Kao Salon Division is thrilled to welcome Sydney’s Salon Yazbek as a Salon Partner to the Kao Salon Division.
Specialising in cutting and colouring services, Salon Yazbek is a stunning salon space in Sydney’s beautiful Neutral Bay created in 2010 by Owner and two time NSW/ACT Hairdresser of the Year, Nathan Yazbek. With over 20 years hairdressing experience, Nathan’s list of awards, accolades and achievements is diverse. At Salon Yazbek he leads a team dedicated to always exceeding their clients’ expectations with the latest techniques, products, formulas and customer service.
“We are thrilled to welcome Salon Yazbek to the Kao Salon family,” said Rita Marcon, General Manager, ANZ Kao Salon Division. “Nathan is an exceptional Stylist and Salon Owner, who is widely admired in the industry. We look forward to a longstanding partnership with Nathan, supporting his endeavours in the competitive arena and also his aspirations to scale the Salon Yazbek business.”
Salon Yazbek is renowned for the most natural blondes, captivating brunettes and carefully crafted colors. Nathan sees his partnership with Goldwell color as a natural succession, bringing the best in color and also homecare to his discerning clients as he fosters a collborative culture, with his team and clients at the core of every business decision.
Quick Q&A with Nathan
Q: You’ve recently joined the Kao Salon Division with hair brands Goldwell & Kerasilk. What motivated you to bring these brands to your salons?
We needed a change. I felt the clients and team needed something new and exciting to reignite everyone’s creative juices and to remind them why they fell in love with hairdressing. Goldwell’s superior colour coupled with Kerasilk and Oribe’s luxurious hair care products offer our clients the ultimate pampering experience while in the salon. Bringing these brands to Salon Yazbek reflects our dedication to providing the best possible services and products to our customers.
I think it’s super important to always listen to the teams feedback about the brands you use. It is so rewarding watching them embark on this new journey, learning about new colours and products, seeing everyone get excited about the results of a new hair colour! It is very exciting.
Q: What do you value most in your partnership with a Salon Partner?
I appreciate the relationships I’ve formed with Kao. I really value how professional the Kao team are, and how supportive and passionate everyone is. Since the beginning of the partnership, and even from early discussions, the focus has always been on the salon’s needs, supporting the stylist and colourist and fostering the business growth.
This has been a long time in the making, and I certainly treaded lightly, but the time has finally come to dive in headfirst and embrace this exciting journey.
Q: Can you share any favorite Goldwell & Kerasilk products?
Goldwell Lagoom Jam Styling Gel. I’m a little biased but I love this in my hair!
KERASILK Recovery Mask. An absolutely stunning treatment with instant results.
And as far as Oribe, I have a different favourite product I tell the team about every day, it’s kind of a running joke now, seriously I have too many favourites… But I LOVE the Grandiose Hair Plumping Mousse.
Q: Who inspires you in the hair industry? And whose hair would you most like to do?
This question is always so hard! I am really inspired by Angelo Seminara, Mark Leeson, Sam McKnight and Ali Pirzadeh. I would most love to do the hair of Leena Nair’s, Chanel CEO, just so I could pick her brain a little, and give her the best blowdry she’s ever had!
Q: What do you think has been the most significant development in your business over the years?
Putting myself out there on the industry competitive arena and being able to take home some of the biggest wins. Being named AHIA Creative NSW/ACT Hairdresser of the Year for both 2023 and 2022 was such an amazing feeling and really helped to put Salon Yazbek on the national and international map. I’ve really stepped this up as I am motivated to keep pushing myself both creatively as well as for the business to reach new heights and never to rest on my laurels. My new goal is to win Australian Hairdresser of the Year and I am just excited about the journey as I am for the potential win.
Q: What’s next for Salon Yazbek?
Basically, to go hard for another decade and then some with our new partners from Kao. I really want to scale the business and think in terms of new adventures for the team and business. We are also all in on embracing technology and the new opportunities this presents all salons, As an example I’m currently looking into a self- service kiosk check out at reception for client ease of use with retail scanning and seamless rebooking via your phone. Education is always top of mid both for myself and the team of course and I am also excited about developing some partnerships with Australian designers and local brands.
Q: What’s your favourite thing about the hair industry?
One of my favourite things is the constant evolution and creativity. We’re a colourful bunch and there is so much opportunity across hair shoots, backstage, the salon floor, creating content, education classes, the list goes on and on.
But above all making meaningful connections with clients, my team, and industry peers is my favourite thing about the hair industry. With clients, helping them feel confident, beautiful and sexy, or helping the team to reach new goals. Then also connecting with industry professionals. We all help elevate each other and encourage growth and spark ideas and that’s why I wanted to be part of Kao Australia. It’s so motivating to be part of a network of like-minded, driven hairdressers.
Q: Who is your Salon Yazbek client?
Our salon client is your busy, professional lady located in Neutral Bay and the lower north shore suburbs. She is glamourous and loves to look good. She values her stylist’s expertise and trusts their recommendations for what’s going to look great on her. She appreciates the luxurious environment she is in and loves the pampering experience. She understands the importance of proper hair care and maintenance. She rebooks and leaves the salon raving about her experience to her friends and often gets asked who does her hair!
Q: What keeps you and your team creative?
Education. It’s a non-negotiable and we are all committed to learning every single day.
Collaboration. We love our regular team meetings and brainstorming sessions to spark creativity and push ourselves that little bit further outside our comfort zones.
Inspiration. Whether it is creating our own or group mood boards across Instagram and Pinterest) or taking cues from what’s happening with the “cool kids” on the street, inspiration from art galleries and exhibitions, we always have our eyes open.
I’d also say just day to day client interaction. It inspires us to focus on creating personalised and unique hairstyles tailored to each client. This often means a bit of experimenting too!
Q: What has been your greatest challenge?
I think our biggest challenge will always be continuing to exceed our clients’ expectations. We want to be the very best and that means being on top of all the latest techniques, products and formulas and ensuring we are delivering that.
This is the key reason why we are so excited to be partnering with Kao. It has been so incredible to move across to such a premium product offering and to see how the move is positively impacting our client work in the salon and our creativity outside of it. Our clients have responded so positively too, and although a big change like this is challenging, it has been so rewarding. We have been able to time it perfectly with our stunning refurbishment and the relaunch of Salon Yazbek X Kao has been both a business and personal highlight.
Kao Salon is known for breakthrough innovations in the salon industry with strong sub-brands within Goldwell such as Topchic, Colorance, LightDimensions, @Pure Pigments and Elumen as well as high performance care and styling products, Kerasilk, Dualsenses, StyleSign and KMS.
@goldwellanz @kerasilkanz @salonyazbek
