Celebrity hair salons: Counting on more than just star power to survive

THE news came through a rather low-key general announcement on the Singapore Exchange late last month.

Founded by celebrity hairstylist Addy Lee, Monsoon Hairdressing group, which includes the well-known VS Monsoon hair salon, will be liquidated due to its liabilities. Monsoon is owned by Vintage Studio and M2 group – the latter a subsidiary of Catalist-listed beauty and wellness company, Mary Chia Holdings .

The voluntary liquidation is due to Monsoon’s “persistent inability to meet its financial obligations in a timely manner”, the filing read.

But Monsoon is hardly the only brand-name salon to fall by the wayside. The Rossano Ferretti Hairspa opened here in late 2017 but closed about a year later. The eponymous world-renowned hair maestro’s high-profile clients include Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Middleton and Reese Witherspoon.

Meanwhile, there is no shortage of hair salons springing up in Singapore’s highly competitive market, with some of the upscale ones offering services in plush surroundings, including VIP rooms, plus complimentary wine and snacks.

As customers go after the latest and trendiest hair services, some celebrity hair salons have bitten the dust, but not all have lost their shine. The Business Times speaks to the two biggest names in the hair industry here about success – and survival.

Kim Robinson

In August, to the horror of his devoted high-society clients in Hong Kong, Kim Robinson announced the closure of his eponymous hair salon in the territory. It was prompted by the redevelopment of Chater House, where his salon was located, and Robinson decided it was time to move on to other things.

Described by the Hong Kong media as an icon and even a “god-level” hairstylist, Robinson pioneered the luxury hair salon experience there. He has worked on the tresses of hundreds of celebrities, from Princess Diana, Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell to Anita Mui, Leslie Cheung, Angelababy, Sandy Lam and Carina Lau. Still, even celebrity coiffurists are human beings, with their fair share of ups and downs.

Over his 50-year career, the highly talented Australian had become wildly successful, but also faced bankruptcy in 1999 after a messy litigation over his heavily indebted hairdressing business, then called Le Salon Orient. And at the start of the pandemic, he had surgery to fix a serious health condition that affected his vascular system.

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Robinson, however, is forging ahead. Sounding upbeat over the phone from Hong Kong, he says he wants to focus on his haircare products specially developed in Italy but tested in Asia for Asian hair.

“You know, I’ve been in a dilemma for quite a long time,” says the 66-year-old. “I’ve got only one pair of hands and after being fully booked for so many years, I feel frustrated with myself. How many more years do I have? It’s time for me to do something new, leave a legacy behind long after I’m gone. And I believe my products will be able to help more women than I’ve personally been able to do with my own hands.”

He also has big plans for his 5,000 square foot (sq ft) Singapore salon in Ngee Ann City, which is “going to be reinvented”.

“We’ll unveil the new salon for the future,” he says, adding it’s currently in the design phase and the product range and services are going to be “very different from the past”.

“All I can say is that we have to turn the industry on its head.”

He says artificial intelligence (AI) will be involved, though he won’t divulge more. “This is something to be unveiled. I can’t tell you all my secrets.”

What he will say is that with AI, there are many new things that women will now be able to get. “We all need to re-educate ourselves and be aware of changing consumer needs,” he says. “We can’t be complacent like some people in my industry, who are relics of the past.”

In any event, Robinson emphasises that while celebrities are great for endorsement, that’s not his focus. “I’m more concerned about the average woman who feels empowered by our services and the products that we use than a celebrity. Most celebrities are done for free, to be honest.”

He says 99.9 per cent of his clients are “hard-working professionals”, the who’s who of society, and industry movers and shakers who do not have the time to fuss over their hair.

“What we try to achieve through our training and the intelligence of our staff is that what you’re taking home lasts long after leaving. It’s not the fancy blow dry or ridiculous styling,” he says. “It’s the great cut and colour that grows out easily, because most of our clients want to look good for longer. Modern women are investing in themselves and they want value for that investment.”

These days, Robinson is in Hong Kong because his product company is there – so a few fortunate celebs and personal friends have the privilege of getting their hair privately done by him then. But going forward, he will predominantly be in Singapore, which he says is perfect for the location of his flagship salon, even though he may open again in China or other places in Asia.

