If you meet Stacie Spiers in person, the first thing you might notice about her is the face-framing cloud of dark ringlets that complements her pale skin and high cheekbones. Stacie is the authority on curly hair—but unlike her hair texture, that expertise isn’t something she was born with. Instead, she credits Paris Parker’s ongoing educational opportunities for furthering her career and reputation as a curly hair specialist.
“I do have curly hair, and I cut it well. That’s because I am exceptionally well-trained thanks to Neill Corporation,” she says. “If it wasn’t for Paris Parker and Neill Corporation, I wouldn’t be the stellar hairdresser I am today. Period. End of discussion.”
Stacie didn’t set out to make curly hair her niche. Instead, the curly-haired people came to her. Unbeknownst to Stacie, many users on NaturallyCurly.com were giving her shout-outs on the site. They referred each other to Stacie, and gradually, she developed a reputation for giving great haircuts. Some users drove as far as 500 miles to experience the “magic” of her shears, calling her cuts “the best of my life.”
When asked how she developed this mystical understanding of curly hair, Stacie directs the credit back to Paris Parker. “They provided me a ton of education I could never afford or be exposed to on my own,” Stacie says. “You’re never going to be a great haircutter if you don’t have education, and at Paris Parker, education is a lifelong event.”
Stacie says she always knew she wanted to be a hairdresser, because it seemed “like a fun job—if you have to work, you may as well be having fun.” A fan of the Aveda brand since childhood, she was attracted to Paris Parker because of the health insurance, “phenomenal 401k” and education opportunities.
“I’ve been exposed to Vidal Sassoon, went to London, went to Washington D.C., opened a location,” she says. “I wrote 80 percent of our first education program, and I am still active in education. I love seeing people grow. I want them to have the great career I’ve had.”
Stacie has had lots of career opportunities—but if she had the chance to cut any head of hair in the world, she would choose the wavy, blonde, leonine tresses of Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant—and not just because he has curly hair.
“I have the majorest crush on Robert Plant,” Stacie says. “I’d love to meet him and do anything with him. So I’d love to do his hair.”
However, after deliberating for a few minutes, Stacie changes her answer. If she could cut anyone’s hair, it would be her own. “I wish I could stand behind myself and give myself a haircut—walk around it and do all these layers,” she says, laughing. “If you’re not cutting curly hair well, it’s because you don’t understand hair, in my opinion. So yeah—I wish I could cut my own hair!”
Now entering her 20th year with us, Stacie says she was correct in her prediction that hairdressing would be an enjoyable job. “I still like going to work; I still have fun,” she says. “It’s been a fun, fantastic career. I love working at the Paris Parker on Magazine Street. I love the team. We laugh a lot, and our clients laugh a lot, and we put out fantastic hair.”
