Aveda Institute Dallas
Dallas has just gotten a little greener with the addition of the Aveda Institute Dallas, a new 33,000-square-foot educational facility from beauty industry education company Beauty Basics and Neill Corporation, Aveda's exclusive distributor for the Southeast and Mexico. The institute offers training in cosmetology, esthiology and massage, in addition to providing guests with discounted services and treatments in a salonlike environment. Features at the new facility include high-tech paperless classrooms with laptops, digital projectors and DVD players; a clinic floor with 80 styling stations; nine multifunctional spa rooms; a pedicure area; and a full-service retail area.
Consistent with Aveda's mission of sustainability, the Aveda Institute Dallas was designed using environmentally friendly methods, such as an HVAC system that recovers thermal energy from the air used rather than heating and cooling new air, LED lights in all exterior signage and high-efficiency track lighting that reduces energy use. The institute also features Etopa furniture, which is manufactured in a zero-waste facility in Eastern China, and carpeting made from Antrom fiber that includes up to 90 percent post-consumer recycled content. Students and guests can learn about the eco-friendly building design at the 30-foot-long Mission Wall, which features interactive touch-screen TVs describing the building process.
Says Thomas Kryzer, director of the Aveda Institute Dallas, "In creating such a lifelike salon environment, students really are learning everything they need to know about working in a salon, from technical to guest service skills." —L.A.