Circle Salon opens in Farragut
Carla Mobley, Jennifer Prater and Sara Rutherford opened their new jointly-owned shop, Circle Salon, in mid-January on the ground floor at 102 Chaho Road, just across the street from Ingles in Farragut.
“We are a circle of friends and we have come full circle in life,” Prater said about the name choice.
The three have known each other more than two decades. Prater and Rutherford met first, on their very first day as Tennessee School of Beauty students on April 4, 1997, then together met Mobley three years later.
“It was my 22nd birthday,” Rutherford recalled. “Jennifer hated me on sight. I was the stereotypical cheerleader, came in with full makeup and my hair done.”
“She came in swinging her ‘Blair Warner hair,’” Prater confirmed with a grin. “But I didn’t talk to her — I didn’t talk to strangers.”
Rutherford said she tearfully called her mother during a break that first day, and mentioned Prater as the only other student dressed professionally.
“She told me to sit by her every day and learn everything I could, so I did. It took us less than a month to be best friends.”
It was even as they worked on their final student project, “Making a Salon,” that they realized that would be their life goal.
“We have been talking about owning our own business ever since,” Prater said.
They took baby steps in that direction early on, working together for Mobley at her salon and also working together at Paul Mitchell School, where Prater serves as education leader.
Most recently, Prater and Rutherford — both of whom live in Loudon County — worked together at Studios West Salon Suites in Farragut, where Mobley, who lives in Knoxville, also had a separate suite.
“We each had 100-square feet there, so when this location became available, with 750 square feet and a separate shampoo station, we jumped at the chance,” Rutherford said. “It really just fell in our laps. And there is a real need in this part of Town, as there isn’t a hairdresser between Campbell Station and Watt roads.”
All three have been busy notifying their clients about their spacious new salon, and with so much more room they are able to take on additional customers, especially since they plan to bring in a rotation of new hairstylists who would start out working from a fourth station in the studio.
They offer Paul Mitchell, Redkin and Provana product lines, and will be carrying products for sale. They are dually licensed to cut both men and women’s hair, and hope in the future to ad additional services, such as microblading.”
For more information, check out Circle Salon on Facebook and Instagram, call 865-705-0007 or visit circlesalonknox.com
