Grad Success
Pro Hair Graduate Ana Luisa Valdes: A Cut Above at Toni & Guy and the Contessa Awards
Not every student at Blanche Macdonald arrives with a crystal ball providing step-by-step directions to a glittering future career. For Ana Luisa Valdés, Blanche Macdonald Pro Hair graduate and Art Director at the multiple award-winning Kitsilano, Vancouver branch of Toni&Guy, success has more to do with seizing inspiration and opportunities than long-term plans.
Hailing from Tampico, Mexico, the precise details of the start of Ana Luisa’s journey to Vancouver for Blanche Macdonald's Hair School have already faded from memory.
“I really don’t remember how I started cutting hair,” she laughs, taking a break from her busy schedule at Toni&Guy. “It was just for fun. I had no training. It was something natural to me. My aunts would call and they’d get me to cut their hair with the same scissors they used in the garden. My sister-in-law ran a hair salon in Tampico. She saw me doing hair and said that I should help her in the salon.”
When the suggestion came that she should enhance her natural talent with some formal training, Ana Luisa investigated the possibility of a dramatic change of scenery.
“I’d been to Vancouver before, and I’d always liked it. One of my girlfriends from Mexico lived here and said that I should try out Blanche Macdonald. I heard it was one of the best schools. And the brochure they sent me looked really interesting.”
With Associate Director Mary Hombrebueno making sure Ana Luisa’s student visa came through with minimal fuss, two months after the brochure arrived in Tampico, Ana Luisa was starting classes in Vancouver. The weather wasn’t the only shock to the system.
“I wasn’t prepared at all,” she admits with a broad smile. “It was totally different from what I expected. I wasn’t directing my life anywhere. I just wanted to learn and have fun. I was like, I’ll take the one-year hair course and see what happens.
“Oh my god! I had to wake up early! I had to be there at nine. Mexicans tend to be always late. If I was late three times I’d have to go back home, so I learnt to be on time.”
The laid back girl from Tampico soon learnt that the Pro Hair team meant business. Despite the early mornings, Ana Luisa found that her interest in hair was turning into a passion. And with Blanche Macdonald’s technique training, the skills she’d taught herself back home blossomed.
“I started getting it, and I started getting excited about hair,” she recalls. “I was having so much fun learning about everything, and I wanted to know more.
“The photo shoots we did were so much fun. That opened a door to show me what I was capable of. I’d never done avant-garde or fantasy styles before. I’d only seen that in magazines. I didn’t think I could do that type of thing myself.”
Learning new techniques was inspiring, but so was the other side of Blanche Macdonald’s Pro Hair program; providing students with a genuine understanding of the industry they’re about to enter.
“I didn’t have an idea what I was looking for,” she promises. “I wanted to do cuts. But fashion shows? A salon? I didn’t know. They introduced us to people in the industry, and I started enjoying it more. Meeting new people and knowing more about the industry helped me decide what I wanted to do.”
Omar Kanani, Managing Director of both Vancouver branches of Toni&Guy, takes up the story.
“After 32 years in the industry it’s necessary for me to give something back to the industry,” he explains. “I speak to every school in BC and tell them that Canadian hairdressers have the biggest potential ever.”
Omar should know. He’s been in the business for nearly thirty years, and has worked with celebrities including George Michael, the Backstreet Boys, Annie Lennox and Duran Duran. Omar started his career in England as part of the team the legendary Toni&Guy, the creators of Tigi and Bedhead products and a multi-award-winning high street salon with hundreds of busy salons across the UK.
He moved to Vancouver and set up Canada’s flagship branch of Toni&Guy. That salon proved so successful that it soon needed to move from Robson Street to a bigger location in Downtown Vancouver, where is was recognised as the city’s best salon by The Georgia Straight, among others, which preceded the opening of a second Toni&Guy salon in Kitsilano. Omar runs both, while still finding time to speak to aspiring hairdressers across BC.
“Blanche Macdonald has a very good system,” he continues. “The kids are excited and want to do more. I see the enthusiasm. I did a class with Ana Luisa’s group, and I must have inspired her.”
“Omar came to Blanche to speak to us about Toni&Guy,” continues Ana Luisa, “explaining what the company is based on and what they’re looking for. I went over to him and said, ‘I want to work for you’. But I didn’t have the right papers then.
“The next time I saw him I said, ‘Hey, do you remember me? Mexican? Blanche Macdonald? I’m gonna work for you.’ He was impressed.”
“She said she’d be working for me soon,” confirms Omar. “I said ‘Great. Congratulations!’ She was persistent and we held a job open for her. Persistency and belief are 99% of success in this world. For Toni&Guy and me people with belief are the people we want. I’m interested in their attitude and aptitude. Do they want to be the best? And are they like sponges? Can they take the information from us and adapt it to their life? Ana fits into our work ethic and she’s been a great asset to the company. She’s always put herself forward. She’s not scared of anything and she doesn’t shy away from anything.
“A lot of schools just focus on cutting and technique, and don’t worry about the person behind it. Where Blanche is more advantageous is that they strike that balance. Blanche and Toni&Guy is a good fit. They have great students. We have a great salon. The mindset doesn’t have to change.”
Omar was right to trust his instincts. His faith has been rewarded with a stylist with seemingly limitless enthusiasm for the salon and the haircuts they deliver.
“Every day is amazing,” she promises. “It’s a long day and it can be busy. But I love it. Making people feel good about themselves is a great feeling. I can tell them what would look better on them. I like giving advice to women. Sometime they come in with a mess. You’re helping them and you get the chance to be creative. For every single haircut you do there’s improvisation and room for creativity. It’s part psychology and part artistry.”
Ana Luisa’s artistry is going from strength to strength. Earlier this year she found the models, makeup artist and photographer, and with Toni&Guy’s guidance she entered the Contessa Awards, Canada’s longest-running and most prestigious hairdressing competition is now in its 21st year. Ana Luisa’s vision and hard work were rewarded as the panel of judges recognised her as one of the top ten hairdressing newcomers in all Canada.
“The makeup artist I used for the Contessas, Jasmine Merinsky, is from Blanche Macdonald,” she smiles. “My first artist bailed on me so I just phoned Blanche, ‘I need a makeup artist in 30 minutes!’”
Ana Luisa still doesn’t have a long-term plan for the future. Perhaps she’ll start her own salon back in Mexico. Maybe she’ll stay in Canada. She’s enjoying her work too much to worry about finding that crystal ball.
“You have to be passionate about what you do. You really need to feel it. As time started going by at Blanche, I began to realise how much I liked hair. Now I love it!”