During their 18 years as best friends, owners Lynette Grider and Christi Boothe envisioned a space where women could gather to relax:  not isolated, sitting quietly, but fun, surrounded by friends in a stylish, upbeat, comfortable space. They saw their salon and spa offering world-class hair and skin products with expert technicians and stylists who you could trust to listen to your ideas and know how to realize your desires.  After seven years of research, Satori Day Spa and Salon was born, and opened its doors in Ithaca, NY on August 2, 2005.  With the addition of an extensive and exciting line of retail products, Lynette and Christi renamed it Satori, a salon / spa / shopping experience.

“Satori is the sudden flashing into consciousness of a new truth hitherto undreamed of.”

- points on Satori from D.T. Suzuki's An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

The name Satori is a Japanese Buddhist term for enlightenment. The word literally means "understanding" and a clear glimpse of the true nature of existence.  It's also the name of a very special sailboat that Christi spent time on while living on St. Thomas in the Caribbean. The boat belonged to a woman who, after only five minutes of meeting Christi, proclaimed that she knew the man Christi was going to marry. Well, the prediction came true, and it was Christi's husband who, very romantically, suggested the name for the spa and salon.

our mission

Co-Owners Christi Boothe and Lynette Grider have made it a point to only carry products that share their professional and community-minded ideals. The best on the market, these premiere products and the companies that make them provide in-depth training to all of Satori’s specialists. In addition, these companies support Satori’s efforts to give back to the community through donations and sponsorships. None of these products are ever tested on animals and strive to be eco-friendly.

superior product lines & highly educated professionals

Many salons offer a selection of Aveda, but not the entire product family.  Satori is committed to providing the complete lines of products to its customers.  Most importantly, Aveda’s amazing world-class line of hair care and skin care is supported with ongoing world-class training from the experts at Aveda. 

Satori’s staff of over 18 stylists, estheticians, therapists and technicians are highly trained and educated on current trends and techniques.  This is what gives Satori its edge.  Each Satori technician is required to attend a minimum of 6 advanced training sessions per year.

• Each superior product line, the majority of which are not available anywhere else in the county, conforms to Satori’s professional and community-minded ideals of quality (cutting-edge technology, non-animal tested, eco-friendly). We chose Aveda and Bumble & bumble not only because the products are superior, but because of their commitment to the salons they choose to partner with.  Both Aveda and Bumble understand the importance of investing in all team members and demonstrate this by providing and requiring outstanding education for hairdressers, managers, and owners.  We also chose Aveda & Bumble & bumble for their belief in the importance of community involvement.
• Satori’s retail element is a different kind of “shopping experience”.  Our hands-on philosophy encourages customers to try before you buy.  Our friendly experts are always happy to answer questions, give a demonstration and make professional recommendations to make clients feel beautiful and knowledgeable (while having fun in the process).  It is our priority to maintain that no customer be sold something they do not need or know how to use once they leave.

community outreach

Satori is always willing to donate to a good cause.  Philanthropy within the wonderful community in which we work and live has always been a priority.  Countless services have been donated to various community charities, fundraisers, and benefits. 

In addition to being a corporate sponsor of Women Swimmin', a benefit for Hospicare of Tompkins County, and raising funds for the Southern Tier AIDS Program's Ride for Life, Satori donates to hundreds of organizations and events around town, and is an active member of the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce / Ithaca/Tompkins County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Satori supports the following organizations:

• Women Swimmin’, a benefit for Hospicare of Tompkins County
• Southern Tier AIDS Ride for Life
• Cancer resource center
• The Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund
• “Ithaca Loves Teachers” Winter Recess
• “Breakfast Before Hours” and other Chamber events such as Showcase Tompkins
• Women be Wise

Satori makes its gallery-like space available for local artists to hang their work each month, free of charge.  As their host, we encourage each artist to invite guests for an opening show. With the artwork in Satori’s space changing every 6 weeks, it’s always exciting to take in a different show each time you visit us. Since we opened our doors, we have featured over 30 local artists and are proud to continue the tradition.

If you are an interested artist or your organization seeks support, please contact us so that we may review your proposal.

co-owners

Christi Boothe, Co–Owner of Satori

Christi has known that she wanted to be a hair stylist since she was 5 years old and received her cosmetology license while still in high school. After 19 years in the beauty industry, she has become much more than a hair stylist and has expanded her expertise into waxing, facials and body treatment services. She has a unique ability to communicate with clients about their needs and specializes in natural–looking foil highlights and amazing blow–outs. During her 19 year career, Christi has honed her skills as a business woman. Since first owning her own salon at the age of 18, she has continued to be passionately involved in the business aspect of the salon and spa industry.

Christi's innovative and groundbreaking ideas for Satori stem from her witnessing a total stranger having a moment of total clarity...a moment of Satori. While in the Virgin Islands, she stepped into a pottery shop to inquire about taking a class....only to be immediately told by the owner "I know the man...that you will marry....” Christi and her future husband spent some of the most relaxing moments of their lives sailing the Caribbean aboard a sail boat that belonged to the pottery shop owner, a sail boat named...Satori.

Lynette Grider, Co–Owner of Satori

Lynette has had a passion for the beauty business since she was a child and would go to salons with her grandmother for her weekly appointments. Fortunately she discovered that she simply could not wait for adulthood to start her career, and so at the age of 13, started to cut hair on anyone who was willing to sit still and take a chance. Even after 24 years experience as a hair stylist and natural nail car technician, Lynette's passion and drive continue to grow. She loves exploring the latest techniques by attending educational classes on a regular basis, a desire that has been implemented as policy for all Satori employees. If it were up to Lynette, she'd spend her days creating new looks for all different textures of hair and designing the color that perfectly enhances it. Lynette is one of those rare people who doesn't let a single moment of Satori pass her by and says "I'm so grateful to have the opportunity to create the environment I've always wanted to work in. Side by side with my best friend Christi, Satori Day is truly a dream come true."