Ashley Lewis, founder of Melt waxing parlor (Photo by Jay Paul)
In the retail world, opportunities can come when they’re least expected. That was Ashley Lewis’ experience in late 2024.
In between appointments at Bombshell Salon, she learned that the longstanding beauty shop was closing unexpectedly. That’s when a former employee, Alex Atkins, reached out to gauge her interest in launching a new beauty parlor.
“It wasn’t something I was really looking to get into at first,” Lewis says, “[but] there were a bunch of clients that now had no home for service.”
After Atkins’ inquiry, Lewis — the founder of multilocation juice bar The Beet Box — didn’t shy away from the challenge. In a matter of weeks, she went from client to owner after debuting Melt at 2513 W. Cary St. in October last year. The studio’s team provides body and face waxes, spray tan services, procedures like sugaring (a gentler form of waxing), and cosmetic services including permanent makeup and lash lifts.
Lewis and the Melt crew sought to emphasize inclusivity in their practice, focusing on services for a diverse clientele. “I think salons [can be] pretentious or stuffy environments, so making this somewhere that is friendly for everyone, all genders and sexualities, was important,” Lewis says.
The parlor’s wax offerings have become popular among men, which is a demographic not often catered to by wax salons, according to Lewis. “That was something that Bombshell was popular for, so we do offer that here, and it’s a huge part of our clientele,” she adds.
Bombshell Salon, first opened in 2009, formerly had locations in Carytown, Short Pump and Midlothian, in addition to an outpost in Las Vegas, Nevada. The business shuttered all shops abruptly in August 2024, which left many employees confused and without an established brand to practice under. Bombshell co-founder Melissa Black, in a statement shared on Instagram in September 2024, cited poor finances as the cause of the closure.
Atkins left Bombshell before the closure. After time spent as an independent practitioner, she sought to re-form the community of talented beauticians who worked at Bombshell.
“I missed the camaraderie, having friends to work with and bounce ideas off of,” she says. “I feel like each of us here [has] a strong suit, and we make a really, really good team.”
Lewis runs the business in tandem with the tenured staff, relying on their experience in the field to offer the intimate, comfortable salon setting that many clients had lost.
“With a business like the one that closed, I think it left a lot of people without a wax home,” Lewis says. “Being able to provide a good, consistent service for people with knowledgeable technicians is us trying to be that home.”
