New Castle County People In Profile Third Quarter 2024

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Natasha Latina

Natasha Latina is a Russian immigrant who came to the United States with nothing, but a dream to become a successful hairdresser and business owner. She received her hair training and certification from The Beauty Academy of Moscow. After completing her training in Moscow, she decided to leave Russia and find better opportunities in the US. She arrived in 1992 and began working in different local Delaware salons building a network and establishing a name for herself. Eventually, she partnered with her longtime friend Ann Tasker and together they created Salon Pasca.

Natasha was able to successfully start her business even as a single mother of four children. Amidst a hectic lifestyle she has found time to hone her skills as a hairdresser and stylist. Her skills are evident from her several medals in various distinctions at the Hair World Championships. Throughout her years as an owner, she has taken her passion and skills for hairdressing and inspired new generations of stylists, owners, and techs. Currently her salon operates with over 22 employees, several of which are young stylists hoping to obtain their beauty licenses through the salon’s apprenticeship program.

Recently, the mission of her salon has evolved, particularly in hair replacement. Natasha, who is also a certified hair restoration technician, saw that there were limited options in the state for people who experienced major hair loss. She proceeded then to expand her business by purchasing a hair restoration company in 2020. The company merged with her existing salon and quickly became a successful addition.

The issue of hair loss and restoration is incredibly important to Natasha given that she also experienced a hair loss journey during her battle against breast cancer. She believes that no one should have to fight this alone or be limited in what they can achieve because of their appearance. Everyone deserves a chance to feel confident and beautiful regardless of their situation. 

Advanced Hair Solutions     302-428-1388     www.SalonPasca.com

4559 New Linden Hill Road, Wilmington, DE

Melanie McLaughlin 

Melanie has held her Cosmetology license since 2015, but her journey took a new turn in 2017 when she discovered her passion for Classic Eyelash Extensions. After becoming certified, she honed her craft under the guidance of The Permanent Cosmetic & Lash Studio’s master lash artist, Kristina Bray, in 2018. With meticulous attention to detail, Melanie excels in creating flawless eye transformations tailored to each individual’s preferences. Continuously expanding her expertise, she is currently specializing in Hybrid and Volume Lash Extension techniques. Melanie’s dedication to making people feel confident and beautiful shines brightly in her exceptional work.

The Permanent Cosmetic & Lash Studio     610-883-0636 text/call

www.permanentu.com     [email protected]

140 Commons Court, Suite 140, Chadds Ford, PA

Barbara P.G. Williams 

Barb is passionate about the wedding flowers selected by her brides and grooms. With a degree in floriculture, Barb designed for many flower shops before becoming co-owner of Belak Flowers in 1997.

Barb moved to Wilmington from Lancaster, PA in 1983. Her career began with Taylors of Penny Hill Flower Shop. She later designed for Flowers By Yukie, Gambles Flowers in Newark, Village Green Flower Shop in Greenville, and The European Gallery. While raising twin daughters, Barb worked part-time for Wildflowers Wholesale Flowers.

“As a preferred florist for many venues,” says Barb, “our brides come to us from as far away as California, New York and Florida. Most are from the Tri-State area.” In 2023, Belak Flowers created wedding flowers for over 150 events.

Belak Flowers has won The Best of the Knot, numerous times, as well as The Wedding Wire Couples Choice Award. Barb’s wedding bouquets have been featured in several publications.

The shop at Belak Flowers, carries a variety of soaps, gift items, plants, silk flowers, decorative containers and loose fresh flowers.

Daily floral deliveries are also available.

Belak Flowers      302-762-5000      www.belak-flowers.com        [email protected]     

832 Philadelphia Pike, Wilmington, DE

Lori Zaiss

A salon is much more than a place to get groomed. It’s an escape from our busy lives to indulge ourselves in much needed self-care. Somewhere in the process of shampooing and styling, people are transformed into feeling their best selves.

There’s an unspoken magic that occurs during this transformation. That’s why 23 years ago, I began my mission to own a leading salon in Delaware. My passion and commitment to bring both professional artistry and ability to capture that unspoken magic lead me to build my salon Fusion.

However, it takes a village to own and operate two successful salons. My reason for being an owner and master stylist at Fusion is because of your support. I would have never achieved this level of success without the support of my talented team and our beloved clients. My team and I achieve this every day for YOU and because of YOU.

We are dedicated stylists, constantly looking for the newest trends. Our philosophy is simple. We want to be the very best to offer you the very best. It’s why we push the boundaries of our craft and education. Today’s world of social distancing offers a challenge of sourcing new avenues of educating ourselves. My team has had to demonstrate their resourcefulness to further their education with online courses.

My commitment to you is a clean salon where you can relax. Our goal is to create an environment where you can feel like WE are taking care of YOU with our hands and hearts. We combine our expertise and passion to transform you into your best style, so you leave our salon feeling beautiful inside and out every time.

Fusion Salon     302-479-9444      www.FusionSalonDE.com     3444 Naamans Road, Wilmington, DE

Thank You To Our Location

We would like to thank The Waterfall for hosting our third quarter 2024 Women’s Journal photoshoot at their beautiful location.  

Distinctive, all-inclusive events at The Waterfall:

From the blown-glass chandeliers to the marble dance floors, to the atrium’s glass ceiling, every consideration is taken to create the perfect day for your special event. Whether you are planning the most important day of your life, a corporate gala, a professional conference, or an elegant luncheon, our experienced event coordinators will assist you in arranging it from start to finish.

The Waterfall      302-792-2600      www.WaterfallBanquets.com

3416 Philadelphia Pike, Claymont, DE

To Our Stylist

I would also like to thank Lori Zaiss, Owner of Fusion Salon, and her wonderful team of stylist and makeup artists for providing hair and makeup for our shoot. As always it was a pleasure working with Fusion.

Fusion Salon   302-479-9444      www.FusionSalonDE.com     3444 Naamans Road, Wilmington, Delaware

Thank You To Our Photographer

I would like to thank Debra Zeccola of Debra Zeccola Photography of Newark, DE for being our photographer for our profiles and covers photoshoot. Debra has over 28 years of experience as a licensed professional photographer. Debra provides her clients with outstanding photography services for weddings and events, family and individual portraits, baby photos ,and so much more. Debra is a joy to work with, and I couldn’t ask for a more professional photographer than Debra.

Debra Zeccola Photography     302-540-5800

[email protected]      www.debrazeccolaphotography.com