A Sublime Ending for Shona Humber
HALIFAX — For Shona Humber, last Sunday was a dream come true that was 20 years in the making. Saying there were obstacles and heartache along the way would be a criminal understatement. After working in the hair and beauty industry for two decades, Humber finally has a salon to call her own.
Sublime, which used to be The Rosewood, had its grand opening on March 5. Humber and her six employees offer hairstyling, manicures, facials, nails, and eyelash extensions.
“When I graduated from hair school, this was something that I always wanted to do: own my own salon. But I ended up getting married and having kids. I wanted to stay at home to take care of my kids while also doing hair,” Humber told Huddle in a recent interview.
This isn’t the first time she tried to open her own business, back in 2020, she launched a salon out of her house in Timberlea. But Halifax Regional Municipality and her landlord quickly shut her down.
Brunello Estates, her landlord and a local developer, told Humber that a neighbour had made a complaint. Apparently, her clients were blocking a neighbour’s driveway. Humber was also told that Brunello’s restrictive covenants didn’t allow people to operate a business at home.
RELATED: Why A Halifax Woman Was Forced To Close Her Home-Based Hair Salon
On October 7, 2020 she also got a written notice from the municipality saying her at-home business didn’t comply with the Timberlea/Lakeside/Beechville development agreement. It also noted she was operating without a permit.
Humber posted about her situation on Facebook and her story quickly went viral. Someone started a Change.org petition to convince Brunello Estates to allow Humber to continue her salon. It received more than 3,800 signatures.
Despite the public outcry, Humber says she never did get a response from the real estate company. Looking back, nearly three years later, the controversy with Brunello has only made opening her own salon that much sweeter.
“It’s an amazing sense of accomplishment. And it also goes to show that every step and hardship leads to where you should be and what should be happening for you. Looking back, I’m grateful that we got shut down by Brunello,” she says.
“This is something I’ve wanted for over 20 years and I’m grateful for all the steps leading up to where I am right now. Even the shitty ones.”
One other good thing came out of getting her business shut down in 2020: she made lifelong friends in the process. Another salon, called Adorn, quickly picked her up as a hairdresser. Humber says she is forever grateful to her coworkers, and her boyfriend Jean, for their unwavering support over the past few years.
“They were my work family for two years and we’re still going to be good friends moving on,” said Humber.
Even the way Humber was able to open Sublime was serendipitous. She saw the Rosewood business was up for sale on Facebook marketplace. Basically, all Humber had to do was buy the equipment and lease the commercial space from the landlord.
After that, Humber did renovations. In total, the startup costs were $30,000. Not bad for a new business these days.
“It was within my means to purchase it from her. I was buying her equipment and then I had to turn around and renovate with my own money. So it was just a lucky series of events.”
When asked what keeps her in the hair and beauty business for two decades, through all the ups and downs, Humber gives a response that many in the industry would echo. The hair and nails aren’t as important as the people.
“It’s the relationships that I build with my clients. Some of them are friends and some of them basically become family.”
Derek Montague is a Huddle reporter in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].