Our Story

We started on the Drag.

That was 1991. Two locations and a great many Austin haircuts later, what we are trying to do has not changed.

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Locally owned in Austin Austin Chamber Award winner Top 200 Salon, Salon Today

Photo by Jamie Powers / The Daily Texan

Since 1991

A long way from Guadalupe Street

Our founder, Jackie Hickey Luth, opened Maximum FX on the Drag in 1991. It was a locally owned Austin salon doing women's and men's haircuts, color, and styling for mostly University of Texas students and faculty. We are still locally owned, and we still do every one of those services.

What changed is everything around it. Two locations, one on South Lamar and one out at Circle C Ranch. An apprenticeship program for new talent, working alongside stylists who came to us with years already behind the chair. A wall of recognition we are quietly proud of.

One thing never moved. We are here to make our clients' day.

You can see it in the details. Every service opens with a consultation instead of a guess. Our stylists are still taking classes years into the job. The person who greets you at the front desk makes a point of learning your name, and your formula is waiting for you the next time you come in.

What makes us different

Three things we decided early

They are why people stay with us for years.

The training never stops

Some of our stylists came up through our in salon apprenticeship. Others arrived with years of experience behind them. Either way the education keeps going, because we are committed to industry leading training for every stylist on the floor. You are always working with a trained professional.

Aveda, and nothing else

Every color we mix comes from Aveda's eco conscious line, formulated from plant and flower essence. It is the only line we carry and the only line we train on. We are also a Green Circle Salon, so what is left over gets recycled rather than washed down the drain.

One company, one goal

We are one salon, not a collection of stylists running separate businesses under one roof. There is no competition inside our four walls. Everyone here is pulling the company in the same direction, and you can feel that the moment you walk in the door.