No details are available yet, but also in the works is a television show to be produced in Singapore where he attempts to discover Asia’s next super stylist. 

So, who cuts the hair of a “god-level” hairstylist?

“Martin,” says Robinson. “He was originally from Hong Kong and is now the top stylist in our Singapore team, and gives a great cut for an old guy that makes me look cool.”

The salon has 16 stylists, with the entry-level price for a cut starting at S$148. If you want Robinson to work his legendary magic on you, be prepared to shell out at least S$3,300 and wait a month or two.

“When I first set foot on Singapore soil, many were saying, ‘oh, people won’t pay those prices, people don’t go to stuff like that’. It was negative, negative, negative, no, no, no. All the time,” Robinson recalls. “And more than 25 years later, we’re still successful. In fact, even more so than in the beginning.”

David Gan

As the first local hairstylist to attend the Oscars, David Gan is an industry veteran who is almost as famous for being outspoken and brutally honest as he is a hairdresser to the stars. From Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li to Zoe Tay, Fann Wong and Joanne Peh, the flamboyant Malaysia-born Singaporean is known for emphasising hard work and loyalty.

In his typical feisty style, the founder of Passion Hair Salon declares that while trends may come and go, it’s the basics of giving a good cut – one that is flattering for one’s proportions and age – that matter.

“If I cut someone’s hair, she may say ‘it’s so expensive, I can have my hair cut 10 times somewhere else for the same price’,” says Gan over the phone from Bangkok, where he is on a working trip. “But if I cut your hair, you don’t have to worry so much. The proportion is right and even when you go and blow dry it somewhere else, people will still ask ‘when did you cut your hair? It’s getting long, but it still looks nice’. That’s called a good haircut.”

Since he first started out in 1982 in Lucky Plaza, Gan has had to overcome naysayers. Then, they said he couldn’t charge high prices because he was not London-trained. He stood firm, and over the decades, has seen waves of hairdressing trends arrive at our shores, including the Japanese and now, Korean style.

“Just because the Korean perm is very ‘in’ now doesn’t mean you do exactly the same thing,” he says. “You have to do it another way, transform it. People come to a Korean salon and ask for a cold perm, hot perm, whatever kind of perm. But that is just a name, a title, and when the hair is permed, it’s still the same. What you want is body, you need your hair to be curly. For me, after all these years, I still do one perm, it’s a basic perm.”

Even though he is a recognised celebrity hairstylist, Gan, who charges upwards of S$609 for a haircut, views it through pragmatic lenses.

“You know, if I didn’t come to Singapore, I wouldn’t have all this success,” he says, acknowledging that he has been “educated” by others here. “If you want to get famous, it’s so easy because when there is a new thing in Singapore, the press will give you a chance. Tomorrow, you are in the papers. Then you think you are in the sky, you don’t need to work hard, you don’t need to improve. But actually no, you are hanging onto the air only and when the air flows over, it’s very easy to fall.”

A problem, he points out, is that people don’t want to be a hairdresser; they just want to invest, and a salon is an easy target.

“Just teach the staff to make sales and sell packages, for say, S$10,000, and give customers good coffee. But after two, three months or maybe a year later, when you come to the shop, the hairdresser who sold you the package is not there anymore,” says Gan. “So they don’t sell techniques, they sell packages and I don’t believe in that.”

What is more difficult is sustaining the business. “There is so much opportunity in Singapore, it’s just how long you can last,” he adds. “So you have to work hard, stay sharp and always keep yourself current and relevant.”

In 2001, Passion moved to Palais Renaissance, where it still is today. Gan had, before the pandemic, made plans to move to Scotts Square, where he could get an L-shaped street-fronting space. He explained that the landlord wanted to make major changes to the building which would impact the layout of his Palais Renaissance salon, which spanned 7,000 sq ft and had an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Orchard Road.

Alas, when the pandemic hit, he chose to remain at Palais Renaissance and halve the space instead.

Still, he has not given up his dream of getting a shop unit with an L-shaped window that overlooks Singapore’s most famous shopping district from two sides.

“I have a plan, I don’t know if it will come true or not; after all, nobody knows what will happen tomorrow,” says the spunky hairstylist. “But I do want to fulfil my dream. You will see one day.”