FK chats with friends Sarah and Sarah, together they have successfully brought together their individual loves, where store meets salon at Lucky Buster in Brunswick, Melbourne.

Tell us a bit about your store & salon Lucky Buster and the concept behind it.
Lucky Buster is a home for what we love and do. Our dream was to provide a bright, warm and welcoming space that people would enjoy being in…and returning to. Sarah Withers runs the salon side and Sarah Isaac runs the store side! The salon is small and the service is relaxed and personable, being one on one with each client.
Our concept store is fitted out in natural woods with bright pops of colour and Sarah Isaac approached makers and artists to stock the shelves with products she loved and knew other people would love to!

What are your backgrounds, how did you meet and what sparked the idea of working together?
Sarah and I met at a garage sale and bonded over a love of ‘found things.’ We have little boys the same age and while they played we dreamed and Lucky Buster store and salon was the end result! Sarah (salon) was ready to open her own salon with a steadily growing existing client base and Sarah (store) was brimming with ideas and products for a store after running retail businesses for other people! A local shop front became vacant in between our favourite café and florist and we jumped at the chance to open our little business in December 2012.  Sarah (salon) has worked locally and internationally in hair salons and Sarah (store) has a retail, design and education background.

What labels & product do you stock at Lucky Buster and what are you always searching for?
Sarah (salon) stocks EVO hair care products from Australia and uses Original Mineral colour, that is 98% natural and organic.
Sarah (store) products are carefully and lovingly picked from Australia and the world. Products include Izola candles, Anders Arhoj ghosts, Emma Jane Donald Jewellery, Dr. Bronners body care, Lip purses from California, Lazy Oaf socks and Rifle cards to name a few… We also sell a carefully curated selection of adults and children’s vintage clothing. The children’s vintage has proven VERY popular! We search for a point of difference in both salon and store. In a world of mass produced products, it is refreshing to find makers with beautiful crafts we can help share.

What do you love about your shop & salon and what keeps you inspired?
We love that we have full ownership of our dream, what we are doing and what direction to take the business in! We are inspired by the music we have playing, our highly creative friends and the eclectic-ness of Brunswick East.

Sarah (salon) finds inspiration in people and their stories, raw beauty, simplicity and natural living. Sarah is inspired by learning new skills as a stylist and colourist by attending a broad range of workshops by masters of the hair industry.
Sarah (store) finds inspiration in the odd, the imperfect, on design blogs, visiting artists studios and being in awe of the beauty people can create!

What inspires you about your surroundings and what other aspects about Brunswick do you love?
We love being a part of the Brunswick East community first and foremost. We are lucky to be neighboured by creative businesses with creative people who are like our extended family. We are always popping in and out of each others shops. We love that we have so many locals that pop by for a chat or a coffee!

What do you love most about running your shop & salon? and how do you best balance the two?
When we first opened people wondered how hair and retail would work in a combined space and we’ve found it’s worked perfectly for us. We run separate businesses under the same roof and have each other for company! We support each other by lending a hand when the other needs it and there is always someone there to bounce ideas off.

What new projects are you working on for Lucky Buster for the remainder of 2013?
We have grand plans for where Lucky Buster will lead us. The Salon is busy and it’s a must to book in advance now so the future is bright! Lucky Buster is adding to its collection of carefully selected products on a regular basis so keep popping in to see our ever changing stock! The other exciting project is our online retail store is going live soon so we can take the Lucky Buster Store to the world!

All the specific details:
221c Blyth Street
East Brunswick
Melbourne
Victoria

Salon phone: 0421 721 133

Opening Hours
Monday & Tuesday: closed
Wednesday – Sat: 10am – 4pm
Sunday: 11am – 4pm

www.facebook.com/lucky.bust
www.luckybuster.com.au