Featuring: Maria Perez and Veronica Gomes, Emme Hair
"Because there’s such a strong sense of community in Ladner, it’s inspiring us as a small business to give back and get more involved.”
A South Delta business they recommend: Soi Ram
Business partners and sisters Maria Perez and Veronica Gomes offer more than just hairstyling at their new Ladner hair salon; they’ve also created a warm, inclusive community space that feels like home. Veronica often refers to the Emme Hair Ladner location as her home away from home, since she lives just a few blocks away. It’s been eight years since they opened their first salon in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood. In 2020 they opened a Langley location and, in October 2024, the ambitious sisters embarked on their next venture, opening their third location in the heart of Ladner Village. In addition to cuts, colour, and styling, Emme brings expert blow-out and other specialty services to South Delta, including a full suite of express services to save clients time and money. With shears in hand and hearts on their sleeves, the entrepreneurial duo leads with passion for their craft and compassion for others. Their thoughtful, empathetic approach to hair care sets them apart from competitors, helping clients form a renewed sense of self-confidence and building cherished long-term relationships. Offering everything from cuts, colour, extensions, hair restoration systems, and in-depth consultations, Emme Hair welcomes you to come in for a service that'll leave you feeling empowered and fabulous. And, after speaking with Maria, we suspect you may even pick up a lifelong friendship along the way!
Maria, please tell us about your professional background.
My sister Veronica has been a hairstylist for almost 20 years; my career started a bit later. She started as an apprentice at Caramel Salon in Vancouver where she studied under Michael Levine, who is an iconic Vancouver hair guru. After many years of working at other salons, we opened our first salon in Kits in early 2018. I’ve been doing hair for almost 15 years now. My personal experience with hair loss inspired me to pursue a career in hairdressing and launch my own line of hair extensions—called Vanpro Hair—in 2015. Shortly after my daughter Mya was born in 2007, 60% of my hair fell out and never grew back. After a few years of living with less hair density, I decided I needed a solution because my self esteem depended on it. That's when we began our journey exploring different options that could help people going through hair loss.
What inspired you to start the business?
Yes; my hair loss inspired both our hair salons and our hair extension line. I know firsthand how a beautiful hair makeover can transform a person’s life because I went through that myself! Hair extensions changed my life; they helped give me back my confidence. I wanted to offer others with similar hair challenges—including alopecia, recovery from cancer and chemotherapy, or whatever it may be—the same opportunity I had. We truly just want to help others look and feel beautiful.
What can clients expect at the salon?
Our clients can expect to be greeted by a team that is welcoming and highly skilled. They can also expect to receive a detailed service that is thoughtfully curated just for them. Every new client’s experience starts with a one-on-one consultation to get a sense of their needs and comfort level. I know what it’s like to be surrounded by people and feel judgement about my hair, so it’s important our clients feel safe and supported. We try our best to create aesthetic spaces that are relaxing and thoughtful. Our gratitude tree in Langley is a customer favourite as well as our faux flower installations in Kits. It is very obvious that our major focus is to offer superior customer service to our clients from beginning to end in a warm and welcoming space. I've even had clients come into our lounge in Langley just to hang out and chat. They're like, “I have a break from my kids and I don't just want to go to a coffee shop or walk around the mall.” And I say, “Of course! Go have a glass of wine in our lounge!” I love that it's a place they choose to spend time in to relax.
What's the origin of your business name?
The name Emme Hair is significant to us for so many reasons. When you say the word “emme” you are actually spelling the word “me,” which is fitting because it’s our goal to inspire self love and confidence in our clients. Also, if you fold the word “emme” in half, it’s a reflection. This is symbolic of one looking in the mirror at their reflection and feeling self love. Funny story: we briefly considered naming our business “Bruha,” which means “witch” in our language, Filipino, because when we were kids and our hair was crazy and messy in the mornings, my mom would call us bruhas. But Emme is the name that resonated with us the most, so Emme it is!
What's your favourite part of what you do?
We love the relationships we make beyond the hair—our clients turn into close friends. We also love setting hair goals with clients and bringing them to life. One client came in with a pixie cut; she was trying to grow it out for years, but she kept cutting it once it got to an awkward length. So we did extensions and she saw us every six weeks over two years. She came in the other day and her hair is now the perfect length; we didn’t have to put her extensions back in. We finally accomplished her goal and it was so rewarding! She sent me a message after she left to invite me and Veronica over for pizza because now we won’t get to see each other as often. I showed my sister the message and her response was, "Hell freaking yes. Book a date with her!”
What are some professional goals for the salon?
We believe that everyone deserves to be pampered and feel beautiful. Our Ladner location is a bit different from our other locations as it offers a full express service menu. All this means is that we offer quick mini-services that save our clients time and money. Our goal is to give our guests beautiful hair on a budget!
We’d love to start offering in-house permanent scalp micropigmentation tattooing, which creates the appearance of higher density at the roots for people with really thin hair. I used to use temporary pigmented root spray on my scalp daily, but it limited what I could do with my hair in terms of styling. Now that I get permanent scalp micropigmentation tattooing, I can comfortably do things like swim with my daughter, which I couldn't do before with the root spray. The tattooing has been really life-changing and that’s why I want to offer this to others.
Additionally, we’re developing hair topper services for both women and men. These hair toppers clip on and off as you please, making them quite user-friendly. It’s a great alternative to the men’s hair systems—more traditionally called toupees, for context—that we currently offer, which stay on for about three weeks at a time.
What do you love most about the South Delta community?
Veronica lives in Ladner and I live in Yaletown, but I’m here all the time and it literally feels like I'm in a small-town movie in the best way. There are so many great businesses in Ladner Village and the surrounding area, like Cafe De Gourmet, Buttercups, Ladner Thrift Shop, Cookies Ice Cream, Fiko’s, Sonia’s Flowers, Vinca’s Kitchen, Taverna Gorgona, Pho Haven, F45…and so many more!
Here in Ladner, everyone is so incredibly friendly. I was pleasantly surprised when I learned that people stop you in the streets just to say hi! There is such a great sense of community and everyone looks out for each other. As soon as we opened our doors, some neighbouring businesses came to bring us flowers and booked appointments with us. I’ve noticed that people are always willing to go out of their way to help. It’s really encouraged us to give back and get more involved as well. The first Ladner fundraiser we organized was in support of the Delta Secondary School junior boys’ volleyball team. We were able to help sponsor some of their tournament meals with the help of the community, which was really cool. We’re also looking forward to connecting with local retirement homes to offer complementary hair services to their residents—that one is still in the works! Additionally, we’ve partnered with BabyGoRound, a registered charity that helps families in need by providing them with essential baby gear and gently used clothing. As a single mom, that one is close to my heart. Our Ladner and Langley locations are drop-off points for baby and children’s clothing, so please come by and donate if you can!
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