Hairbrained Conversations

From "Prog Rock" vocalist/musician to hairdresser and multi-location salon owner, Laura Boton has incorporated her personal and professional values to build ongoing, sustainable success for her team, her business and family. At the core of those values are the big ideas of freedom, flexibility and fun—along with a never ending commitment to teaching and learning. Add to that the importance of ment...

@EvanJosephCurls, founder of the Evan Joseph Salon, is an inspiring brand advocate and SalonCentric #ItTakesaProTeam member. Evan has built an entire career around his passion for curly hair and the big idea of "Curl Care Simplified" for all textures and humans. In this enlightening conversation, Evan shares the story behind his unique professional journey and his ongoing passion for creating a sa...

How we think and talk about raising our prices—not to mention knowing when and how to actually do it—is an important conversation that's taken on a renewed significance since the pandemic. Conor James Doyle—an educator, colorist, content creator and @redken advocate based in Dublin, Ireland—has blown up big on social media, due in large measure to his refreshing perspective toward much of what we...

Lauren Moser Samuels (@laurenmmoser) and Rodrick Samuels (@rodricksamuels) recently had the rare privilege of hosting the 2022 North American Hairstyling Awards (NAHA), the most prestigious awards of their kind. Lauren is a NAHA-winning hairdresser, educator and artist, while Rodrick is an icon in the barber space as an artist and educator. Together they are barber school directors in Detroit, Mic...

Out of humble beginnings, Stephanie Kocielski has carved an iconic career that has taken her around the world. From working behind the chair at A Robert Cromeans Salon to traveling the globe as a renowned platform artist and her current position as John Paul Mitchell Systems VP of Key Customer Relations, Stephanie has done it all. Note: Recorded pre-pandemic.  

Part two of our conversation with Naomi Dove. In episode #249, we were introduced to Naomi's professional origin story, a journey so compelling that we ran out of time before getting to our planned conversation on the ongoing industry-wide conversation on texture and black hair, where we stand today as an industry on these big topics, and thoughts about the journey ahead. Today we tackle these top...

The @randco Multiverse Tour—a traveling educational event inspired by art, fashion and music—recently came to Chicago for a sold out performance of powerful technical demonstrations and inspiration. This gave Gordon the unique opportunity to connect in-the-moment with an amazing array of guests about their passions, predictions and the power of showing up. Co-hosted by R+Co President Dan Langer, w...

John Mosley is one of the industry's most well-known barbers/educators and @PaulMitchellPro Artistic Director. Recently named NAHA's Educator of the Year by PBA (@ProBeautyAssoc), John shares his take on this big recognition; where we are as professionals coming into our new semblance of work and life normalcy; plus his unique and well-informed point on the state of the larger industry, including...

Part Two of our deep conversation with @bumblepro alumna Amy Farid, the renowned editorial and session stylist who traces many of her influences back to her time at NYC's House of Bumble salon. In this episode we dig into her journey of working with and learning from the likes of Michael Gordon and Laurent Philippon; the learnings that have propelled her forward; some truly great perspectives on o...

Liliana Maggio (@liltresser) is a twice-Emmy-nominated hairdresser for film and television who shares her unique journey into the salon industry, including some surprising turns along the way. Recent film credits include the reboots of "Sex and the City" and Steven Spielberg's much-lauded take on the iconic "West Side Story." Liliana also shares a reality check on life as an on-set hairdresser as...

@TheRealAmyFarid is a renowned editorial and session stylist who traces many of her influences as a professional back to her time as an @BumblePro apprentice at NYC's House of Bumble salon. In this episode, we talk about Amy's early days as a self-described queer kid of Native American heritage who fell in love with hair while growing up in small-town Kansas. She shares her truly unique experience...

@AvedaItGirl Naomi Dove shares her one-of-a-kind, transformative personal and professional journey in search of (and which led to) her "Stage of Great Magnitude." Along the way, Naomi found Aveda—and, in time, @Aveda found Naomi. The rest, as they say, is HERstory. Listen in to hear part one of our two-part conversation with the @AvedaItGirl.   

