DEARBORN — Many people dream of getting a chance to travel across Europe. But it took a nightmare for Joe Ghamloush to get that chance.

Ghamloush, owner of three businesses on the corner of Warren and Chase roads in East Dearborn including Arabica Bistro and Coiffure D’Elegance Salon, was forced to leave his home and salon business in Beirut, Lebanon in 1977 due to bombing.

He traveled to places like Paris, France and Athens, Greece. But even though Ghamloush and his family “were like homeless people,” he managed to make the best of the situation.

A “beautician his whole life,” Ghamloush picked up on some of the most popular hair-styling techniques in the area and soon became an even better hairstylist.

“When you visit different countries, you have to take a lot of experience from those places,” he said.

While he enjoyed his time in Europe, Ghamloush soon had a plan to make a better life for his family.

“Europe is nice,” he said, “but there’s nothing better than America.”

With dreams of a better future for his family in mind, he headed to Michigan in February of 1983 and opened his own salon again in Dearborn, named Coiffure D’Elegance.

Business was slow at first, but once word began to spread and Lebanese settlers from the south end of town heard about Ghamloush’s business, the customers started flocking to get unique haircuts they couldn’t find anywhere else. Ghamloush arranged for his family to join him and the American dream was his at last.

Five of his brothers, all hairdressers, came over and added a spark of variety to the business.

“It was a generational thing,” said Ghamloush. “We all grew up in the business.”

In 2003, Coiffure D’Elegance moved to its current location which is tucked away in the plaza just north of Warren Avenue.

He also added a popular restaurant to the area in the Arabica Bistro, which features food specialties as well as Starbucks-style drinks, with Starbucks employees coming in to teach employees how to make each specialty drink.

Many people don’t realize that Arabica features food as well, thinking it’s just a coffee shop, but it actually is home to a full menu of food prepared by experienced chefs.

Ghamloush brought over Mohammed Kobeissi from Greenfield Café three years ago to become the main chef of the Arabica menu, and he has crafted a menu that appeals to many different tastes. From a New York strip steak and shrimp to a wide variety of Middle Eastern favorites as well as burgers and France-inspired baguette sandwiches, Arabica gives customers plenty of favorites to choose from in many different price ranges.

All of the meats and products are fresh and never frozen in a cooler, as they are all bought from local merchants. Designated hookah hang-out spots are also popular, especially with the late night crowd during Ramadan, and the entire menu is halal.

A jewelry store was also added to Coiffure D’Elegance, and now, Ghamloush has a whole corner of businesses to himself that he operates alongside his family, a partnership that keeps things running smoothly.

“My dad always told me to buy property and that’s what I did,” he said. “East Dearborn is the place to be and the people in the area allowed me to put my kingdom up for me, my kids, and my family.”

Coiffure D’Elegance remains popular mainly because of the cutting edge skill and knowledge of its hairstylists. Many of them attend trade shows in order to learn secrets and new hairstyles to offer to customers.

Hairstylist Abbas, one of Ghamloush’s brothers, specializes in women’s cuts and competes in various competitions. His work has even been featured in numerous hairstyling magazines including “Sophistication.”

From 50s and 60s styles to brand-new ones, the salon has a wide variety of looks for every type of customer and is constantly adding more.

“You can never say ‘I’m done’ or ‘I’m perfect’ or anything like that, you’re always a student until you die,” said Ghamloush about he and his brothers’ willingness to add new styles.

Wedding parties are welcome to come in together, early if necessary, to get matching hairstyles as well as the services of “the best makeup artists in town.” An upstairs area accommodates women with hijabs as well.

Other popular services include hot towels, hair coloring and perms, and hair removal for both men and women.

Ghamloush stays busy at the salon, but he’s also involved with other aspects of the hairstyling business. He became the first-ever Arab American to serve as a commissioner for Michigan’s beauty salon licensing board.

It’s just another reminder of his passion for the business, and his brothers share that passion with him for the Elegance jewelry store and Arabic Bistro as well. He wants to keep the businesses in the family as well.

“I’ve always wanted a big family and I hope my sons and nephews carry on for the future,” said Ghamloush.

“We love Dearborn and we love to stay in Dearborn. The community makes me who I am and we want to thank our community.”