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While Los Angeles is often seen as the destination for celebrity encounters and luxury haircuts, that experience has now arrived in Menlo Park.
Celebrity hairstylists Brandon Liberati and Vicki Casciola opened Starship Salon in Menlo Park on Sept. 12, bringing a mix of Hollywood glamour and a welcoming, community-driven approach.
“If you watch Bravo, you know my work,” Liberati said. He has worked on nearly every franchise on the network, starred on the Bravo series “Newlyweds”and appeared on “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen” and RuPaul’s “Drag U.” His client roster includes Lady Gaga, Khloe Kardashian and Sarah Jessica Parker.
Casciola, who specializes in extensions, describes herself as the “Hair Gypsy” referring to her global career. “I travel literally around the world to make people look good and feel better, whether it is haircut, color or extensions,” she said. The pair met years ago, collaborating around the country before deciding to put down roots in Menlo Park.
“Me and Brandon started our journey about 10 or 15 years ago. Because we worked so much together, he was bringing me out here for extensions … and Brandon was like, ‘We could make this permanent. This is like a business that everybody wants,’” Casciola said.
The opening event on Sept. 11 was attended by stars from across the area and the country including Mercedes “MJ” Javid, who starred in the Bravo hit series “Shahs of Sunset,” Steve Young, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, and members of the Go-Go’s rock band.
For both stylists, Starship is about more than just hair. “Menlo Park is getting more Michelin-starred restaurants, cute boutiques and there’s a bunch of salons. But what they didn’t have was that ‘third space’ experience, like a place where not only they come in and we make them look good but they want to be there,” Casciola said. “It feels welcoming. It feels calm. It feels like a safe space.”
“Even if you come in here and get a hair wash and a blowout, you leave here feeling better inside and out.,” she said.
Liberati echoed that vision. “We’re honored that people come to us, not the other way around,” he said. “When people come to us, they should expect to be taken out of this world, like we’re really doing more than just hair, we are your ship to the stars.”
Though he is now known for his Hollywood clientele, Liberati’s career in California began locally at Juut in Palo Alto. “(Working at Juut) introduced me to a bunch of people from this area, which were from a lot of the startups at the time like Facebook and Google… that’s actually who started taking me to L.A. and then it got me into celebrity hair,” he said.
“The Bay Area prepared me for everything that I would encounter in L.A. I actually feel like people here have the taste but without the attitude. They appreciate good hair but I don’t get the attitude that I get in L.A,” he added.
Even while building his celebrity roster, Liberati continued returning to the Peninsula one week each month to work with longtime clients from his early career. “Menlo Park is the new L.A.,” he said. “I’m really excited to be here. I love the neighborhood. This is a little gem in the middle of the region. You have great restaurants and great salons.”
Looking ahead, Liberati and Casciola plan to deepen their ties to the community through collaborations with nearby businesses and local charities. For them, Starship is as much about celebrating Menlo Park as it is about creating star-quality style.
Appointments can be made on Starship’s website: starshipsalon.org. A cut and style session with Liberati costs $250 however the salon does other services including extensions, keratin treatments and coloring. Starship’s team currently includes three staff members in addition to Liberati and Casciola, and the salon is hiring more stylists.
