Francesca Salon and Spa

At just 10 years old, Jimmy Karellas left Toronto and moved with his family to Greece. Little did he know that after studying hair care abroad and working in his family’s salon, he would be back in Toronto to stay.

“In 1993, I came for a visit and met my future wife in a bar,” Jimmy recalls. Her name was Francesca and just six months before they met, she had opened Francesca Salon & Spa, taking over a small hair salon that had been in the Forest Hill Village for 40 years. “It was what was known as a ‘Bubby salon,’ full of older ladies getting their hair coiffed,” Jimmy explains.

So Jimmy and Francesca joined forces and set out to modernize the place. To create their vision of a boutique salon with a small village feel, they catered to the daughters and granddaughters of the old clientele, then renovated the building and quadrupled its size.