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Meet Us

Meet Our Executives

Janet Denyer | Chief Executive Officer

Gene Juarez Salons & Spas recruited industry veteran Janet Denyer to serve as CEO in July of 2006 following the sale of Gene Juarez to Evergreen Pacific Partners.  Today, as CEO of Gene Juarez, Janet is very excited to lead the Gene Juarez team, envisioning a future of growth, innovation, and excellence to come.

During her tenure, Gene Juarez Salons and Spas has experienced record growth. At the core, the company has upgraded its menu of service offerings, and has also launched many innovative consumer products including its very own line of identity1 hair care and body care products. Additionally, it has re-launched three brand new salons in pre-existing locations, opened a brand new trade location at the prestigious University Village shopping center, and upgraded the remainder of the salons in the collection. 

The Gene Juarez name is synonymous with superior cosmetology education, and Janet is very committed to this aspect of the organization. During the last four years, the two Gene Juarez Academies have doubled their student enrollments, and currently educate more than 20% of the licensed cosmetologists in the state of Washington. The company has also improved its advanced training programs for its newly hired and experienced licensed professionals ensuring delivery of the highest quality salon and spa service in the region.

Janet is a firm believer in proactively engaging the Gene Juarez Guests and making the salon and spa experience the very best it can be while also making it fun and participatory. To further this, she has launched an array of exciting in-salon events with a variety of themes. She also supports the creation of numerous community outreach programs, which bring the Gene Juarez spirit and experience to members of the community in venues outside of the salons. Additionally, a new, modern website was launched in the summer of 2008 to improve the company’s ability to directly communicate with its followers on topics such new offerings, special promotional programs, beauty trends, incentives and more.

Janet is passionate about service to the Gene Juarez Guests, the Gene Juarez staff members and the community. Every day she devotes her energy to ensuring that all three of these constituents have the best possible experience with Gene Juarez Salons & Spas.

Immediately prior to Gene Juarez, Janet served as Senior Vice President of Operations for Red Door Salon and Spa. There she oversaw an impressive growth and expansion of the Red Doors supervising the opening of 18 new Red Doors. This culminated in responsibility for the operations of more than 40  salons and spas throughout the United States and United Kingdom, employing a workforce of more than 2,500 employees. 

Janet started her salon and spa management career as a Spa Director for the Bonaventure Resort and Spa, a premier destination resort spa and an Intercontinental Hotel property. She then opened the first Spa for Marriott International at their flagship resort, Marriott’s Desert Springs. In this endeavor she partnered with renown, celebrity hair stylist, Jose Eber.

After 10 years in spa line operations, Janet started her own spa consulting business, which became very successful. As a consultant, she worked for numerous prestige clients including The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Disney, Marriott and Mirage Resorts. Janet sold the enterprise in 2001 when she joined Red Door Spas. 

Janet resides in Bellevue with her husband, Richard, and two Labrador retrievers, Beau and Luke, all of whom have adapted the Puget Sound as a wonderful community to live and work. She looks forward to visits from her grown children, Matthew, a creative director for a national advertising agency, and Lyndsey, an artist(painter), who is currently pursuing advanced studies in graphic design arts and website design at the Pacific NW Institute of Art.

Barry W. Matthews | Chief Financial Officer

In 2000, Gene Juarez Salons & Spas recruited Barry Matthews to serve as the first CFO in the Company’s 30+ year history. Barry is responsible for all finance and accounting operations, as well as information technology.

Immediately prior to joining Gene Juarez, Barry served as co-founder, CFO, and Board member of Pet’s Choice, Inc., a Washington based company in the business of companion animal care. From 1996 to 2000, Pet’s Choice acquired over 60 veterinary hospitals in 5 states, becoming one of the leading providers of veterinary services in the nation. Barry served as a member of the Board of Directors from 2000 to 2002, concurrent with his service to Gene Juarez. Pet’s Choice, Inc. was ultimately acquired by Veterinary Centers of America, a public company, in 2005.

Barry began his work in veterinary care in 1992 as CFO for Pet’s Rx, Inc., a California startup company. Pet’s Rx was built over 48 months primarily from the acquisition of 19 veterinary hospitals in northern California and Nevada. In 1996, Veterinary Centers of America acquired Pet’s Rx.

From 1986–1991, Barry served as Vice President of Finance for Keegan Management Company, Inc., a franchisee of Nutri\System Weight Loss Centers in the San Francisco Bay Area. He joined the company with an existing organization of 15 independently owned operating centers. After consolidating these entities, he participated as a member of the road show team that successfully completed an initial public offering in December 1989. Within two years, KMCI expanded to 75 centers in eight states, to become the largest grossing franchisee of Nutri\System in the United States. In 1991, the company was acquired by another public entity based in Southern California.

