Chatto, (pronounced Shah-toe), is the talented hair designer and aesthetician, a 21 year veteran of the hair and skincare industries and the President of Chatto Incorporated located in the heart of Chicago's prestigious Oak Street. In an industry that is highly competitive and constantly changing, Chatto manages to withstand the test of time, evolving as any professional should to a level of perfection that is admired by her peers. She specializes in hair design, maintenance and aesthetics for European, Asian, and African clientele.
Chatto has truly amazing survival instincts. She'll tell you, "I can do anything." As she ate and slept on the floor at her first beauty salon on Chicago's North Side, for two years only to bath once a week by doing an old lady's hair at her apartment in exchange for a Saturday morning shower. Her store, Chatto Salon and Chatto Oassis has been located at 102 E. Oak Street on Chicago's Gold Coast for 8 years and has gained unprecedented success for its quality and service.
Chatto, always had a passion for health and beauty that makes her stay abreast with the latest trends and technique of the industry. Chatto has studied at the Aquarius Academy Institute in London, England, where she worked as a platform artist. The Versacchi Institute in Washington DC helped her appreciate the causes of Baldness, Alopecia, Hair Extensions and Hair Weaving as well as techniques for constructing and perfectly fitting Dermabrasion wigs and toupees.
At Vidal Sassoon in Canada, she obtained a certificate in advanced Hair cutting and coloring, and at Pivot Point and the Biosthetics Institute in Chicago, she received a Degree in Esthetics. Her experience in esthetics helped her to create her own cosmetic line known as Chatto?
She is currently working towards her Masters and Ph.D. in Advanced Cosmetology in Hair design at Dudley University in North Carolina.
Her many years of study has afforded her great award and honor in the beauty industry. For two years she traveled to China to participate in the Chinese Festival of Arts and Fashion where she was the hair makeup artist of the 12 American and 5 Chinese model. Her passion in weaving and braiding techniques has traveled her to most West African countries such as Ghana, Senegal, The Gambia, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, to learn and gain experience in other skin treatment and healing techniques. In 1994, Chatto was the finalist for the North American Hair Styling Award. And, in year 2001, she was awarded the Booker T. Washington Award for entrepreneurship.
Chatto recently came back from South Africa and London, England where she launched her cosmetic Line- Chatto? .
She first introduced her skin care products in 1994, and has been a pillar in Chicago business community since 1984. Her skincare line was well received and gained notoriety for its amazing restorative result. For the past five years, Chatto alone with her personal chemist and dermatologist, has been researching the healing properties of Shea Butter and Black Soap as well as the best way to manufacture products from this natural ingredient. Now, Chatto is reintroducing her skin care line to the world. What is unique about Chatto's products is not only the extensive research she puts in creating them, but, the personal care she takes with each product manufactured. She uses the natural ingredients of Shea Butter and Black Soap as the base for her products. As she says, " I want to offer people quality products, (and) the only way I could positively guarantee this is by maintaining the Shea Butter myself."
Chatto continues to be a universal figure in the hair and skincare industry, and with her emphasis on quality, her name is sure to grow in the skincare industry as well.
In the midst of her busy schedule, Chatto takes time out to lecture high school students on how to maintain healthy skin as their bodies are growing. Since the beginning of the year (2002), Chatto has taken upon herself to visit nursing homes every Monday to take care of the elderly skin and hair. Also, she visits dialysis centers to lecture the patients about skin problems. She is building a school for disadvantaged children in the Northern part of Ghana where her Shea Butter trees grow.
Chatto has developed her career guided by the principle that her activities should enhance her career, and not just her personal goals. She has leveraged these principles to build her business.
Regarding personal qualities, Chatto has extraordinary and communications skills. She has established a reputation as a loyal and reliable person. She has solid personal values which include concern for others, and the desire to assist people to improve their lives.
Organization, creativity, dedication, the desire to excel, and the willingness to learn and grow are some of her personal attributes. She has accomplished a lot with her business, and, with the needed assistance and support, she'll realize her life dream of becoming a global entrepreneur, providing services to address needs within the hair and skin care industry.
Chatto is an example of the endless opportunities that can be provided with a fabulous attitude, the warmth of her spirit, and yet her jovial behavior and a healthy dose of hard work.