With over 25 years of experience, Surianello has developed a personal and trusting relationship with her clients–not only because she has experienced hair loss herself, but because she has dealt with every type of loss you could imagine.
Elline Surianello, the owner of LeMetric Salon in New York City, was diagnosed with androgenetic alopecia at a young age.
She became familiar with wearing hair pieces on and off throughout her youth. While working in the cosmetic industry in Houston, Texas in the 80s, tragedy struck. Surianello’s sister was murdered in a robbery. In addition to a tremendous amount of stress, she lost close to 50% of her hair. Elline found it difficult to find a brand that created products that matched her naturally curly texture.
At that time, hair-weaving was a huge growing market in the African-American community. While working in the beauty business, Elline met a gentleman who understood how to do her hair and it changed her life.
Elline was gracious enough to tell me about her personal journey, the story behind LeMetric Salon, and what she has learned about the effects of hair loss among women.
The inspiration
“When I moved back (to New York”>, because I am not a hairdresser, I kind of got thrown into all of this from a consumer perspective,” says Elline. “I didn’t realize how underdeveloped the female sector was for women who needed and wanted to wear hair.”
She then goes on to explain that while living in Buffalo, New York, she couldn’t find anyone experienced enough in hair loss solutions so she partnered back up with the same gentleman from Houston. Sadly, only six months into their partnership, Surianello dealt with the loss of him, causing her to take over the business and have to learn everything on her own. She approached Ladies Home Journal (LHJ”> requesting that they educate women on hair loss. LeMetric blossomed quickly after LHJ wrote her story, creating a demand from thousands of women from around the world that wanted hair solutions.
She emphasizes that, now in 2016, the platform for hair solutions has increased due to many factors such as dieting and lifestyle changes.
I found it alarming that Elline has noticed an even larger increase of young girls experiencing hair thinning than the older generation of women. She adds, “LeMetric is not just about the hair, it’s about creating an environment that women feel safe in and who can talk not only about why their hair has changed but also a lot of the autoimmune issues that affect women and make their hair come out.”
Unlike a wig that has nothing to do with the clients’ hair, these are all systems integrated with the women’s existing hair.”
LeMetric offers customized hair systems designed to fit a woman’s personal and lifestyle needs.
The company imports, manufactures and designs high quality hair to create hairpieces, wigs, hair extensions, clip-ins, and more. With proper maintenance, their pieces are durable and meant to last. Regardless of the cultural background or hair type, LeMetric can custom blend, color and texture the hair to match your unique hair texture. The solutions can be temporary or designed for more permanent use. Surianello adds, “Unlike a wig that has nothing to do with the clients hair, these are all systems integrated with the women’s existing hair.”
In 2012, Surianello created a mobile hair salon (a custom-built Mercedes-Benz Sprinter”> to bring her services right to the client. By offering private and convenient consultations, she is able to make it easier for her clients. She adds, “Women, when it comes to this, are very private and they don’t want this information all over the place. I’m going back on the road with it and my goal is to have small networking opportunities for women with Q & A when I go into a certain marketplace.”
Tackling hair loss as a major issue
While the physical appearance of hair loss is a major issue, the emotional aspect can also have a devastating effect on women. I ask Elline about the common feelings her clients have when they come to visit her. “They hate it. Depending on how old they are will determine what reaction they have.”
With over 25 years of experience, Surianello has developed a personal and trusting relationship with her clients–not only because she has experienced hair loss herself, but because she has dealt with every type of loss you could imagine. She’s had several types of clients ranging from someone that lost their hair a week before their wedding, to a teenager waking up to hair loss on her pillow. Some of her clients just want to maintain their privacy while dealing with health issues and others want to hide the fact that they wear hairpieces from their partners.
Participating in National Women’s Health Week
For National Women’s Health Week and Lupus Awareness Month, LeMetric worked with blogger and Lupus advocate Tiffany Peterson of TiffanyandLupus.com as part of their new beauty and makeover series. Hair loss is a common side effect of Lupus and the medications used for treatment. According to LeMetricBlog.com, the series will feature Surianello and other women battling autoimmune disorders to show how they find the beauty in life while battling the ugliness of disease.
Ultimately, Elline Surianello has been a warrior for women dealing with hair loss. Her inspiring story and happy clientele prove that she is paying it forward to help them recognize their true beauty. For more information on her, LeMetric salon and hair solutions, please visit www.lemetric.com.