Barry holds a Bachelor of Science in Commerce from the University of Santa Clara and an inactive CPA license in the state of California. He and his wife Carol enjoy boating in the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia with their three grown children and pets.


Jerry Ahern | Vice President of Education

Jerry Ahern is the Vice President of Education for Gene Juarez Salons & Spas. He is a licensed cosmetologist with over 40 years experience in the educational field. 

He is well versed in the day-to-day operation of beauty schools having owned two of his own for more than 15 years. Early in his career, he became Director of Operations for a local chain of 7 beauty schools and grew the chain to 14 before leaving to run his own schools. He was also Vice President of Operations for a chain of 29 schools across three states with an enrollment of over 2,000 students. Since rejoining the Gene Juarez Academies, he has been responsible for the development of the training curriculum for all programs the schools offer as well as oversight of the day-to-day operations of the campuses. 

On an industry level, Jerry has served as President of the Washington State Cosmetology School Owners Association as well as President of the National Association of Cosmetology Schools in Washington, DC. He has been recognized nationally for outstanding contributions to the beauty school industry as a recipient of the “Nick Cimaglia Award,” an award presented by Milady Publishing Company. 

Jerry is the author of “Lesson Plans and Lesson Planning,” the first book of lesson plans ever written for the cosmetology industry. He also authored “West’s Textbook of Cosmetology,” and “West’s Textbook of Manicuring,” classroom texts used in schools throughout the United States for 20 years.

 

Bonnie Hill | Vice President of Human Resources

Bonnie Hill was hired in 1985 as Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer of Gene Juarez Salons & Spas. In 1986, she was the company’s first Payroll Administrator for a staff of 175 people and two years later, Bonnie was promoted to Director of Personnel. 

In 1992, as company growth accelerated along with the need for new systems and processes, Bonnie was promoted to the position of Director of Human Resources, while also assuming responsibility for the administrative services and facilities departments.
 
Additionally, from 1995 until 2004, Bonnie was the salon development project manager. She was instrumental in the opening of six new or remodeled salons as the company expanded to its current size of $74.4 million in revenue and 1,200 employees.

Bonnie is responsible for the enterprise compensation systems and has developed the infrastructure of the programs and methodology for measuring artist/therapist performance. Throughout her tenure, she has maintained responsibility for the payroll processing systems. She has introduced biometric timekeeping, and credit union and banking affiliations with paycheck direct deposits for the life-style convenience of employees.

Under Bonnie’s guidance, the company has created a comprehensive benefits package that is unique to the salon industry.  Her philosophy is to provide relevant and meaningful health and welfare benefits designed to ensure financial stability and personal wellbeing. The 401(k) plan implemented in 1989 now has over $13 million in assets with 800 employees investing in their future.  

In December 2000, Bonnie was promoted to Vice President of Human Resources. Her scope of responsibilities were broadened to include development of a Recruiting Department with a focus on artist and therapist staffing to meet company needs for new salon expansions, same store growth and turnover. Under her direction, artist/therapist staffing increased by a record-setting 8.5% in 2007.

As Vice-President of Human Resources, Bonnie also oversees employee relations, communications, and rewards and recognition programs. Through improved employee satisfaction, the company has experienced reduced turnover in all three divisions during the last three years.

Bonnie has a B.S. in Business Administration from City University where she graduated with Presidential Honors.

Kelli McCusker | Vice President of Marketing

Kelli McCusker joined Gene Juarez Salons & Spas as the Vice President of Marketing in October, 2008. Kelli oversees the marketing levers that drive the brand efficacy and value including creative, media, PR, retail, digital and influencer approach.

Prior to joining Gene Juarez, Kelli spent sixteen years at PepsiCo in a variety of marketing positions across the United States and Europe where she helped build and lead a handful of Pepsi’s marquis brands including Pepsi, Mountain Dew, 7Up, Starbucks Bottled Frappuccino and IZZE Sparkling Juice. Kelli has extensive experience and achieved success across the broad marketing discipline including brand planning, advertising and promotion, new product development and launch, consumer insights, grassroots/viral, digital, and customer-focused marketing.

She received a BA in Political Science from the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts and an MBA in Marketing from Fordham University in New York City.

Kelli grew up in New York and has lived in Seattle three times since 1999 interrupted by stints in London, England and Boulder, Colorado.  She resides in West Seattle with her baby boy, Finnegan, and her nutty Lab-Golden, Kensington Rain, who is often found covered in mud at Lincoln Park!