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From books to beauty salon

Janine Marnien

It took Han’s Beauty Stor owner Eric Han about three years before

he finally located a spot in La Canada Flintridge to open one of his

salons.

When Crown Books went out of business more than a year ago, he

finally got his chance. The space vacated by the bookstore was partly

filled by Aaron Bros. Art and Framing.

The remaining 6,000 square feet of space went to Han.

“We were looking around for so many years,” said Han, who also

owns a salon in South Pasadena.

The store took about four months to build, and has been open for

about three months, said manager Vincent Nguyen, who helped with the

process.

“When I first saw this place, it was nothing but four walls and

dust,” he said.

Now, the store has eight hair stations, room for 10 to 12 manicure

stations, a steam room and three facial stations.

The salon does fill all 6,000 feet. Some of the manicure stations

come complete with massage chairs and foot Jacuzzis, and a lounge

area has been prepared for customers getting salon treatment.

“Some people don’t want to go home right away, because of the

traffic or other reasons,” Han said. “This way they can wait in the

lounge and read a magazine comfortably.”

Han has been in the beauty business for more than 15 years. He

started out just selling cosmetics, and eventually expanded his

business into full service salons.

The store’s name is in part an advertising ploy, Han said.

“I thought about using the word center, but everybody uses that

word,” said Han, who is Chinese.

“We finally went with the European spelling of ‘stor,’ with a

slash through the ‘o.’ People always ask why we spell ‘stor’ without

an ‘e.’

“That’s because that way, they remember who we are and what we’re

doing.”

Aside from offering full-service salon treatments, the store also

carries hair, skin and make-up products. Prices range from a few

dollars for cosmetic products to $75 for a facial.

Han’s Beauty Stor is at 475 Foothill Blvd., Suite H.

To contact the store, call 952-9588.

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