268 Store Front
513.241.4640
M- Sa: 9- 6

Chong Kim and his wife, Kim Kim, came to Cincinnati from Korea in 1975 to be near other family members who had emigrated before them. By 1976, they opened Cee Kay Beauty Supply, specializing in ethnic hair care, at the corner of Race and Elder Streets. The name Cee Kay comes from Chong's initials.

Cee Kay Beauty at Findlay Market is one of three beauty supply stores in the Kim family. The Kims also own the Cee Kay on Linn Street and Chong's brother owns a beauty supply in Los Angeles.

Over the years, like hairstyles, the beauty business has also changed, the Kims say. Drugstores and groceries now carry beauty supplies once exclusive to specialty shops. So, the Kims have adapted by adding more varied merchandise to their beauty line up. There's a case of watches and jewelry, cigarettes, and a chance to win big on the Ohio Lottery, attracting a steady stream of neighborhood customers into their store.

Of course, the shop's cases still brim over with a full selection of beauty supplies like shampoos, hair dyes and relaxers, curling irons, trimmers and other grooming aids at discount prices. A selection of hair extensions is displayed along one wall. In fact, no matter what merchandise the Kims carry, longtime shoppers still call Cee Kay "the wig shop."