For the last 28 years, Dawn Param-Knight has been in the business of making people feel beautiful. She opened her salon, Perfect Pose Hair Design at 323 E. Gun Hill Rd. in 1992, shortly after arriving in New York City from Jamaica. Ever since then she has been hard at work, honing her craft to ensure that her customers feel more confident after they leave her chair.

Param-Knight first became interested in doing hair when she was just nine years old. “I grew up as an only child. I had no one else to play with but my doll. So every day I would make sure my doll looked pretty and I would do her hair,” she said.

Her favorite activity soon became styling her doll’s hair, experimenting with different ways to make her doll look beautiful.

As she grew older her interest in hairstyling stuck and she received her state cosmetology license in Jamaica. At 26, when she came to the United States Param-Knight got to work right away on her New York State cosmetology license, the first step towards her dream of opening up her own salon.

At first she rented a chair in another hair salon on Webster Avenue. During this time, she was also studying for her nurse’s aide certification license. For Param-Knight, taking care of a client in her salon and taking caring of a patient in the hospital brings her joy. “It makes me feel happy when I know I make a difference to a person,” she said.

After a short stint on Webster Avenue, Param-Knight opened the doors to Perfect Pose Hair Design in April 1992. Now, almost 30 years later, many of her clients have been with her since the very beginning. She has customers who have grown up in her chair that now bring their children to Perfect Pose. “All my customers, they don’t feel like customers. They feel like family,” she said.

Each day Param-Knight sees anywhere from 5 to 25 clients, taking care of a range of needs for women and men of all ages. She specializes in cuts, color, weaves, updos, relaxers, and more. Whatever you need, she can make it happen. “Making people feel pretty, making people feel happy- I know I’m doing what I was born to do,” she said.

To make an appointment, walk in or call (718) 515-1683. For new hair stylists looking to gain experience, there is a chair for rent at Perfect Pose Hair Design. Speak to Param-Knight for more information on this opportunity to learn from the best!

As part of our small business support work, the Jerome Gun Hill BID will be running a Merchant Spotlight once a month to shine a light on the small businesses in our corridor that help make our community special. For more information, find us at jeromegunhillbid.org or on Instagram @jeromegunhillbid.