Style 2000 Turns 30

Phyllis DeBerry has been a client of Style 2000 since it first opened its doors in 1995. On a recent afternoon, she wasn’t the one in the chair — her great-granddaughter Kiara was. 

Draped in a cape patterned with playful safari animals, the young girl quietly took in the salon around her as longtime stylist Estelle Moore braided her hair. They were among several clients at the beloved Westville salon as it celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, with familiar faces on both sides of the chair.

Salon owners Samantha Myers-Galberth and Sylvia Jackson trace their partnership back to beauty school, where a friendship between Myers-Galberth and Jackson’s daughter brought them together.

“At first, she was like a mother to me,” Myers-Galberth recalled. ​“But then she became like a sister.”

After working together in another salon, they decided to open their own. As they prepared to launch, they struggled to settle on a name — until a friend suggested Style 2000. ​“The year 2000 felt so far away back in the ​’90s,” Myers-Galberth said, laughing. But the name stuck. Now, 25 years beyond that once-distant date, the salon has not only retained most of its original clients, but also doubled its number of stylists, growing to a team of six.

The biggest change over the decades? 

“Rent!” Myers-Galberth said without hesitation.

Jackson nodded, smiling, and added, ​“Cost of living.” 

What has remained constant through the years and their move from their first location on Chapel Street to their current location at 883 Whalley Ave., however, is the team’s deep commitment to building community. Whether it’s their annual Christmas parties, park picnics, or the everyday liveliness of the salon, Style 2000 has always been more than a hair salon. ​“We want our clients to come in and feel at home — warm and welcome,” Jackson said. ​“They can have a cup of coffee, share their stories and we’ll listen — or we’ll share ours and they’ll just laugh.”

The spirit of connection is shared by the entire team, including their newest stylist, Danielle Murphy — who, despite the title, has been with the salon for over a decade and brings even more years of her own experience. In fact, she gave Myers-Galberth her first sew-in weave back when Myers-Galberth was heading off to college: ​“I thought it was gonna last me the whole semester!” she joked.

Murphy, who once owned her own salon in New Haven, decided to join Style 2000 after a fellow stylist told her about an opening. ​“I don’t want to go anywhere else. Every day is a highlight because we get along so well,” she said. ​“The thing I love most is the genuine love we have. When I was sick, they checked in on me. We act like sisters — we argue, laugh, talk. We love — everyone looks out for one another.”

The love goes both ways. Clients and former stylists alike sent flowers, filling the reception counter with colorful bouquets in honor of the salon’s anniversary. In the waiting area, the salon’s extended community had handwritten messages of congratulations and well-wishes over a framed photo from a recent team photoshoot.

“We shared a lot: milestones in our lives — we’ve watched each other change, go through motherhood, watch each other’s children go off to college,” said Rosalee Reid, another 30-year client. ​“All those transitions, we’ve watched — and we’ve never become disconnected.”

Reid highlighted the sense of community and the care each stylist brings, giving a special shoutout to Myers-Galberth for her focus on continual improvement. ​“Mantha used to tell me that she watched videos all the time to keep herself sharp,” she recalled. 

“I still do!” Myers-Galberth said, curling a client’s hair nearby.

Their dedication goes beyond their regular clientele — Style 2000 also regularly gives back by offering salon services to those who might not otherwise be able to afford them. The team has worked with women’s shelters, provided care for clients at Crossroads — a detox and inpatient rehabilitation center — and helped local high school students get ready for prom. Their dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed: most recently, they received the Grand Marshal’s Award at the Freddy Fixer Parade, one of the oldest Black American parades in the Northeast.

“These ladies are a pillar of the community,” Reid said. ​“I don’t think there’s another salon that you can mention the name of, and everybody knows who is in those salons. Everybody’s happy. If you need a laugh, you can come in and get it right here.”