Angie Katsanevas, 52, broke down in tears while telling Obsessed: The Podcast about her rise to fame on The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.
The daughter of Greek immigrants, Katsanevas founded the salon Lunatic Fringe in 1999 with her husband Shawn Trujillo, from whom she’s now separated. The pair still work together and have expanded the business into a Utah-based salon franchise, with nine locations across Utah, Ohio, and Idaho.
“I mean, my parents were immigrants,” Katsanevas told Obsessed. “My dad came to America for a better life. I’ve seen where he’s from. He didn’t have a toothbrush. He came here with only his suit. He had nothing. He was poor; he was hungry. He came to America so his children could thrive. Small businesses are the backbone of America. I think women in business are the backbone of America. It’s an inspiring story: I’m telling my daughter that you can be anything you want.”
As Katsanevas became choked up with gratitude, she said, “Those are, like, tears of joy.”
Katsanevas is now an advocate for small businesses, even starting the podcast GoDaddy School of Hustle with Angie K. on June 23. On the podcast, she interviews entrepreneurs about the challenges and successes they’ve faced as business owners.
When Katsanevas joined RHOSLC as a full-time cast member ahead of Season 4 (she had appeared as a guest in several earlier episodes), the rest of the women weren’t quite welcoming, often treating Katsanevas like an outsider. Now, though, “Angie K.” has worked her way up to a key member of the cast and even became the coveted “Center Snowflake”—the housewife positioned front and center in the show’s opening credits and promotional photos—for Season 5.
Her struggle to succeed as a business owner parallels her rise to prominence on television.
“It’s the story of my life,” she said. “I feel like everything I’ve ever wanted, or everything I have achieved, was never easy. There’s always hurdles. There’s the trials and tribulations, whether it’s in business or in relationships. And it’s so much more rewarding to have done it the hard way. I had to work for everything.”
Katsanevas’ mother was an alcoholic who died when Katsanevas was eight years old. The Salt Lake City native’s father raised her and her six siblings by himself, and Katsanevas “was probably never the person that you would think was going to ever be successful,” she said. As a teenager, she worked “bagging groceries for $4 an hour.”
Because Katsanevas joined RHOSLC for Season 4 instead of at the start of the series, she received early blowback from the other women. But those challenges only make her more grateful for her current position.
“I can say I did it the hard way. It was my way,” she said. “It would have been great to start with all the women, and I think there’s more acceptance, versus when you come on, you definitely get a lot more pushback. I always reflect on that, and it’s a great reminder of how I’ve come up in life, how I’ve come up in business, having started with zero in life and having started with zero in business and been able to grow something beautiful in both.”
Season 7 of RHOSLC premiered Sept. 16, and Katsanevas’ split with Trujillo features as a prominent narrative thread. The couple grew apart after 27 years of marriage, with no single infidelity or betrayal. They’re still business partners and continue to co-parent their 15-year-old daughter Elektra.
“You know, I think with hard work and commitment and hustle, you can be anything you want,” Katsanevas said. “And I want to show my daughter that anything is possible. My dad came here so that we could know that anything is possible. I think that part of why I was chosen for the show is because I am self-made, and self-made comes with hustle, and it’s such a great story when you have a story. I mean, look, I’d love to be a trust-funder. Hey, that sounds so fun. But the story is greater when you have to start at the bottom.”
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