Global Oribe Artist and Educator @Adam_Livermore joins Gordon for a very special episode focused on Pride Month and its larger meaning for the LGBTQAI+ community and our industry. We also dig into the story behind Adam's rise to prominence as a session, editorial and celebrity stylist, his thoughts around staying inspired throughout the pandemic - and the impact of Oribe Canales, the iconic and bi...

Kevin Hughes (@hairbyeleven) is a session/celebrity stylist who joined @moroccanoilpro as Artistic Director 11 years ago and hasn't looked back since. Growing up with 11 siblings, Kevin discovered his passion for hair early in life—and fixed family member haircuts in his spare time! That passion has served Kevin well as he worked his way up through the industry, from behind the chair to salon owne...

An award-winning London-based color specialist, @Harriet_Stokes has an affinity for education and is cofounder of the @HumanKindHair education platform. The L'Oréal Professionnel guest artist shares her tremendous passion for the craft in the latest Run Le Hair Show episode, L'Oréal Pro's groundbreaking YouTube series. We dig into all of this and much more in this week's episode. 

Passionate business educator, coach and author Antony Whitaker joins Gordon for a post-pandemic update on business trends, opportunities and more. The founder of @GrowMySalonBusiness and frequent guest on the podcast, Antony always provides a wealth of valuable best practice insights. To hear more of these insightful conversations, be sure to check out episodes #13, #81, and #173.

With 30 years of professional beauty industry experience to his credit, Davines North America CEO Alejandro López has a real passion for salons, professionals and the difference that our industry makes in the world. We dig into the story behind his journey to Davines, and how his passion for the brand's unique culture, values and vision inspire him for what lies ahead.

SalonCentric #ItTakesAProTeam artists Christopher Aaron (@ChristopherAaronStudio) and Daniel Mason-Jones (@DanielMasonJones) join Gordon to share their personal and professional experiences as members of the LGBTQ+ community, and what it means for our larger industry. We get up close and personal with Daniel and Christopher to discuss "growing up gay;" what Pride means to them personally; the powe...

@Neill President @EdwinNeill shares much of the story behind this iconic family business that over time has grown to be involved in all aspects of our industry. Today, the largest @Aveda distributor in the world is also home to @LoveParisParker Salons and Spas, @AvedaArts and Sciences Institutes in 10 states, @ParkerBarber Shops, @Vomor hair extensions, and the highly respected @ SeriousBusiness c...

Colorist, salon owner, educator and Artistic Director of Color for John Paul Mitchell Systems, Colin Caruso (@colincarouso) is back for another inspired conversation, sharing career and business insights plus a look into the inspiration behind his new video series, Paul Mitchell Style Trip. Note: Recorded pre-pandemic.

A pioneer of salon suites, @LoveEricTaylor shares the story behind his 20-plus year journey in the professional salon industry. From his earliest days in Dallas as an unpaid assistant to the owner of one of the first salon suite organizations in the U.S. (followed by his move to Los Angeles to launch what would become @SalonRepublic), Eric shares the many lessons and insights learned along the way...

Aveda Global Artistic Director of Haircutting Ricardo Dinis (@ricardodinis) shares some of the great lessons learned over the course of his fascinating career journey. Gordon calls this one 'an instant favorite and a must-listen-to episode'. Note: Recorded pre-pandemic.

@AmikaPro's Chelsea Riggs (@chelseamriggs) is back for a deep conversation about authenticity; sustainability and diversity; equity and inclusion; and how we can all be better prepared to leverage the power of professional salons to make a difference in the world. A follow up to Chelsea's record-breaking first appearance (Episode #215 is our # 1 most downloaded episode ever), this all-new conversa...

Barbers Sofie Pok and Schorem's Rob Rietveld (along with a passionate live audience in NYC) join Gordon for a brilliant conversation on the changing landscape of barbering/men's grooming, social media and so much more. Note: Recorded pre-pandemic.   

@Martyn_Wady, International Business Development Manager for @DenmanPro, shares his career and life story along with lessons learned from working for decades behind the chair before joining one of the industry's most iconic tool companies. The #crafthairdresser—who is likewise an educator, author, co-founder of the agency Five Point Alliance and a passionate environmentalist—also reveals Denman's...