Shear Magic salon closes after 45 years in Natick

Shear Magic hair salon, the storefront spot at that confluence of Mill, Speen, and Pond Streets, has closed its doors after 45 years of providing cuts, styling, highlights, lowlights, coloring services, and make-up applications. Whether a client needed a gorgeous up-do for a wedding or prom, or just regular trims, owner Robin Galante and her team were there to serve.

“I have met the most wonderful people,” Robin said during an interview at the shop on the day before it closed. “That’s the hardest part about saying goodbye, it really is. But I want to go out on a good note, healthy.”

Robin, who grew up in Framingham, took at job at the salon in the late 1970s, when she was a young stylist just starting out. “I worked for the previous owner, and I bought it in 1983 when I was 24,” she said. “It was a big deal for me.”

What was a big deal for her turned out to be a very good deal for Shear Magic’s clientele. The shop, which at one time had eight stylists, built up a reputation as a place of good value and fair service in a relaxed environment. Long-time regular Jake Barth said, “I’ve been a client since I moved to Natick in 1997. I always found the salon to be very warm and welcoming, not at all pretentious.”

Unsurprisingly, she cites COVID as dealing her the hardest business challenge over the years. But the 1985 fire that started in the business next door and caused extensive damage to the salon wasn’t easy to come back from. And there were those two times when drivers crashed through the plate-glass window (thankfully, no one was injured).

As far as what’s next for Robin and her husband Mark Galante, for now they’re just counting their blessings after a long run of business success. Relaxing on Cape Cod for the summer and spending lots of time with her ten grandchildren is about as far ahead as she’s looked.

“It’s been a wonderful wonderful, wonderful ride. I couldn’t be any more happy,” Robin said.

No word on what’s next coming into the 2 Mill Street space, which is sandwiched between a convenience store and an empty storefront that once was a laundromat.