By Kai Oliver-Kurtin
When Iranian sisters Dolly and Kashmira Torki moved to San Diego, Dolly had been practicing the ancient hair-removal technique of threading since she was 14. Growing up in India where threading is a common practice, they have spent the last 40 years perfecting their hair-removal skills. This month they are celebrating a decade in business at their popular Hillcrest salon, Beauty by Dolly.
A family owned and operated business, Beauty by Dolly has a team of trained specialists that includes the Torki sisters’ daughters and nieces. Kashmira’s daughter Natashah has been involved since the inception, beginning as a receptionist and now running the business as the managing director. As a fourth-generation eyebrow specialist, Natashah has practiced threading for 15 years.
The close-knit staff also has a familial relationship with their clients. Dolly is known to remember every client’s name as well as those of their family members.
“Hair removal is a private issue in a very personal space,” Natashah said. “We’re so grateful that our clients have so much faith and trust in us with these personal services.”
Although the salon offers many types of services, including body waxing and sugaring, it’s perhaps best known for eyebrow threading. Natashah says eyebrow threading is all natural, extracts hair at the root, and doesn’t incur any damage to the delicate skin around eyelids. Alternately, she says waxing involves chemicals, removes the top layer of skin, and can create premature wrinkling around eyelids from the pulling of skin.
“After all these years, I’m still fascinated by threading and what it does for every client,” Natashah said.
“What makes Beauty by Dolly different is how involved we are in employee training,” she said. “Our staff is very well-trained and really good at what they do — they regularly go through quality control testing to make sure they’re up to par.”
With a database of more than 100,000 clients, many who are salon regulars, Beauty by Dolly receives many word-of-mouth referrals and new customers based on Yelp reviews. To celebrate their 10-year anniversary, Beauty by Dolly will be sending coupons to clients on their email list as a special thank you for their continued business.
The Hillcrest location is the salon’s second venture, with the original located in Miramar. In the future, Natashah would like to expand the business into the educational realm to teach eyebrow specialists the proper techniques of threading and how to prevent damage or injury.
Beauty by Dolly is located at 3650 Fifth Ave., Suite 101. For more information or to book an appointment, visit beautybydolly.com.
—Kai Oliver-Kurtin is a local freelance writer who enjoys covering events, restaurant news, culture and entertainment. Contact her at [email protected]
