Member Zarah Miller
I’m Zarah Miller, a Ridgewood mom and the founder of Zig Zagz Braid Bar, a mobile braiding and beauty business I launched in 2021.
The idea for Zig Zagz Braid Bar started with a hobby, a little creativity, and a lot of time spent with friends during the pandemic. I have two sons, so there wasn’t exactly a built-in audience for my braiding hobby at home! Instead, I started braiding my girlfriends’ and their daughters ' hair for fun. Backyard get-togethers and fireside chats with friends and neighbors often turned into elaborate braiding sessions, accompanied by plenty of conversations about “what if” and “should I” take this hobby and turn it into a business.
With the encouragement of those wonderful friends who generously lent me their hair (and their daughters’ hair!) to braid and photograph, I took the leap. I booked my first pop-up and hosted my first birthday braid bar in Ridgewood in 2021. Through word of mouth and the power of hyperlocal social media, Zig Zagz Braid Bar began to grow as the pandemic restrictions eased.
Before becoming a small business owner, I spent two decades in corporate marketing, working with companies including Madison Square Garden/Radio City Music Hall, Citibank, and Yahoo. I was able to parlay that experience into building and growing a business of my own. Today, we’ve braided thousands of clients throughout Bergen County and hosted more than 900 braid bar events! Some of our most memorable events include a three-day braid bar for a store opening, a bat mitzvah with more than 75 girls, and an entire weekend of braiding 100 girls for a soccer tournament.
But as exciting as those big events have been, what I cherish most is the opportunity to work with so many of my fellow Ridgewood moms and families. It’s incredibly special to see some of my littlest clients grow up and come back year after year for birthdays and milestone events. Being invited into those moments is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do.
Taking the leap into entrepreneurship was definitely scary, but the support and love I’ve received from this community have made every bit of it worthwhile. Through Zig Zagz Braid Bar, I’ve had the privilege of being part of so many special memories, from birthday celebrations to Halloween festivities and everything in between.
When I’m giving my hands (and back!) a much-needed break from braiding, you’ll usually find me traveling (I’m landing in my 60th country this year) or heading to a concert (anything from rap to rock n roll).
At its heart, braiding has always been about more than hair. It’s about friendship, bonding, sisterhood, creativity, self-expression, and joy. That’s what Zig Zagz Braid Bar was built on, and that’s what it will always be about.
I’d love for you to follow along with our braiding adventures on Instagram at @zigzagz_braidbar!