Gina Martinez has quite literally grown up in the beauty industry. She began doing hair at the ripe old age of 14, launching a lifelong love affair with the craft that has now spanned more than four decades and she brings every bit of that experience, artistry, and passion with her to Arrow Beauty.

A longtime fixture in Denver’s beauty scene, Gina was the owner and creative force behind the iconic Blondies the Beauty Shop, a salon that developed a reputation all its own and one people still talk about today. Blondies was known for exceptional hair, individuality, energy, and an unmistakable culture, but Gina’s greatest legacy may be what happened to the young women who grew up professionally within its walls.

Long before mentorship became an industry buzzword, Gina was doing it. She built an environment where young stylists were expected to learn, work hard, develop their craft, understand their numbers, and discover just how successful a career behind the chair could become. Under Gina’s leadership, young women in their twenties became six-figure earners, leaders, educators, and eventually business owners themselves.

The branches of that mentorship can still be seen throughout Denver’s beauty community today. Women who came through Gina and Blondies went on to build salons and businesses of their own, including The Glam House, Sister B’s 1 & 2, En Vouge Salon, Willow Salon, Peace • Love • Hair, Arrow Beauty, and Arrow Too, just to name a few. Her influence extends far beyond the clientele she served or the salon she built; it lives in the careers, businesses, and lives of the women she helped shape.

Behind the chair, Gina is known for sophisticated color, precision design, and complex transformations. Her work combines decades of technical expertise with the artistic intuition that comes from a lifetime devoted to the craft. She understands that exceptional hair is never one-size-fits-all it begins with truly seeing the person in her chair and creating something that reflects who they are.

One of the young stylists Gina mentored is myself, Arrow Beauty founder Tara Nalty. I spent 12 years working alongside her at Blondies. Gina became one of the most influential mentors of my career, shaping not only my technical foundation but my understanding of leadership, education, accountability, and the responsibility of creating opportunities for the next generation. Opening Arrow was a true bat-ton passing moment for Gina and myself!

Gina made women out of a whole lot of girls. She challenged us , believed in us, taught us what we were capable of, and gave ALL of us a foundation upon which we would eventually build something of our  own.

40 years into her career, Gina is nowhere near finished evolving. She remains curious, current, and genuinely excited about her craft, continuing to embrace modern techniques while expanding her expertise into advanced extension work. To Gina, mastery has never meant knowing everything it means never losing the desire to learn.  Gina has blazed an extraordinary trial helping to raise a generation of successful entrepreneurs and artists. 

And now comes a chapter that means something very special to us. The woman who once gave me a place to grow has chosen Arrow for her own continued growth.

Having Gina Martinez behind the chair at Arrow isn’t simply a new addition to our team. It’s history coming full circle and we are incredibly grateful to have her here.