September 26, 2019
Esttheva Hair Salon & Spa in Mumbai’s Khar suburb is reaching out
to people with disabilities in a big way. Not only is entry to the salon
accessible to wheelchair users but the area inside is spacious enough too.
What’s more there are special discounts for people with
disabilities.
Who doesn’t love being pampered and looked after head to toe at a luxurious
salon? It’s a feeling many wheelchair user don’t get to experience though as
most salons are inaccessible.
Welcome to Esttheva Hair Salon & Spa in Mumbai’s Khar
suburb. This newly opened unisex beauty parlour aims to bring the luxury
salon experience to people in wheelchairs. The entry to the parlour is
accessible to wheelchair users and the space inside is large enough to
accommodate two people in wheelchairs.
Esttheva founders Vidhi Jagwani and Sanjana
Bachani got the idea of reaching out to people with disabilities
from Rajesh Patil, Co-founder of wheelchair
taxi service Ezy Mov.
At the launch of Esttheva when Ezy Mov mentioned to us that our parlour is
for wheelchair users, we thought why not reach out to people with
disabilities with our services. There’s just one step leading to the
parlour and the passage inside is spacious enough as well. It makes good
business sense too given the large number of disabled people in India. –
Vidhi Jagwani, Co-founder, Esttheva Hair Salon & Spa
The founders are also offering special rates and discounts to
people with disabilities on various services and packages. “From facials to
massages, we are offering all kinds of beauty services to people in
wheelchairs so they can enjoy the feel-good experience too”, says Bachani.
Among the first customers was systems engineer Jasmina
Khanna who usually opts for beauty parlour services at home. When
she heard about how accessible Esttheva was she decided to make a short
visit. She loved it so much, she ended up staying there for about five hours.
“It felt wonderful to enjoy the services at the parlour because you get to
try out things you cannot at home”, says Jasmina. “Take something like hair
colouring for instance. The choices of hair colours at a beauty parlour are
limitless and you come to know of the latest trends in fashion and beauty”.
Jasmina says the entrance at Esttheva is just one step which is easy to
access in a wheelchair. “Inside the area is spacious and the entrances are
wide too”. An added attraction for her was the full-length mirrors. “As a
wheelchair user, you can see yourself completely”.
The founders say they have spent some time sensitising the staff and hope
that as more customers with disabilities come in, they will become more
attuned to their needs. ” Jasmina says that over time the person attending to
her became more comfortable and she was happy with the overall experience. I
am sure that they will do better with more experience”.
Patil from EzyMov believes Estheva is meeting a vital need. “We noticed that
people with disabilities avoid going to places like beauty parlours and
restaurants because accessibility is an issue. When we suggested the idea,
the parlour owners were very receptive and even said they would offer
discounts. Our transport services can take disabled clients to the parlour”.
Going ahead, EzyMov hopes to tie up with more accessible places that offer
leisure and fun to people with disabilities like restaurants. “It helps make
them feel included and makes them visible too. Besides they get to meet
non-disabled people there and this facilitates greater interaction and
inclusion”.
If you are a wheelchair user and want to enjoy a visit to the salon,
check out Esttheva Hair Salon & Spa. Call Sanjana Bachani at +91
98196-43196 too book an appointment.
