April 24, 2017

Meet Ashley Carlevato of Levato Salon & Skin Lab in Hinsdale

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Carlevato.

Ashley, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I have been in love with hairstyling, clothing, and fashion since I can remember. As a young girl, I always dreamed of opening my own hair salon.

After graduating with a Finance and Information Technology degree from Marquette University, I worked as an auditor for a widely recognized accounting firm, KPMG. I quickly realized that I wanted to own my own business and pursue my childhood dream of doing hair. I enrolled in beauty school so I could learn the business from the ground up. I obtained my cosmetology license and began working at local salon and spa. Within my first year of employment, I was promoted to Director of Marketing and Public Relations—and shortly after, I became the Salon Manager of a staff consisting of 40 people. Through hard work and dedication, I created a large client following and my own personal business quickly began to grow. After 6 years behind the chair, I felt confident in my skills as a stylist and knew it was the right time to start pursuing plans to open my own salon. I started researching costs, searching for the perfect location, and trying to secure a small business loan. The process took much longer than I had expected, but the end result was definitely worth the wait.

After two years, I opened Levato Salon & Skin Lab in historic downtown Hinsdale; a forward-thinking salon with a strong belief in superior service, employee engagement and empowerment, and overall well-being.

Pursuing a career in the beauty business has been best decision of my life. I’ve learned the importance of creating genuine relationships and giving exemplary service. There is nothing more rewarding than making people look and feel beautiful. Not only do I strive to give my clients stylish hair, I want to create a consistent, valuable experience that leaves them feeling pampered and renewed.

Being in the haircare industry has also sparked my interest in the overall concept of wellbeing. I’m continually educating myself on health issues, nutrition, and holistic medicine. I truly believe that organic, natural products actively promote health and wellness. I’m bringing the organic concept to high-end haircare because what we put on our bodies is just as important as what we put in them.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
First of all, the process took much longer than I anticipated. Having to manage and deal with so many parts of such a big project is time consuming and there are always setbacks. I stayed patient, but it was harder for me because I knew I had to keep everything a secret. I couldn’t ask my clients for referrals for contractors or architects -for example- because it would have put my job at risk at the time, so it really limited the network I could utilize. I felt like I was keeping this huge secret from everyone in my life that I so badly wanted to share, but I didn’t feel like I could tell anyone until I left the salon I was at the time.

Getting permits for signage was another huge obstacle. We are located down a brick alleyway, in the back of an older theatre building, so it can be tricky to find if you aren’t familiar with downtown Hinsdale. We’ve been open since September and we just got our signage approved in March so it has been a struggle trying to make sure our clients can find us. Our biggest help at the beginning was doing a drone video and posting it to our Facebook & Instagram pages-so many of our clients recognized the alleyway from the video!

Levato Salon & Skin Lab – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I really wanted to bring the same high-energy vibe you feel in downtown salons out to the suburbs. I have so many clients that have moved from the city and continued to commute downtown for their hair—until it became too inconvenient. I knew that the only way for our salon to attract new clients would be to set ourselves apart by offering exceptional service and top of the line products. It’s a hard promise to deliver, but every member of our team believes in the vision as much as I do. Our stylists create a fun, fresh atmosphere for our guests that makes them feel completely comfortable.

What makes Levato Salon & Skin Lab different?
For starters—I have a team of amazingly passionate and skilled stylists. For a stylist to work at Levato, they must be service-oriented, self-motivated, and truly in love with what they do. In fact, the salon’s motto says it all: “We love what we do. Come see why.”

Need another reason to try Levato for your next hair or skin service—the salon uses only the highest quality organic products available for all their services. Ashley makes sure to partner with beauty brands that are eco-friendly and have a positive effect on the environment. “The Levato retail space is a reflection of the countless hours we spend seeking out innovative products that align with our high-performance standards. We focus on highly refined, hand-crafted products that are scientifically engineered to work. In other words, our products are both safe and effective.”

Salon service offerings include women and men’s haircuts, hair coloring, brow, lash & skin services. Whether you’re a fast-paced executive, a young professional, or stay-at-home mom, Levato Salon & Skin Lab will help you create a beauty routine that is all your own.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
My very first client at Levato- my 93-year-old grandma. I wanted her to be the first haircut at the salon and it was such a special moment to be able to share with her.

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