Meet the Crew
Ambia Elms (she/her)
Owner
Transformation, short hair and
gender-affirming haircut specialist
An almost native of Arizona, Ambia has spent 24+ of her 27 years here doing hair. She specializes in short to medium textured haircuts and color.
In her free time, she is usually hanging out with her family watching ridiculous television and eating tacos and wondering why pumpkin cream cold brews can't be a year-round thing.
The idea of olive + elm came after decades of working at salons and meeting new clients and not only experience firsthand lazy salon owners and Stylists but hearing story after story from clients of their own personal experiences on their search for simply a Stylist that would just take their time and LISTEN. How hard could it be to teach basic Customer Service skills to new Stylists and watch them flourish?? After 3 years of taking care of our clients, I would have to say, it can be difficult but it's also amazing to see such young humans, many who spent their cosmetology school experience ONLINE, be completely natural at making our guests feel super comfortable.
Creating a salon space that had a smaller carbon footprint was super important too and she is working to make olive + elm not only a salon full of amazing Stylists, but also a space where almost every product used has little to no negative impact on our creatures, our water and most importantly, our bodies.
Mehgan Nickerson (she/her)
Salon Manager and all around silly human
Haaaave ya met Mehgan??
Mehgan, or Meh as I like to call her, runs the shop. She came at this amazing time when I needed someone to trust to take care of the clients and team so I could spend time with my dad at the end of his life.
She went above and beyond. She was able to bond with the team without her mean boss hoovering 😏
Now, I don't think we can ever survive without her. She is sweet and funny and such a hard worker.
Dwayne Hartigan (he/him)
Dwayne is originally from the pine tree state, Maine. He and his husband Doug have made Arizona their home. His career as a Hairstylist started with a strong passion to be creative and make people feel their best, both inside and out.
Many years later, Dwayne's passion to be creative is renewed by the people he meets, both behind the chair and with his creative salon peers. He possesses strong classic hair skills : Grey maintenance, grey blending and finish work are some of his favorite ways to be creative with hair. He has also become a big help 'mentoring' our newer Stylists.
He and Doug love Arizona's natural beauty for biking and hiking. And lastly but MOST importantly, he is a proud doggie dad to Greta and Henri.
Jasmine Bieberdorf
(she/her)
Jasmine was born in Tulsa, OK but moved here to AZ at a young age. She loves to travel and spends as much time as possible with her friends and family.
Jasmine enjoys doing all color services but REALLY loves doing Blondes.
Her favorite part of the job is her ability to make everyone who sits in her chair leave feeling amazing and confident about themselves!
Eve John
(she/her)
VIVID Color Junkie
"I came from the city of Los Angeles to Gilbert and I love it here! Living somewhere peaceful and not a crazy city full of hectic buzz, I'm able to do what I love without feeling pressure of the hustle culture.
My absolute heartfelt passion in this industry is doing Vivids and painting Rainbows. My goal is to give clients their dream hair and left feeling like their best selves. I love being creative and helping people express themselves. I tell everyone, 'I can't paint on canvas, so I paint on hair!'.
I always want anyone who sits in my chair to feel like they can leave their stresses at the door and have a safe relaxing place to escape to. Even for a couple hours. Treat me as a 'Hairapist' and tell me all the tea or have a 'Silent' appointment and take the time to recharge mentally and relax.
On my time off, I enjoy hanging out with my baby boy, reading fantasy novels and binge watching tv. My favorite thing to do is try out new restaurants (and bars 😏).
Kelsey Garcia
(she/her)
Kelsey recently moved from Oregon to Arizona looking for a little change!
She enjoys all things hair and is very passionate about dimensional color, blondes and special occasion and bridal styles
Her passion for hair started at a young age, spending lots of time in the salon, watching her Mom work behind the chair. She now has the privilege of others achieve their hair goals.
In her free time, you'll find her out exploring her new city or binge watching her favorite shows or FaceTiming her family back in Oregon.
Kelsey Garcia
(she/her)
Kelsey recently moved from Oregon to Arizona looking for a little change!
She enjoys all things hair and is very passionate about dimensional color, blondes and special occasion and bridal styles
Her passion for hair started at a young age, spending lots of time in the salon, watching her Mom work behind the chair. She now has the privilege of others achieve their hair goals.
In her free time, you'll find her out exploring her new city or binge watching her favorite shows or FaceTiming her family back in Oregon.
Carli Malee (she/her)
Independent Stylist
Gender-affirming, transformation haircut specialist
While raised on the beaches of Southern California, Carli made Arizona her home in 2002. With over 20 years of experience in the beauty industry, Carli brings a wide array of talent to the team.
She is proficient in cutting all hair types and styles including barber cuts, textured pixies, precision bobs and long waving layers. Her color skills are equally as vast. When not in the salon, Carli can be found perusing local museums, wandering thrift shops or getting lost in non-fiction.
*Carli is an Independent Contractor here at olive + elm.
JoAnn Rubio (she/her)
*Independent Stylist
JoAnn is originally from Los Angeles California and is loving taking in all Arizona has to offer with her two year old son. JoAnn specializes in blondes, color corrections and special occasion/bridal styles. She enjoys the company of her clients and making them look and feel like the best versions of themselves.
*JoAnn is an Independent Contractor here at olive + elm.