EAST BERNE — After opening in October, business at Destination Perfection, a new salon in the hamlet, is picking up, said Melanie Stempel, who owns the salon with her sister, Heather Schwenk.
"It’s such a small town," said Stempel. "We need something up here."

Open Monday through Saturday, the salon offers a variety of services — haircuts for men, women, and children, waxes, tanning, coloring, perms, manicures, and pedicures.

On Wednesday, Dec. 12, Destination Perfection will hold a purse party from 5 to 8 p.m. Throughout the day, haircuts will be half price, all tanning packages and products will be discounted 15 percent, and 10 percent will be taken off all Redken hair products.

While the store currently has Redken products, Stempel said, it will add other brands, such as Matrix, to its product line.

Stempel, 23, and her sister, Heather Schwenk, grew up in South Berne.

Lillian Welsh, 38, rents space at Destination Perfection. She worked for two years at Shear Techniques, a salon in Greenville, and attended the Orlo School of Hair Design in Albany, she said.

Schwenk has been in the business for 10 years, and has worked at Sally Beauty Supply and attended Austin Beauty School in Albany. Stempel, who attended the Board of Cooperative Educational Services Vo-Tech School in Schoharie, has worked at Choices Hair Studio in Delmar, Shear Creations in Ravena, and, for a short time, at Spa Li Vé in Altamont.

Thursday is Senior Citizen Day at Destination Perfection, with customers over the age of 55 receiving a 20-percent discount for all services.

The store has two stations and two hair dryers as well as cable television.

Destination Perfection offers bridal, bridesmaid, and birthday packages that range in price from $99 for a bridal package to $399 for a bride-to-be, her mother, and at least two bridesmaids. The cost for a woman’s cut is $20, a man’s cut is $13, and haircuts for kids are $10.

A single tanning session of up to 10 minutes costs $6, a 10-session tanning package of 11 to 14 minute sessions is $26, and a three-month unlimited package is $90.

Schwenk, Stempel, and Welsh each perform all services offered.
Since opening on Oct. 16, Stempel said, "It’s getting there. It’s picking up."

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Destination Perfection, located at 67 Main Street in East Berne, is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The salon is closed on Sundays. Gift certificates are available and walk-ins are welcome. The salon accepts checks and most credit cards.