A Conversation With... Christopher Laird
Following our chats with Alex Ferris and Stephen Hopper, we also sat down with our third wonderful Brand Ambassador, Christopher Laird to talk about his background in the industry, the advice he would give to his younger self and so much more...
“Tell Us A Bit About You, Your Background And How You Started Off In Hair Extensions.”
“I’m Christopher Laird, the co-owner of November Collective based in Edinburgh, Scotland.
I am a session stylist, celebrity hairdresser and I have my salon. My background is mainly Brand Ambassador work mainly in the world of styling and I got into extensions about eight years ago through client demand. This is when hair extensions really took off in the UK and I jumped on that straight away, I really wanted to dive into that world of hair extensions.”
“How Long Have You Been Working With Remi Cachet?”
“I have been using Remi Cachet for about seven years. It was one of the first brands I worked with in the extension world and I instantly fell in love with the brand and it has never changed.
Particularly, I just love the brand and ethos, I really like how it is so ethical, and very innovative.”
"Thinking Back To Getting Started In Hair Extensions, What Advice Would You Have Given To Your Younger Self And Is There Anything You Would Have Done Differently?"
"The advice I would have given to myself back when I started doing hair extensions is just take your time, be good at a few methods, really focus on honing in on your craft and then expand on your knowledge. