Axis Salon and Day Spa Provides a Little Neighborhood Feel

Jenay Baethke was destined to be a hair stylist from a young age. She spent many childhood days in her mother’s salon in Omaha, learning the ins and outs of the business while continuing to practice at home.

Now, she is the owner of Axis Salon and Day Spa, which has been a fixture in Des Moines for 20 years and offers hairstyling, massages, facials, makeovers and more to a diverse clientele. Baethke started out working for the salon’s former owner for a few years. With the help of a couple friends, she took ownership of the salon in 2014 and has built it into a place she is excited to work in.

A Hair Stylist by Nature Baethke spent her childhood in her mother’s salon in Omaha answering phones, sweeping up hair, cleaning off perm rods in between clients — and studying the craft. At home, her mom started teaching her to cut and style hair at a young age. At first, she practiced on hair mannequins and eventually began cutting and styling her mother’s hair. “I remember she would come home with hair color and say “OK, today we’re putting in highlights. Here’s some hair,’” Baethke recalled. “She would hold the hair and I would cut and style it.” Baethke knew she wanted to be a hair stylist but decided to hold off on going to trade school. She attended Northwest Missouri State University and got her degree in fashion merchandising and interiors. This allowed her to focus on an artistic field of work, while the business emphasis helped prepare her for being a business owner.

Creating a Culture of Her Own

When Baethke moved to Des Moines to attend La’ James International College, she knew three things: She wanted to own a salon; she wanted that salon to be located in the neighborhood she lived in and loved; and she wanted the salon to be an already established fixture of that neighborhood. Her clear vision led her to join the team at Axis Salon and Day Spa.

A few years later, when the former owner, Denny Quick, was ready to sell, Baethke was pregnant and wasn’t ready to purchase the salon. That’s when Baethke turned to friends Steve and Melissa Garrels. The Garrels bought the business from Quick and turned operations over to Baethke.

“It was actually really beneficial because I learned a lot more about management from Steve,” Baethke said. “Steve was a fantastic consultant for me in running the business because I had no idea what I was in for. I just knew that I created a space that I wanted to work in but needed to learn more about the management end of what goes into owning a business.”

In 2014, two kids and several business lessons later, Baethke was able to purchase the salon from Steve and Melissa and has been the proud owner ever since. As owner, she has been able to create the culture she wanted for the salon with flexibility for her employees to attract new clientele.

“I worked at a salon as a receptionist and there was a lot of wasted downtime,” Baethke said. “I didn’t have the opportunity to go out, meet new people and attract new clients. At Axis Salon, we created a space where the stylists can go out in the community and hand out business cards. This sort of thing usually isn’t an option at the bigger salons.”

Baethke enjoys serving a diverse clientele in an open-concept salon where guests get to feel included in everything that’s going on. The open concept also creates a team environment where the stylists are able to bounce ideas off of each other throughout the day.

“The salon has that little neighborhood feel, which I really appreciate,” Baethke said.

The hairstyling services that Axis Salon and Day Spa offer include bayalage, Brazilian blowouts, fashion colors, corrective color and more. Jenay has two hair extension specialists that are trained in multiple techniques, including tape extensions, fusion extensions, handtied breaded rows and more. They also offer many rejuvenating spa services, with Swedish, deep tissue and hot stone massages at the top of the list.

Banking with a Personal Touch

Baethke’s personal relationship with the Garrels led her to develop a professional relationship with James Ramsey, a commercial banker at Northwest Bank. Ramsey helped her secure a loan for the purchase of the salon, with additional money for working capital and capital expenses.

Ramsey gets his own hair done at Axis Salon and Day Spa and has worked with Baethke on a personal level through all of the ups and downs. When a hair stylist leaves a salon, their clients will typically follow them to their new salon. This happened shortly after Baethke purchased the salon, but Ramsey wasn’t going to let this cut short her dream of owning a salon. He was able to provide interest-only payments on her loan for six months while she got her client base back on track.

When the salon was forced to close down due to the coronavirus pandemic, Ramsey proactively reached out to Baethke to tell her about the Paycheck Protection Program loans through the Small Business Administration.

“When the PPP loan information was released, he emailed me right away and told me what information to have ready so that I could apply immediately,” Baethke said.

With Ramsey’s help, Baethke was approved for the PPP loan and received the funds right away. The loan allowed the salon to survive two months without customers or revenue. As pandemic restrictions have been eased, the salon has reopened to its customers.   

“I can tell that James really cares and wants our business to thrive,” Baethke said. “He has provided personalized help that we probably wouldn’t have gotten from a larger bank.”