The Kismet Co Salon has closed its doors after four years at 5512 17th Ave NW.
Owner Lisa Clarno wrote in a social media post that closing the salon was one of the “hardest decisions I’ve ever made,” and said it wasn’t due to a lack of passion. “I gave this place everything. I adapted, shifted, rebuilt, and endured more than most people will ever know,” she said.
Clarno, who has worked in the industry for 20 years, made news during the pandemic when she started offering outdoor hair services at her previous location at 1464 NW 49th St. She also had mobile salon services, visiting over 200 backyards and patios in Ballard throughout the first year of the pandemic.
Clarno then relocated in 2021 to 17th Ave NW when her former landlord on 49th St sold the property.
In her post, Clarno said she’s ready to move on: “Closing does not mean failure. Sometimes it simply means a chapter has completed its purpose.” She said ongoing safety concerns in the neighborhood were a contributing factor to the closure.
From Clarno:
For a long time, I believed success meant having a big salon, a large team, and a packed schedule. But I’ve learned that isn’t the real definition of success.
Success is the stylists I mentored who are now thriving on their own. Success is the clients whose confidence grew in my chair. Success is the community and trust that lived inside those four walls. If the people who came through my salon became better because of it, then I did my job.
Oh man — the amount of beautiful hair that came out of that salon… unmatched.
Photo: Kistmen Co Salon