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With 20 years in the biz and celeb clients including the likes of Blake Lively, Catherine Zeta Jones, and Paris Hilton under his belt, hair stylist Marc Anthony has a few stories to tell. The good news? The man himself is heading Down Under… and he’s bringing his brand with him. Yep, 2015 doesn’t only mark the brand’s 20th anniversary, but it’s also the year that hits Australian beauty shelves. Here we pick Anthony’s brains on the brand’s history, coming to Australia, and his A-list clientele.
What is the story behind the Marc Anthony True Professional hair care brand?
It started in the basement of my first salon. I had absolutely no idea it would become what it is today - I just wanted products that delivered results, and that I could provide my salon clients to keep their hair looking great until their next salon visit. The products’ popularity increased, and now, our True Professional Collections is in over 45,000 stores worldwide.
Why did you decide to launch the brand?
My clients were so happy with how the first products made their hair look amazing from visit-to-visit, so it made sense to expand and continue the collections on a larger scale. My vision was to develop premium-quality products that were affordable and easily available. I wanted to create a true professional brand with products that created amazing-looking hair which stayed that way throughout the day. We started with solution-based products by hair types, such as the Strictly Curls Collections, and continued to innovate with styling collections like Dream Wave Beach Spray and then Exotic Oils etc.
You won the title of world champion hairstylist at the age of 19. To what do you attribute your talents?
Trust me, my talents we no bigger surprise to anyone than me! I was a typical kid who wanted to play sports. My grandfather was a stylist, as were my parents - and the last thing you want as a teenager is to be like your parents. I was thinking football or business but once I picked up a brush, things changed. Not all at once - there was a frustrating learning curve, but when I started to do things that looked amazing, that is when it all changed. Then, of course, I wanted more. The talent may have been in part hereditary but I put in the hard work to fine-tune it.
What makes the Marc Anthony hair care brand stand out from its competitors?
The biggest difference is that we never started out to make a bestselling line of hair care. We started out making products that our clients would use between salon visits. When you are in the salon, you hear firsthand what it is that women want - there are no focus groups or board meetings trying to define it. They are in your chair telling you face-to-face what is working and what is not. Today, the concept is the same: we hear what the consumer needs and develop it for use in our salon. Each and every product is tested in our salon with our stylist to make sure it delivers what’s promised.
Can you tell me a bit about the benefits of the range?
There are so many benefits, each tailored to specific solutions - whether you want your curls to sit better, or your fine hair to have volume or dry ends to suddenly have shine and manageability. The overall benefit is beautiful, sexy, healthy-looking hair. No matter what your starting point is, the Marc Anthony True Professional Collections provides shine, a healthier finish and helps you to achieve the look you want.
What have been some of the major highlights for the brand?
There have been a lot highlights, starting with the fact that so many people love it - celebrities and clients alike. It’s surreal. From our first sale, to Australia marking the 20th country we’ve entered, it’s been an amazing ride. Each step is exciting and each new adventure is met with a sense of gratitude.
Have there been any lowlights?
Oh, we have had a few products in the lab that have taken years to develop. They are the stories we laugh at some days. We use our family-like science experiments before taking the products to the salon to test with our stylist. There have been a few times when we have laughed until tears came. Let me just say - you can have too much hold in a spray!
You've styled a lot of celebrities’ hair. Can you name any?
A few of the big names are Blake Lively, Catherine Zeta Jones, Paris Hilton, the Coldplay guys, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Harrison Ford. There have been many and I consider myself lucky to have that as part of my life.
Do you often have celebrities calling you up personally to do their hair?
It’s dependent on the relationship and the moment.Sometimes you hear directly from the client and other times they will have someone call for them.
Why did you decide to bring Marc Anthony True Professional to Australia?
We have wanted to expand our Asia Pacific footprint for a long time and had set our sights on Australia. Australian women are beautiful, diverse and live full-time lives - the kind of women we represent. Giving these women options to make their beauty routine simpler, effective and with amazing results at a cost that is affordable is a good fit for us. We have a successful partnership with the Aspire Brands European office, who distribute True Professional throughout Scandinavia, and when I had the chance to meet the Australian Aspire Brands team at a trade show, the rest happened naturally. And here we are!
Where will the True Professional products be stocked?
We are excited to be partnering with both Priceline and Target. Our ethos is to care for everyone's hair – it was an obvious choice given that Priceline and Target are regarded as favourite shopping destinations for Australian women.