About salon22

Salon22 is a membership-based professional women’s club and idea hub connecting leaders, changemakers, and disruptors. Diversity is at the forefront of our mission—our membership reflects the demographics of New Orleans (and our leadership does, too). Members enjoy a stunning, thoughtfully designed space for coworking, networking, nurturing, and growing, along with events like speakers, coaching, wellness programs, and more!

We provide women with the resources and socially conscious community needed to create real change.

FOUNDED BY WOMEN,
FOR WOMEN

Founded by four diverse and accomplished women, our shared goal is for Salon22 to be an agent of change in New Orleans, shifting the balance of power in our beloved city. We’re intent on creating a beautiful space for like-minded women from all walks of life to find commonality, belonging, and opportunities for political, professional, and personal collaboration. Salon22 is a space for speaking up and out.

As founders, we’re passionate about expanding our circles—and yours. Through our commitment to diversity, we aim to positively impact the way women think about their circles of friendship and influence, generating a powerful ripple effect across the region.

Our intent is to create an inclusive space for women+ no matter their gender expression (including identifying outside the gender binary), racial and cultural background, sexual orientation, age, physical ability, or economic standing. As trans women are women, we don’t use language like “women-identifying.”

Meet the Founders

  • Christa Talbott

    Originally from Florida, Christa now calls New Orleans home. As an educator for almost twenty years, she embodies the passion to be the change we need by touching the lives of every student she meets. She taught elementary and middle school for almost twenty years before changing careers in 2021. She now channels her passion for education into her work as an academic designer, creating an inclusive digital history curriculum that gives voice to marginalized groups. Christa is energized by public speaking, motivational speaking, good old girl talk, and all things that inspire women to find their voice and their purpose. She believes Salon22 is the vehicle for change, empowerment, and inclusiveness that the women of New Orleans seek.

  • Fay Kimbrell

    A native New Orleanian, social worker, yoga practitioner, and spiritual seeker, Fay helps women realize their potential through her Momentum Counseling and Coaching practice. Passionate about female empowerment and beautiful design, she conceived Salon22 as a female-centered space to accelerate shifts toward greater personal and collective consciousness. Fay is committed to the power of a diverse community, and to the idea that working on one’s personal development leads to larger societal change. With a keen understanding of how our surroundings affect our mood, thinking, and productivity, Fay is confident that Salon22’s combination of female empowerment and intentional aesthetic will bring women together in new and wonderful ways.

  • Fresh Johnson

    Growing up in New Orleans, Fresh experienced many environments, which she ultimately credits for her skill to adapt and tackle adversity. A graduate of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, she is a media personality and entrepreneur. Fresh runs her own wedding and event planning company, has a radio show on Power 102.9, and is studying to become a mortician. She has presented at the United Nations, hosted at Essence Festival, co-produced Professional Black Girl (Season 2: New Orleans), and recorded voice overs for brands all over the country.

  • Mariska Morse

    Mariska Morse has spent her career advocating for gender equity. For nineteen years, she played a key role in the start-up, growth, and marketing of Forté, a nonprofit working to advance women in business. Prior to Forté, she led the Women in Business Initiative at Michigan’s Ross School of Business, among other marketing and consulting roles. She is president of the NOLA Chapter for the American Marketing Association and consulted for the Campaign for Equity New Orleans (CENO). Mariska earned her B.A. degree from Boston College and is pursuing a master’s degree in gender studies at Tulane University. She serves on two nonprofit boards, Culture Aid NOLA and the National Coalition for Collegiate Women's Leadership.