To everyone who has taken the time to travel all the way to Himeji, and to those who visited LOWONIDA for the first time in December,
thank you from the bottom of my heart.
First of all, many of you had already been coming to see me since the days when I was working in a shared space in Kobe.
Even from the pre-opening stage, a surprising number of those long-standing clients made the journey to Himeji.
Despite the fact that the salon is now located further away, you still chose to come — and not just once.
You booked your next appointments just as you always had.
This is never something I take for granted, and I am truly grateful.
To be honest, I thought that even Kobe might be manageable, but that coming from Kyoto or Osaka would feel like a real commitment.
And yet, I heard words such as:
“It’s completely doable as a day trip — of course I’ll come.”
“I thought you might move overseas again someday, so I’m relieved it’s still in Japan. Himeji is absolutely close enough.”
Hearing this made me realise that, more than I had imagined, you truly value not only the result of the service, but also the time we spend together.
That realisation deeply moved me.
LOWONIDA officially opened on the 12th of December.
To be honest, I can’t say that we had an abundance of preparation time.
There were certainly faster ways to attract customers.
However, LOWONIDA is a fully private salon, and my priority has always been to spend proper time with each individual client, giving my full attention to each appointment.
Rather than people booking “just because,”
I wanted to share time with those who had read my blog or followed my SNS and genuinely thought, “I’d like to visit LOWONIDA.”
With that belief, I continued sharing information little by little, hoping that I could gradually meet people who truly resonated with what I do.
That was how this journey began.
As a result, 23 new clients visited LOWONIDA in December alone.
Honestly, even I was surprised.
Of course, the number itself made me happy — but more than that, what truly meant the most was that so many of you came with genuine interest, having carefully read my blog and Instagram posts beforehand.
Some of you had read my reviews in such detail that I found myself thinking,
“Do they already know me personally?”
It was clear how deeply you understood both LOWONIDA and myself before even stepping into the salon.
When I first learned about blog-based marketing, a seminar instructor once told me:
“When your writing reflects your own values, the clients who come to you will truly resonate with them — but it can take up to six months for results to appear. So be patient and keep going.”
That is exactly why having clients visit from the very first month after reading my blog was incredibly encouraging and deeply rewarding.
Since becoming a hairdresser, I’ve taken on many challenges.
Still, taking a new step always leaves a particularly strong impression.
The clients who visited in December remain especially vivid in my memory.
If these encounters grow into long-term relationships, I believe those bonds will always feel uniquely special.
Of course, there are also clients I have been cutting for years — those who return every time they come back to Japan from London, and those who have continued to visit me even after my move from Kobe.
They remain, as always, irreplaceable pillars of support.
Ensuring their continued satisfaction is a given.
And beyond that, striving to be a hairdresser my clients can truly be proud of.
That is the driving force behind my own growth.
Thanks to the support of so many people, LOWONIDA was able to open successfully.
However, the year 2025 itself was also one filled with major personal milestones and challenges for me.
In the next blog post, I will be reflecting on 2025 and sharing the story of how LOWONIDA came to be.
If you have a moment, I would be very happy if you gave it a read.
The connections formed this December marked an incredibly meaningful beginning — for LOWONIDA, and for myself.
Moving forward, I will continue to face my craft with sincerity, dedicating myself each day to creating a place where every client can feel at ease and truly cared for.
Once again, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I am deeply grateful.
