When Alice Houska opened a hair salon in Warrenton, she wasn’t exactly encouraged by the reaction.“The talk of the town was that I would never make it in Warrenton,” she said.Houska had owned salons in Ballwin, Crestwood, Fenton and Hermann. She picked Warrenton after hearing that a new Walmart with a strip mall was coming to town.She opened her salon in that strip mall in 1988, a year when (really, really) big hair was in style along with mullets and Mohawks.Call it the cultural era of plaster-strong gel and hair spay.Houska has seen it all when it comes to hairstyles. The salon she opened, Ultimate Hair and Spa, is celebrating three decades in business.“There were ups and downs, and some times challenging,” she said. “I started from scratch, did not know anyone in town, but that soon changed with the help of the people I hired.”Houska owned the salon during its first 25 years. Five years ago she sold it to Amy Tonioli and Kwrina Michelson, two hairstylists who started working at the salon in 1988 and never left.They stayed because they had built a clientele, established friendships and loyalties and business was good.“We’ve worked here for 30 years. We’ve been here since day one,” said Michelson. “Each year, our business grew. It never went backward.”Tonioli remembers giving young men skater cuts and ladies sitting under the hair dryer smoking cigarettes.The salon’s current location at 524 Warren County Center in Warrenton is its third, although it never moved far. The first store was in the strip mall with the older, smaller Walmart. When Walmart decided to open a Walmart Supercenter, the old strip mall was demolished.“My landlord bought a double-wide trailer and we operated in the trailer for two years,” Houska said.Once the Walmart area was redeveloped as a Supercenter with separate strip malls within the shopping center, the salon moved into its current space in 2005. The salon offers hair care services and also facials, manicures, pedicures, massage, spray tanning and more.Tonioli said after 30 years in business she has watched clients and co-workers grow. They have seen each other through marriages, kids, death and everything else in life. Both say they have multiple generations of clients.They keep the work fresh by continuing education. They are constantly learning about new styles, techniques and products. That’s part of what makes the job enjoyable, but mostly, “We enjoy making people feel and look their best,” said Michelson.Houska said she misses the staff and her customers, but it was time for her to move on. She retired.She is proud of the anniversary. She said it was a 25-year adventure for her and now it is an adventure for Michelson and Tonioli.“I congratulate Kwrina and Amy and all the girls,” she said. “Happy 30 years of hard work and service to their community.”The owners are saying thank you for 30 years, by sharing two celebrations with the community — on Friday, April 13, they will host an open house from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the salon with cake and punch and drawings for prizes.The celebration continues from 6 - 9 p.m. Saturday, April 14, at Deerfield’s On Main, 227 E. Main St. in Warrenton. Ultimate Hair and Spa guests will enjoy free appetizers and drawings for prizes.Ultimate Hair and Spa is open 9 a.m.-8:30 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays. For more information call 636-456-7047.

Kwrina Michelson, left, and Amy Tonioli started working at Ultimate Hair and Spa in 1988. Five years ago, they bought it. This month they are celebrating the salon's 30th anniversary. 

Record photo/Kate Miller

Alice and Don Houska, shown here in an undated photo, opened Ultimate Hair and Spa in Warrenton in 1988. They owned it for 25 years. 

Submitted photo