SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) — The owner of the San Francisco salon where House Speaker Nancy Pelosi got a controversial hair appointment rejected the notion that it was a set up Thursday – but Pelosi’s stylist claims it appeared to be just that.

“False and outrageous” is how San Francisco salon owner Erica Kious referred to the claims that she set up House Speaker Nancy Pelosi following days of controversy.

“Not only did I not set her up — her assertion that she is a victim and was set up is totally false and outrageous,” Kious said in a Zoom call on Thursday.

This comes just one day after Pelosi and the cosmetologist who did the speaker’s hair publicly addressed the situation.

Pelosi said she has gone to the salon several times before, and said she takes responsibility for trusting a salon she was familiar with.

“I take responsibility for trusting the word of a neighborhood salon that I’ve been to over the years many times,” she said Wednesday while addressing reporters in the city. “When they said they were able to accommodate people one person at a time, I trusted that.”

“As it turns out – it was a setup,” she added. “So I take responsibility for falling for a setup.” She added that the salon owes her an apology.

But Kious said she doesn’t owe anyone an apology.

“I don’t owe anyone an apology,” she said. “Mrs. Pelosi owes the entire country an apology.”

The San Francisco cosmetologist that reportedly serviced Pelosi, Jonathan DeNardo, painted a different picture in a statement from his attorney, Matthew Soleimanpour, however.

Soleimanpour claims there is video and photographic evidence that Kious regularly disregarded San Francisco’s COVID-19 stay-at-home order to style clients’ hair while not wearing protective equipment, even pressuring her employees to do the same.

DeNardo said he only agreed to see Pelosi after discussing it with Kious, who personally approved the appointment and, “made several vitriolic and incendiary comments about Speaker Pelosi and her purported responsibility for temporarily suspending operations of Ms. Kious’ business.”

The statement went on to say: “The fact that Ms. Kious is now objecting to Speaker Pelosi’s presence at eSalon, and from a simple surface-level review of Ms. Kious’ political leanings, it appears Ms. Kious is furthering a set-up of Speaker Pelosi for her own vain aspirations.”

The full statement reads:

“In response to press inquiries on the matter, Mr. DeNardo can confirm that he indeed did provide professional stylist services to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA) on August 31, 2020, at the “eSalon,” located at 2288 Union Street in San Francisco, California. Mr. DeNardo, at all times, took all requisite safety measures throughout his appointment with Speaker Pelosi, including sanitation of all service areas and wearing of CDC-recommended protective equipment, and thereafter ensured the premises were similarly sanitized following Speaker Pelosi’s departure.

Mr. DeNardo has worked at eSalon for approximately six (6) years and regularly communicates with the salon owner, Erica Kious. In fact, Mr. DeNardo received advance approval from Ms. Kious the day prior to the appointment during a telephone discussion on August 29, 2020 at 9:26 pm, wherein Mr. DeNardo advised Ms. Kious that he would not proceed with Speaker Pelosi’s appointment without Ms. Kious’ authorization. Ms. Kious took special interest in the appointment during this telephone call, wherein she made several vitriolic and incendiary comments about Speaker Pelosi and her purported responsibility for temporarily suspending operations of Ms. Kious’ business, despite such orders actually being put into place not by Speaker Pelosi, but by Governor Gavin Newsome and San Francisco Mayor London Breed. Ultimately, Ms. Kious authorized Mr. DeNardo to proceed with Speaker Pelosi’s appointment.

This office is in possession of photographs, videos and witness information that Ms. Kious, contrary to her prior statements to the press, has actually been operating her business during the stay-at-home orders and similar executive orders limiting in-store operations since as far back as April 2020. Ms. Kious is seen on photographs and video footage styling various clients’ hair, ignoring social distancing guidelines, and not wearing protective equipment (masks), as recently as a few days prior to Speaker Pelosi’s arrival at eSalon on August 31, 2020.What’s more, Ms. Kious has also been actively encouraging and almost forcing stylists who operate at eSalon to
violate such orders for her own financial benefit in the form of receiving lease payments.

The fact that Ms. Kious is now objecting to Speaker Pelosi’s presence at eSalon, and from a simple surface-level review of Ms. Kious’ political leanings, it appears Ms. Kious is furthering a set-up of Speaker Pelosi for her own vain aspirations. Mr. DeNardo’s name has now been dragged through the mud for simply following Ms. Kious’ recommendations; he wishes to move forward with his efforts to earn an income and asks that his privacy be respected during this time. Further inquiries may be directed to press@soleimanlaw.com.

MATTHEW SOLEIMANPOUR, ESQ., PARTNER, SOLEIMAN APC