Salon Serendipity

When Ellen McDonald first came to the United States, in 1985, she watched a movie entitled “Serendipity.” She was so taken with the movie that she visited the restaurant it featured, Serendipity, in New York City and looked up the meaning of the word. When McDonald opened her salon, in 2006, the name was obvious: Salon Serendipity.

“The word flows so nicely and is considered a global word, so you find it in most languages,” she said. “It means meant to be or leap of faith and that's what starting my salon was all about.”

McDonald grew up and went to school in Germany.

After moving to Sparta, she worked at Cottage Coiffures, located off West Shore Trail across from the boardwalk for 18 years.

“I was blessed to work for such great owners,” she said. “They were tough which was a good thing and I learned so much from them.

When Cottage Coiffures closed, McDonald tried working at two other salons but neither was like what she was used to.

“I knew the only way to recreate what I was used to and thought was the most professional way to run a salon was to open my own,” she said.

The original Salon Serendipity was located at a more obscure location in Sparta.

“People had a hard time finding us and when you put us into the GPS, it took you to the 7-11,” McDonald said. “I relocated to the Theatre Plaza eight and a half years ago and am very pleased with the location.”

McDonald has a strong team of stylists and as a former certified color educator, is a huge proponent of continuing education.

Salon Serendipity is a full service salon featuring Redken and Pureology. It offers a full list of salon services which can be found at https://www.salonserendipity.com. To book an appointment or for further information call 973-729-1187. Salon Serendipity is located at 1 Centre Street in Sparta.

For the holidays, the salon is offering a special where if you purchase a gift certificate for someone else of $100 or more you receive a give of $25 to use yourself.