Elena Linares brings some Razzledazzle to South Florida

BY DINAH MARZULLO
Tastefully decorated with brilliant red walls, gold gilded mirrors and elegant vintage dcor, the new Razzledazzle Blow Dry Bar located on Miracle Mile is absolutely spectacular. Even more impressive is Elena Linares, the owner and founder of the new salon for women and four Razzledazzle Barbershops for men. Outfitted for work at the time of the interview, she was wearing a black-laced dress and corset with rhinestone jewelry and stiletto heels to match. At 5-foot-1 (without heels), Elena is confident, bubbly, and larger than life. But she will be the first to tell you that her life has not always been rosy. Elena is one of nine children. Her parents emigrated to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic leaving seven children behind. It wasnt easy to deal with since we were all placed with different families. No one would take in seven children, Elena said. Two years later, Elena and her six siblings came to the U.S. and lived in a three-bedroom house in Bronx, NY. Her two younger siblings were born in New York and the family moved to a larger house in Jamaica, NY, where Elena went to high school. Her talent for cutting hair emerged when she was a teenager. I had lots of practice cutting my siblings and parents hair, which saved my family money on salon services, Elena said. While it was a close-knit family, Elenas parents were very strict and she rebelled. She left the house and married at age 18, thinking she was gaining freedom but soon discovered that her husband was controlling and abusive. She didnt know she was pregnant until he kicked her in the back and she ended up in the hospital. Elena was told she had a 50/50 chance of losing the baby. After needed bed rest, Elena gave birth to her first son, Philip. Fearing for their safety, Elena knew she had to get away from her husband. A New York Police officer told her about SafeSpace, a shelter in North Bay Village that saves and changes lives for victims of domestic vioan attorney and one of their friends, loved Marcs cooking. Jim suggested that they open a home-style Italian restaurant, with the stipulation that Marc would be the cook and Elena would run the restaurant, which they named Randazzos Little Italy. One of Jims conditions was that Elena sell her Supercut franchises so she could focus on the restaurant, which she did with the same energy and dedication she put into Supercuts. While the restaurant did well, Elena and Marc got divorced after being together for 10 years. It was a painful time for Elena and she took a year off to regroup. Elena wanted to start a business using her salon industry knowledge and hair cutting skills to fulfill a missing need. She remembered that her mom always pampered her dad and felt that women catering to men was absent, which is how the idea for Razzledazzle Barbershops came about. Pampering men in a flirty but wholesome, professional manner. Corset dressed ladies give hot lather shaves, traditional haircuts and shoe shines. We knew we were successful when women started buying gift certificates for their husbands, Elena said. Elena opened her first Razzledazzle Barbershop in 2009. Today, there are four. Located in Coral Gables, Mary Brickell Village, Miami Beach and Midtown. Plus, there is the new Razzledazzle Blow Dry Bar for women on Miracle Mile. As Elena affectionately stated, Miracle Mile has truly been a place of miracles for me. Thats why Elena gives back to the community that helped her. Holding Cut-A-Thons during Carnival Miracle, cutting patients hair at Miami Childrens Hospital, and mentoring students at Beauty Schools of America. I love to help people. When you do, God rewards you back, Elena said. The new Blow Dry Bar is located at 221 Miracle Mile; the other Coral Gables location is 224 Miracle Mile. Other locations are 1530 Alton Rd., Miami Beach, and 2814 N. Miami Ave.

Elena Linares

lence. With only $200 and a backpack, Elena boarded a Greyhound bus with her 2- year-old son and headed to Miami. SafeSpace took them in and they lived there for six weeks. During that time, Elena got a job cutting hair at Supercuts on Miracle Mile. She worked her way up to manager, then field manager and educator for franchisees. She put together a business plan and soon owned eight Supercuts in Puerto Rico and four in South Florida. In 1991 she met Marc Randazzo, a professional boxer who was in town training with Angelo Dundee. They married in 1995 and had two children, Marc Anthony and Linda Marie. Marc also was a good cook. Jim Ferrero,