Press
Cottage Industry
Queen Bee Salon & Spa, Culver City, Calif.
Owner and founder Jodi Shays owns two other Queen Bee locations (Brentwood, Calif. and Seattle), but the Culver City salon is special: It’s inhabited by a friendly ghost!
Built in the 1930s, the bungalow in which the salon operates is still owned and operated by the original owner’s grandchildren. Their grandmother, Nancy Robbins, was the original owner, and was a spiritual advisor in the 1930s and 1940s. A renowned tea leaf reader, she would receive visits at the bungalow from some of Hollywood’s elite. MGM (now Sony Pictures) was across the street from the house, and movies such as Gone with the Wind and Wizard of Oz were being filmed at the time. “Staff and clients are both aware of a presence at the shop,” says Shays. “And we believe that Nancy might visit us from time to time. A lady with dark, shoulder-length hair has been seen from the windows in the waiting room and also in a couple of our treatment rooms. However, she is not a mean spirit; I think she loves that we’re here.”
In terms of decor, Shays wanted to stay with the vintage theme of the bungalow. A mix of British and Hollywood glam, the treatment rooms in the bungalow feel like actual living rooms, with comfy chairs and sumptuous details like scented candles and gilt mirrors. But Shays’ favorite place is the garden. “We have hummingbirds, a resident cat, and our clients love to sit and hang out with us before or after treatments. My landladies know that I love this house as much as I love my own.”
As much as Shays loves the bungalow, there are some challenges. “We have some of the original floors, and with the ground constantly moving in Los Angeles, our house is lopsided and sinking a bit,” Shays explains. “It’s sort of funny except when your manicure cart goes freewheeling from one side of the room to the other — but then maybe that’s just Nancy having some fun!”
