About Us - Forty Years on Braddock Rd | Hair Xpressions Fairfax

A polished hair result photographed inside Hair Xpressions in Fairfax

1984

Where it began.

Shiva Iman opened Hair Xpressions on Braddock Road in 1984 with a simple idea: Fairfax deserved a neighborhood salon that treated every client like family. For thirty years, she built something quietly remarkable - a place people returned to not because they had to, but because they wanted to.

By the end of Shiva's tenure, regulars had been coming for decades. Some had started bringing their kids in for their first haircut. The salon had become a fixture of the Braddock Road neighborhood.

2014

The torch is passed.

In 2014, Lisa Nguyen took over. Many staff stayed. Many clients didn't blink. The culture that mattered - careful work, real conversation, remembering names and stories - carried forward unchanged. Lisa expanded the color program and brought in newer treatments while preserving everything Shiva built.

Many of Lisa's color clients had been with her for years already. When she became the owner, that loyalty deepened. New stylists were hand-picked to match the salon's voice. The work got more sophisticated. The feeling stayed the same.

Illustrated timeline card for Hair Xpressions in 2014

2024

A new chapter, same heart.

In 2024, Sabina Thapaliya brought new energy and a new specialty to the chair - organic threading, eyebrow lamination, lash extensions, and henna. Services that complemented the salon's hair and skin program perfectly.

Sabina is the third owner. The third name on the door, in spirit. But the one thing that hasn't changed across forty years: when you sit down in our chair, you're in expert hands - and someone already knows your name.

That's the only thing we've ever tried to be.

What We Believe

Three things that haven't changed in forty years.

01

Consultation Always Comes First

We don't touch hair until we've understood what you actually want - and what your hair can hold. The consultation is the most important part of any service.

02

Specialists, Not Generalists

Carol is a color expert. Norra is a hair stylist. Najia is a hairstylist and colorist with 30+ years of experience. You don't get whoever's free - you get the person whose decades of work match your service.

03

We Remember Your Name

It sounds small. But after forty years, we've learned it's the thing that turns a salon into a place - and a client into a regular.

Our Community

Serving Fairfax, Burke, Springfield & Annandale.

Hair Xpressions sits on Braddock Road - at the heart of the suburban communities of Northern Virginia. Our clients drive from across Fairfax County, and from Burke, Springfield, Annandale, Centreville, and the Braddock Road corridor.

Some have been coming for thirty years. Others found us last week on Yelp or Google. We treat both groups the same way.

If you're in NoVA and looking for a salon that feels like home - we're here.

Visit Us

Illustrated neighborhood card for Hair Xpressions on Braddock Road

Forty years on Braddock Road.