Maneframe

Welcome to the very first episode of the Maneframe Podcast!✨ In this episode, we sit down with Brian Ahrens, a beauty industry veteran with over 40 years of experience working alongside some of the biggest professional hair care brands across North America. From starting his journey as an entrepreneur to leading renowned brands like Goldwell, KMS, Aveda, Revlon, American Crew, CND, Joico, STMNT,...

On this episode of Hairstory , host Jeff Alford sits down with Brittney Bodis , owner of Frontier Barbers & Company in downtown St. Catharines, Ontario. Brittney shares her journey from hair school in Newmarket to salon work, a brief detour into law clerking, and ultimately finding her passion behind the barber chair. She opens up about renovating a historic downtown space, opening just before...

In this episode of Hairstory , host Jeff Alford sits down with Shenzy, founder of Shenzy Beauty in Welland, Ontario, to explore her remarkable journey from the Caribbean island of St. Vincent to becoming an influential protective-styling specialist in Canada. Shenzy shares how she built her business from the corner of her living room, the growing demand for Black hair services in Niagara, and the...

Step into the world of hair, heart, and community with this inspiring conversation between Jeff and veteran hairstylist and entrepreneur Carlo Lombardo . From growing up in a family of hairdressers to opening his first salon at just 19, Carlo shares his incredible 30-year journey in the beauty industry. He opens up about the evolution of salon culture, the struggles of staffing, rising costs, the...

Fashion-trained and Toronto-raised, Cheryl Gushue has spent a lifetime at the intersection of beauty and creativity—makeup artist, stylist, educator, and now publisher of Beauty Hub Magazine. In this Hairstory episode, Cheryl walks us through her path from early days at Fiorio and Capucci to award-winning shoots (NAHA & Contessa), televised makeovers (Cityline, Steven & Chris), and global...

In this episode of Hairstory , we sit down with Kalleigh Sharp, founder and owner of Beauty Bar One in St. Catharines, Ontario — a thriving community hub redefining what a modern salon space can be. Kalleigh shares how she turned student debt and curiosity into a multi-layered beauty business, building both a training academy with over 25 certified courses and a co-working salon model that gives i...

St. Catharines entrepreneur Alexis Stephenson—owner of Lexi’s Hair Boutique—shares how a teenage hobby became a purpose-driven business. Starting in high school in Brampton, Lexi taught herself through tutorials, built an Instagram portfolio, and began serving family and friends before moving to the Niagara region and opening a professional suite at Beauty Bar One. Lexi breaks down the world of pr...

Felice Valvano — co-owner of Valvano Salon in St. Catharines, Ontario — shares the story of how his family-run salon has defied trends, avoided the chair-rental model, and thrived for over 25 years. In this episode, Felice reveals the systems behind the success: an in-house education program that trains every stylist in both skill and communication, monthly performance reviews that turn goals into...

For more than 25 years, Tony Valvano has built more than a business—he’s built a community. As co-owner of Valvano Salon in St. Catharines, Ontario, Tony has seen the industry change dramatically, from bustling full-service salons to the rise of independent chair rentals. But through every shift, his philosophy has stayed the same: grow people first, and the business will follow. In this inspiring...

Lesley Rito-Costa—Manager at Teknik Salon in Kitchener, Ontario—shares a candid, inspiring path from walking in off the street as an assistant to building a 26-year career as a sought-after colorist and cutter. She talks about learning by doing (and watching) before ever touching scissors, the mentors who shaped her (Joe and Dom), a stint educating other salons, and how motherhood reframed her wor...

Domenic Romeo—co-owner of Teknik Salon in Kitchener, Ontario—joins us for a cappuccino-fuelled deep dive into life behind the chair. He shares how a teenage detour from auto mechanics led to a government-sponsored apprenticeship in the ’80s, why cutting is “pure artistry” while color is “applied chemistry,” and how services and trends evolved from perm-heavy days to today’s anything-goes styling....

In this episode — host Jeff Alford sits down with Pino Cherubino, the owner of Pino Salon in Kitchener, Ontario, to explore his remarkable journey from a small coastal town in southern Italy to becoming one of Canada’s most respected salon owners. Pino shares how he started in hairdressing at 15, the inspiration he found working alongside precision stylists in Italy, and the leap that brought...

In our pilot episode — Join Jeff Alford as he sits down with Joe Romeo, a seasoned salon owner and hairstylist, to discuss his journey in the beauty industry. Starting in 1986, Joe shares his early days washing floors and shampooing heads, eventually moving up to hairstyling and opening his own salon in 1989. Despite facing numerous challenges, including recessions and the COVID-19 pandemic, Joe's...