Nestled in the vibrant heart of Miami Shores, That’s It! Salon is more than just a beauty destination—it's a haven for self-expression and transformation. From impeccable hair styling to personalized beauty services, this chic and upscale salon is fully committed to helping you achieve your beauty ideals. With a team of highly trained stylists and aestheticians, That’s It! Salon offers a bespoke experience tailored to your unique aesthetic and needs.

But what truly sets That’s It! apart is the passion and vision of its co-founder and master hair stylist, Christian Parla. Known for his unmatched expertise and creativity, Christian has cultivated a space where beauty has no limits!

In this special interview, we’ll get an inside look at Christian's journey, his inspiration behind the salon, and his plans to expand this thriving beauty empire—including an exciting new location in Brickell with a barber section. Let’s uncover what makes That’s It! Salon a cornerstone of Miami’s beauty scene.

That's It Salon has become a go-to spot in Miami Shores not just for hair, but also nails etc. What inspired you to expand the services offered, have you been offering more than just hair care since the beginning?

So we have been offering more than just hair care since the beginning we've always offered lashes, permanent makeup, nails and we’re positioning ourselves to be a full-service salon and in the recent times we've seen that we get more success from hair and everything else is kind of like an additive service so we are and more hair stations because that's our bread and butter. 

What services other than hair are you currently offering?

Nails, lashes, brow lamination, facials, massages etc. by appointment only

How do you ensure the highest quality across such a range of treatments, and make sure every customer is satisfied?

I have my hands in everything literally, you can't sit here without me hearing what's going on literally in the back of the salon. We have an ever growing team and that team helps us to regulate the quality of our services and also make sure that everyone is taken care of on a personal level 

As one of the founders, what are some of the biggest challenges you faced when starting the salon and how did you overcome them? What advice would you give to aspiring beauty entrepreneurs?

Fear, yes it's fear and you can shake your hand or her head all you want but fear is something that you have to walk through you don't make it anywhere in life without taking risks, right, and it was really hard for me as someone who grew up in the same area where I worked for most of my life, okay, to do like a geographical shift you know in areas. Miami is very saturated with hair salons, right, and so what happened is that people go to where’s closest to them, you know, and what I realized over time was that the relationships I have built with my clients, okay, and the level of work that I produced for them allow them to follow me 20 minutes 30 minutes away from where they were used to seeing me, you know, and walking through that fear was a big fucking deal. If you don't take risks in life then you don't see change and you can't grow 

How did you land yourself in Miami Shores? 

God put me here this is where the universe dropped me. Because we were set on a different location on Biscayne Boulevard And I won't name any names, but they gave us a run around to give us this lease, and we were locked into this for months with the realtor like ready to pay and she wouldn't give us a lease, wouldn't give us the lease, wouldn't give us the lease. Her mistake because that location was not what was meant for us and also hasn't seen a steady person in the space that we were looking at for like historically over time, you know. My business partner and his then partner were having brunch at (?)And they walked past here and the windows were papered up and they searched and found that the location was a beauty salon, we saw it the next week, the next week we got the keys, and it was like some meant to be type of thing.  

Your hand in hair styling has earned you a reputation of excellence. What do you believe makes your approach to your hairstyling and your iconic blowouts stand out from others in the industry? 

Everything I do I do with love and if I can't give 100% of something And if I don't feel like it's 100% something that I meant to do I don't do it Because I'm not going to do a poor job, you know. No one wants to walk around with their crown half on their head. Like you either want it on or you're not going to fucking wear it. That's just how I live my life, that's how I treat every situation with my clients. And if I don't feel comfortable doing something I'm not going to do it, and I can refer you to someone either within my salon, or someone that I know is going to give you the best service possible. Even if I lose the money. That's just how I deal with my business. 

You've managed to grow a successful business while maintaining your artistry. How does the balance of being a stylist intertwine with the business aspect of running the salon? How do you manage both things at the same time? 

I've learned through personal experience that hiring out is the way to go. You need a team, you need support, we’re not meant to do this all on our own. I tried that, it didn't work, it's very overwhelming. It's hard to be on per client, literally client after client all day long. Smile, you know, share energy with people, and be present and then also run a business. I can successfully run a business as long as there’s support. Actual physical human being support, you know. Front of house, etc, management. This is a team effort. 

It's in the works that we are expanding a new salon near Brickell which will feature a barber section. What excites you most about this new location and how do you envision it differentiating from That's It here?

I'm really excited mostly about all the different lives that we're going to get to touch over there, you know. Because it’s like I said in the beginning of this interview, Most people don't travel for their, you know, beauty services. They want to go to wherever is close to them. The location that we've chosen is somewhere where it is at a central point for so many different communities of people. The Brickell community, the Grove, Coral Gables, the actual Little Havana, you know like, all of those different areas, South Miami. Were in like such a central point where we’re going to be able to touch so many different ranges of people and that excites me. I get to now make new relationships,meet more people you know, and make more people feel beautiful. 

The beauty industry is always evolving. What changes have you observed in most recent years both in terms of trends and client expectations? 

I think that it's because, let's see if I get this right, the DIY trend, cause it's a trend… The DIY trend is like you know what can we easily do ourselves at home? Right, or what can I watch a YouTube video to learn how to do so I don’t actually have to make it to a salon? Where you were seeing a lot of clients before for blowouts and waves, Lots of girls get the right tools and do it on their own at home. That's why we've taught master classes to teach our clients, our friends, how to do their hair themselves at home So they're not walking around looking like a hot mess, you know. I think that's really cool, I think that's something really special. I think you also need to take into account that some things need to be done by a professional. Shouldn't be cutting your bangs at home just because you watch a Youtube video, Unless you want to walk around looking like Matilda. Like, that's a Vibe and I see that a lot too, you know. so the DIY trend is a cute trend, but then having to have the stylist fix your mess that's another trend too. 

Have you noticed that client expectations have become higher in recent years? Or unrealistic?

Well so because a lot of these things people feel like they can do them on their own and they think oh I can do this better than you, you know. They don't realize what comes into account or like all of the factors that play into actually protecting and preserving the integrity of your hair, you know. Just because you can lighten your hair yourself doesn't mean you should be doing it, you're probably going to fry your hair off, you know. Just because there's a video that teaches you how to do something doesn't mean you're going to do it correctly, because maybe you're not using the right products, you know. Maybe you're forgetting to add your bond builder when you're doing your at-home balayage. You can get all of the teasing and techniques and that shit down but if you're not formulating the right formula, if you're not using the right stuff you're probably going to create more damage than you are good.

Okay, last question. What advice Would you give to young stylists who are just starting out in the beauty industry and want to follow in your footsteps? 

Don't compete with each other, this is not a competition. We can all learn from each other, and in the dark of the night the light is so much brighter when all the stars are shining together.