wanted to focus on a few things."
Originally from the Bronx in New York, Marisol's family moved to New Jersey when she was 14. She met her husband Gary, got married, and moved to Castro Valley in the mid-90s because he had a job opportunity in Silicon Valley. The name Deja Blue comes from the name of a band that Gary played in back in New Jersey. The salon is often bathed in blue light after hours, and the large storefront window displays attract lots of visitors.
"Charlotte Cedillo is the artist. She is a client of mine and always comes up with something special," Roesel said. "Oftentimes, I'll see families take group photos with our window displays as the backdrop."
The business was not always booming. The financial meltdown in 2008, coupled with the sidewalk redesign of Castro Valley Boulevard, meant people didn't have a lot of disposable income, and parking was at a premium. Hard times hit again with the COVID quarantine. Roesel said she lost 10 of her 12 stylists during that time. She made ends meet with a combination of help from family, a GoFundMe page, and a Small Business Administration relief loan.
"We got declined a couple of times, but our application was finally accepted, and we remodeled in August 2021," she said.
Over the decades, Roesel says she's seen a lot of trends in hairstyles come and go. The latest fads include new names for older styles, such as the Wolf Cut. This is also known as the Shag or the Farrah Fawcett. Clients also ask for styles such as the Balayage (natural highlights) and the Ombre (fading from one color to another). Roesel says she also does her fair share of coloring hair with a shocking pink or bold blue on a mom now and again.
"The younger customers often ask us for silver-colored hair, which is funny because we older women are trying to cover that up," she laughed.
Her most famous clients include Malia Arrayah Nahinu, a 6-foot 5-inch actress who is the body double for the Marvel "She-Hulk: Attorney at Law" Disney+ television series, as well as comedian and writer Andrew Norelli. But it's her everyday clients that are her most valued.
"When you are here, you are family," Roesel said.