Dusty Schlabach is a true curlypreneur — an L.A.-based hairstylist and educator who specializes in curls, founded a full-service salon catering to curly clients, launched the CurlVision consumer education platform, and created the CurlMaps database to locate curl specialists in the U.S. and Canada.
This month, Schlabach opened the doors to Curly Hair Salon, a minimalist cuts-only enterprise located in Fullerton, CA. The flagship salon is fueling the vision for a business concept Schlabach foresees expanding to as many as 100 locations within five years.
The blueprint: Dry cuts only, curly/ coily/ wavy hair only, with every service under one hour and less than $100.
That means no sinks, hot tools, or products either applied or sold. Every client, Schlabach says, will walk out with “a good curly haircut — not a cut that you have to grow into, but one that works out of the gate.”
American Salon talked to Schlabach about the current and future resources for those gifted with curly locks, and for the professionals who want them as clients.
AS: At what point did you start to specialize in curly hair? What did you do differently that made curly clients seek you out?
DS: I specialized in curls the moment I realized how much misinformation exists in the industry. Stylists were being taught outdated techniques that simply don’t reflect what curly hair actually needs.
What set me apart early on was the way I simplified the process, both in person and online. Instead of over-styling or hiding the hair’s natural behavior, I focused on precision dry cutting, understanding each curl family, and showing people how little they actually need to do for their hair to thrive.
Clients came to me because I made curls feel easy. I centered everything on health, retention, shape, longevity, and education. And I used social media to visually demonstrate results. Transparency, technique, and trust — that combination built the demand.
How has that focus on curls shaped your professional and entrepreneurial path?
My career really started with a simple obsession: understanding why so many people with curly hair never felt truly seen or understood in the salon chair.
I built my entire professional path around solving that problem, from honing my cutting systems to creating content that teaches people how to work with their natural pattern rather than against it.
Over time, that focus grew into an online community, a clientele that traveled from all over the country, and eventually a brand built on trust, simplicity, and results.
Today, everything falls under the CurlVision umbrella — salons, digital education, technology, and product development — all rooted in the same mission: elevate curl education and access everywhere.
Let’s talk about the launch of CurlMaps. How did you gather so many curl specialists from all over to populate it? How many searches and bookings does it generate?
CurlMaps started as a solution to a problem I kept hearing from clients: “I can’t find someone who actually understands my curls where I live.” I knew I had to fix that — and at scale.
Because of the reach I already had through CurlVision, we were able to attract stylists organically. They wanted to be part of something that elevated the curly-hair space, not just be in another directory from a single day class they took.
CurlMaps makes the vetting process for potential clients incredibly easy and incredibly thorough, which forces the stylists and salons to level up everything from their education, experience, representation, and client experience from their socials, reviews, website, booking process, all the way down the vibe in their salon or suite.
The stylists listed get an average of two new clients per week in heavier-populated areas like Los Angeles. That number goes up for cities that don’t have many stylist options.
Since launch, it has grown into a discovery engine for both clients and professionals. Today it generates hundreds of thousands of searches annually and continues to scale as more stylists join and more consumers shift into health-first, curl-specific services.
It also fuels the pipeline for our own salon locations, and future locations, creating a strong ecosystem across the brand.
When did you first get the idea for Curly Hair Salon? What has convinced you it will work as a concept?
The idea for Curly Hair Salon came from recognizing a massive gap in the market: people want high-quality curl-specific cutting the way that we do it here at my salon, and at an accessible price point, without all the unnecessary steps that inflate cost and time. Most salons aren’t equipped or trained to offer that consistently.
I saw an opportunity to distill our service down to what matters most — a great cut that honors the natural pattern — and remove everything else that complicates the experience.
The concept works because the demand is already proven. Curl clients pre-book, they’re loyal, and they’re underserved. Creating a streamlined, efficient, quality-controlled model was the natural evolution.
Now that you’ve launched your flagship, are you getting the client base you anticipated? How do you plan to scale it as a franchise model? What do you need at this point to succeed?
Yes! The client base validated everything we projected. We’re seeing volume, repeat demand, and a client profile that aligns perfectly with this type of salon experience.
As for scaling: we’re not aiming to be a franchise-only model. Quality control is the number one priority, so our growth strategy is a hybrid approach. We will own and operate the majority of locations to protect standards, brand integrity, and education. Select franchise or partnership opportunities may exist, but they will be highly curated and supported by a strict training system and operational playbook.
What we need now is strategic support to accelerate expansion: real estate opportunities, and the right partners who understand that this is a long-term brand — not just a salon concept. The demand is there. The systems are in place. We’re now focused on scaling responsibly, intentionally, and aggressively.
Everything we’re building is part of a larger ecosystem designed to elevate curly hair care globally. CurlMaps, CurlVision education, Curly Hair Salon, and our upcoming product line all work together. They’re interconnected, they strengthen one another, and they create something bigger than any one component.
Our goal isn’t just expansion — it’s impact. We're raising the standard for how curls are understood, cut, and cared for across the industry.