With a 95% client-retention rate, Leah Arredondo has earned a reputation as a master cutter and colorist whose expertise lies in her love of making someone look and feel beautiful.
“It’s an innate passion,” says Leah, a Redken Certified Colorist and graduate of Vidal Sassoon Academy. “I enjoy making a difference in people’s lives and this is one way for me to do it.”
A resident of Thousand Oaks, Leah has been busy since the pandemic forced the closure of hair salons, which prompted many people to color their hair at home.
“My number one specialty—and favorite thing to do—is color correction,” says Leah, who works at L.A. Hair Design in Westlake Village. “If someone has done their hair at home during Covid, or if they’ve had a botched job, I don’t just fix it. I correct it and make it better than ever.”
While she specializes in women’s hair, she also has a barber’s license, and believes, “I can do a better man’s haircut than any barber.” She is also a Toni&Guy Master Cutter, adding to her list of expertise.
“If there was such a thing as a PhD in hair, I would have it,” she says. Additionally, “I’ve either placed or won every competition I’ve ever entered, whether it be cutting or coloring.”
Looking back on her vocation, Leah remembers when she started coloring and cutting her friends hair at age 12.
“I just had this urge,” says Leah, who grew up in the San Fernando Valley. “I just had this eye. I would look at somebody and know how to lay the hair. I didn’t have any professional training—I could just feel it. I really believe I was born to do this.”
As a junior high school student, she cut and colored the hair of her friends until word of mouth brought her more clients.
“One friend would see another friend and say, ‘wow—you did that?’” she recalls. “So I was the one cutting and coloring my friends’ hair, and even their moms’ hair.”
Since going pro, Leah has built a loyal clientele base in the Conejo Valley, especially in Oak Park, where she worked for the majority of her career.
“I moved away for awhile, then relocated back to Westlake Village,” says Leah, who opened her studio in the area in October 2019. “Unfortunately, we went into full lockdown in March (of 2020), so this is still brand new. I’m reopening again, following all CDC guidelines.”
While she is not taking walk-ins, “people can call me and make an appointment by phone,” as far as her services are concerned, “I don’t do up-dos and I don’t do hair extensions. I don’t do anything but cut and color.”
Leah also takes pride in her ability to do pixie cuts, which have earned praise from many clients, including Rebecca C., who stated that “no one could really nail my blonde pixie…I’ve had some okay cuts and a lot of botched cuts. A pixie can go wrong fast.”
Once Rebecca found Leah through word of mouth, she gave her a rating of five out of five stars, stating that “she knows her stuff…my blonde pixie is perfect.”
Now that Leah has reopened her salon in Westlake Village—where she was voted a “neighborhood favorite”—she is offering a complimentary coffee, wine and beer bar. For a limited time, she is offering 50% off an entire service. This offer is valid for first-time clients 16 years or older.
“I would love for you to take advantage of this special offer as my gift to you,” she says. “It gives me great satisfaction when clients leave looking and feeling amazing.”
Above all, “I just want to make somebody look and feel like the best version of themselves,” Leah emphasizes. “When I’m done with someone’s hair, they’re so happy, and it makes me happy to know I did that.”
To make an appointment, or for more information, call Leah at 805.871.9910.