by Jane Stringham
Drea and Levi. Levi and Drea. Meet the owners of Lunatic Fringe Boise, making hair beautiful since 2008.
Oh, and they’re married. Yes, this husband and wife duo owns and operates Lunatic Fringe in the heart of Idaho’s capital. But doesn’t it get messy? Read on—at LF Boise it’s just the opposite.
Although Andrea Hemmer’s guests often comment on blurred lines between home, love and work, she wouldn’t have it any other way: “My strengths are [Levi’s] weaknesses, and vice versa; I feel very blessed.” For Andrea, a career in the beauty industry has always been a no-brainer. She began hair school at age 19 and hasn’t looked back.
Today, you can find Andrea behind the chair, growing and supporting her team of stylists, and cultivating LF culture: “ ‘Culture eats vision’ is the secret to our success!” she says.
And you’ll find Levi behind the scenes, preparing budgets, product orders, bolstering guest relations and generally succeeding at “the kind of work most people in my industry wouldn’t enjoy, but is actually [his] favorite part of the job,” says Levi.
For Levi, a career with Lunatic Fringe came about through his relationship with Andrea and her coworkers, “some of the most genuine people [he’s] ever met.”
Levi speaks similarly of the community in his native Boise. “Many of our loyal guests are like family to us. We know and are interested in what their children’s lives entail, what job interviews they are preparing for, what vacations they have coming up, etc. We love being involved.”
It is this love of tight-knit community that led Levi and Andrea to bring Lunatic Fringe back home to his Boise roots. Levi attributes LF Boise’s success to Andrea’s passion, support from Shawn Trujillo and Angie Katsanevas, and encouragement from the whole family of LF creatives.
We don’t use the term “success” lightly—the LF Boise location has seen “unheard growth” during the last five years.
When asked about the next five, Andrea sees more of the same: “Growth, growth, growth! In all areas. We want to continue providing opportunities to team members and supporting their dreams. We want the Boise LF Advanced Academy running on all cylinders. We want to increase LF awareness in Boise, and give back to our supportive community through service.”
And we can’t wait to check back in with Levi, Andrea and LF Boise in 2021.