Twenty Years Behind the Chair in Red Bank: Jennifer Nguyen on Thinning Hair, Honest Advice, and the Collagen Product She Swears By

Walk into Victoria Beauty Lounge on English Plaza in Red Bank and you'll notice something rare for a salon that's been around two decades: the regulars have been coming since the beginning. Jennifer Nguyen opened the doors as Victoria Salon in Little Silver back in 2005, moved to English Plaza in 2014, and renamed it for her daughter. Some of her clients have literally flown back to New Jersey just to have her do their hair.

That kind of loyalty earned her a "Meet-a-Mom Monday" profile from The Monmouth Moms, but what caught our attention is a conversation Jennifer has been having more and more often with her clients of a certain age — the ones who sit down in her chair, run a hand through their hair, and ask a version of the same question: "Why is my hair so much thinner than it used to be?"

What actually happens to hair after 55

Jennifer has watched it happen chair by chair for twenty years. "Hair changes with age — it gets finer, it sheds more, the texture shifts, and the color service you had at 40 doesn't behave the same way at 60," she explains. "It's normal. But normal doesn't mean you have to just accept it."

She's right about the biology. As we get older, hair follicles spend less time in the growth phase, individual strands get narrower, and many women — and plenty of men — notice more hair in the brush and a wider part line in the mirror. Hormonal changes, stress, medications, and years of heat styling all pile on. (One note from us: if your hair is suddenly falling out in clumps or patches, skip the salon and see your doctor first — that can signal something worth checking medically.)

The collagen approach she recommends

After years of watching clients try everything from drugstore thickening shampoos to expensive salon treatments, Jennifer landed on something she now recommends personally: a Korean collagen-based line from RIMAN, built around nano-liposomal technology — meaning the active ingredients are wrapped in microscopic carriers small enough to actually absorb rather than sit on the surface.

"I don't put my name behind products easily — my clients trust me because I've never sold them nonsense," Jennifer says. "This is the one I use myself, and the one my clients ask me about because they can see the difference in fullness and shine."

Her pitch is refreshingly un-salesy: she's not asking anyone to overhaul their routine or buy a cabinet full of bottles. The focus is the collagen product for hair health and thinning — the thing her over-55 clients actually care about — not a whole skincare line.

Why a stylist's opinion carries weight here

There's a difference between a product pitched by an influencer and one recommended by someone who has held your hair in her hands for twenty years. Jennifer works with aging hair every single day — she knows which clients are on medications that dry it out, whose hair thinned after a health scare, and whose texture changed after menopause. When someone like that says a product is worth trying, it lands differently than a Facebook ad.

And the salon itself is worth the trip on its own merits. Victoria Beauty Lounge is a full-service operation — cuts, color, keratin, blowouts, lashes, makeup — run by Jennifer and her partner Leo Luu, with the kind of unhurried, everyone-knows-your-name atmosphere that chain salons can't fake.

If you go

Victoria Beauty Lounge, 58 English Plaza, Red Bank, NJ 07701. Call (732) 268-8998 to book — appointments are the way to go. Closed Mondays; open Tuesday through Friday 10 to 7, Saturday 10 to 4, and Sundays by appointment. Full service menu and pricing at victoriabeautylounge.net.

Curious about the collagen product? Jennifer handles those inquiries directly — call or text her at (732) 277-2686 or email jennluu71208@gmail.com, and tell her Second Act 360 sent you.

Does collagen really help with thinning hair?

Collagen provides amino acids your body uses to build keratin, the protein hair is made of, and many people report fuller, stronger-feeling hair with consistent use. It's a reasonable, low-risk thing to try — but results vary, and it's not a medical treatment for hair loss. Sudden or patchy loss deserves a doctor's visit first.

Where is Victoria Beauty Lounge?

The salon is at 58 English Plaza in downtown Red Bank, NJ — an easy walk from Broad Street with parking in the plaza. Call (732) 268-8998 to book.

Second Act 360 receives no compensation from Victoria Beauty Lounge or RIMAN. We just think two decades of loyal clients says something.