There’s something in the air at Changes Salon and Day Spa in Mechanicsburg – change.
If all goes according to plan in 2025, the establishment at 5121 E. Trindle Road will grow, more than doubling from 4,000 square feet to over 10,000 square feet, according to proprietor Angela Martin. She said the expansion will allow the salon to offer an even more extensive array of services and meet heightened customer demand.
Martin, a Central Pennsylvania native, took ownership of Changes two years ago. She and her husband, Tom Fuentes, have traveled to spas, health resorts and beauty-care businesses around the world to glean the best ideas and practices – and bring them back home.
“We’re a full-service salon: hair, nails, makeup, microblading, facials, massages. We are a med spa, as well. We have a doctor and a nurse, and we’re able to do services that you could not perform in a regular salon, like hydrafacial, microblading, microdermabrasion, micro needling, and other treatments (that break the skin barrier),” said Martin.
As part of the expansion, she plans to add an acrylics nail service, party rooms for special events, specialty treatment rooms, infrared saunas, and a fitness center and lounge area for staff members, among other amenities. The interior of the salon will undergo a design overhaul, giving the operation a logical flow throughout. Pending approval from the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, ground will be broken on the project in February, with an expected completion date in late spring or early summer.
For Martin, the growth of Changes marks another step in her journey as a business owner, one that began 23 years ago with the founding of a janitorial cleaning company, The Gals Cleaning Service. With about 30 employees, the business specializes in janitorial duties for medical facilities, financial institutions, large offices, schools and the like.
“Back then, I had a family member that owned a cleaning business, and I felt like everything she did was totally opposite of what I would do,” she said with a laugh. “So basically, I decided I wanted to do my own thing, and that’s how it started. Once you work for yourself, you don’t want to work for somebody else.”
Martin also owns a smaller beauty salon, Serenity Skincare, on Market Street in Camp Hill.
“It’s kind of in my blood – being an entrepreneur, owning businesses,” she said. “I used to come to Changes as a customer when I was younger. This was the place to go if you were able to come here. It was just absolutely amazing. I always wanted the opportunity to purchase it.”
Other than a few basic courses she took at Harrisburg Area Community College, Martin said most of her business acumen comes from determination, acquiring knowledge on her own and hard work.
“I read stuff like ‘Business for Dummies.’ That kind of thing. I’m a podcast girl, too. There was a gentleman who was a producer for a cleaning podcast that I would listen to, and I could totally relate to him. It just clicked. I thought, ‘OK. I know what I need to do, you know?’”
Martin doesn’t take all the credit, though. Her husband is important to her businesses, she said. And she praises General Manager Lindsay Buggy for keeping Changes running smoothly.
“Lindsay is definitely my go-to girl. She knows everything. She runs everything accordingly,” she said. “I definitely trust her very much. I know that I can leave, and this place will be OK. She has (28) years of experience.”
In light of her success, Martin said it is important to give back to the community that has supported her.
“It’s a personal thing to me. It was a difficult time in my life growing up, you know? I didn’t have it easy. I just feel like I’m very blessed where I’m at right now, and I just want to make sure that I can continue to do that and give back,” she said.
Efforts she champions are Hands of Hope, Salvation Army, American Cancer Society, PA Breast Cancer Coalition, Hope Ministries, and local school districts, among others. She and her husband serve the homeless during the holidays. Martin purchased a Belgian Malinois as a K-9 unit for the East Pennsboro Police Department.
On a deeply personal level, Martin said she and her husband recently helped a widowed family friend who was facing foreclosure on her home. The couple bought the house for her asking price, with the provision that the woman can live there permanently, paying whatever she can afford each month.
“We’re very, very simple people. We’re very thankful for everything that we have. So that is it in a nutshell. That’s what I want to be known for,” Martin said.
Contact Changes Salon and Day Spa online at www.changesdayspa.com or by calling (717) 697-2600.
