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Kannapolis salon a way for cancer patient to help others
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Published: September 8, 2009
Hair loss due to cancer seems like a low blow during an already devastating fight.
Sandy Miller is not only the owner of Wigs and More in Kannapolis, but also a cancer patient who was diagnosed two years ago, and is still fighting to survive.
Miller, at the time of her diagnosis, was owner of "Absolute Woman," a boutique located in Kannapolis for almost 20 years.
"Everything looked gloomy, so I liquidated the store," Miller said.
When her experimental chemo treatments began, the hair loss followed.
Miller would soon make a hard decision, but one that put her in control.
"I felt like Farrah Fawcett did. I didn't want cancer to take my hair, I just went and said 'take it.' but then I needed to find some hair, and I just couldn't find anything I liked," Miller said.
She looked at various wigs and couldn't find anything comfortable or natural looking, or that made her feel like herself. The wigs she found were often extremely expensive. Miller told herself if she ever got well, she would open a salon that has quality hair at a good price.
"The most important thing for a woman if she's losing her hair, or is wearing a wig for convenience, is that she wants to look like herself," Miller said. "Especially if she is a cancer patient, you are losing so much of yourself."
It wasn't until she got well, that she educated herself on wigs and different styles and brands.
"Until I went into business, I was still wearing wigs I wasn't happy with," Miller said.
Walking into Wigs and More, you immediately notice the heads of hair lined up in rows along the wall, like a stadium full of stylish women. The store carries two major lines of wigs, Estetica Design and Henry Margu.
It can be very emotional for a woman shopping for a wig, especially cancer patients. Every customer has a story. Some are heartbreaking.
Miller explains this when talking about some recent customers.
"They were terminal, but so young," Miller said. "Some (cases) are very difficult."
Like one woman who had long hair, and as Miller tried to brush it back to place the wig on her head it was falling out in her hands.
"That was an emotional time," Miller said. "It was all I could do to hold together until we took care of her, and she left."
With the chemo treatments completed, Miller still wears her hair very short, and has chosen to keep wearing wigs most days.
"For the cost of one color and cut, I can buy a pretty wig, and throw it away every two months. I'd still come out ahead," Miller said.
The wigs range from $79.95 to $135. Her most expensive wig, at $135, is cheaper than the same wig in Charlotte for $200.
Miller has chosen to take less of a markup.
The store sells embellished ball caps, turbans, scarves and clothes, as well as sunglasses, designer bags and knock-off designer bags.
The effects of a cancer fight, both mentally and physically, can last forever, and Miller's treatments were experimental.
About 80 percent of those who took the same chemo treatments as Miller had no lasting effects, but she is in the unfortunate 20 percent who do.
Running her business some days can be difficult, painful and exhausting. Her husband of 25 years, Allen, four children and seven grandchildren help support her spirits.
Miller has two very supportive women, Regene Butler and Francis Gilbert, who help her out at the store.
They have been with her for many years, and she couldn't run the business without them.
"We have wearers who bring wigs to her," Butler said. "She got from the manufacturer a sanitizer so she can clean them and take them up there to the cancer center for ladies who can't afford them."
Miller keeps going, and her experience with cancer has a purpose in helping others.
"We also donate a gorgeous suede bag to my breast cancer patients. We donate them to the patients who buy a wig from us," Miller said.
She tells a story about a woman having a difficult time removing the wig she had on when trying to buy a new one.
"It was a horrible looking wig, but she didn't want me to see her bald," Miller said. "She was very hesitant about it. So, finally, I reached up and took off my wig and laid it on the table.
"She was so shocked, because she didn't know I had a wig. She was speechless, and from that moment on, she was very comfortable. I'm really trying to give them anything that makes them feel pretty."
• Contact reporter Robin L. Gardner: 704-789-9140
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