Auburn's The Vineyard Salon to get an energy boost from new owner – a 'Vineyard girl'

Debi McReynolds-Cook remembers the many businesses that called the building at 201 Channel Hill Road in Auburn home: It was a store, a church, even a "meet-up place" in the 1970s, she says. She has owned The Vineyard Salon, at that same address, since 2012, and when the ownership changes hands Oct. 1, it will remain The Vineyard Salon. McReynolds-Cook says she "just lost my energy" after being shut down twice during the COVID-19 pandemic and didn't know if she'd "have the energy to build it back up." Sarah Minor has that energy. Born in Auburn and graduated from Placer High School in 2014, Minor, 24, is achieving a dream by purchasing the business from someone she says she "loves." "In beauty school, I wanted to work here," Minor said as she and McReynolds-Cook spoke with the Auburn Journal recently. "I've wanted to own a salon forever, by the time I'm 30. I just wanted to be a Vineyard girl, I really did." The interview took place from the calming, comfortable deck McReynolds-Cook added after purchasing the business. The deck is accessed through a side door, which she also added. And it leads to The Vineyard which, yes, is another McReynolds-Cook addition. She also kept the barbecue pit that was left by the church and replaced the many benches. Dozens of events have been held over the last eight years in this space that's about half the size of a football field: fundraisers with silent auctions and vendors, cut-a-thons, a yard sale, a Christmas event. "I had no idea it would be a popular thing," McReynolds-Cook says. "It wasn't even our plan in the beginning. That's just kind of the way it went." The Vineyard is unique in that every vine in The Vineyard is different. And, the salon actually took its name from The Vineyard out back. For all McReynolds-Cook has done with the property, Minor has even more ideas, such as adding two barber chairs inside the salon. Minor says she considered buying a house, but her dad imparted his wisdom by reminding her that people who are successful take risks and get rewarded. "I want to carry on its legacy," she says of the business, which has quite the legacy, including several Auburn Journal Best of the Best awards for salon, hairdresser, nail salon, esthetician, make-up artist and tanning. McReynolds-Cook has watched Minor grow since hiring her and says she'll support her "100 percent," though she doesn't believe Minor will need much help. McReynolds-Cook says "everybody just lit up" at the salon when they announced the sale. "I'm so excited for her and so happy it's going to continue. I couldn't be happier," McReynolds-Cook says. "She has so many good ideas. I love her. She's very inspiring. I think she's going to breathe a new life, new youthful energy into it." With The Vineyard Salon under new ownership, McReynolds-Cook says she'll then have more time to "pay attention to my house, work on my home salon and watch my grandchildren." Minor didn't want to see the business go away. After all, she did always want to be a "Vineyard girl." "It would be weird to drive past and see something else," she says. "I feel very lucky."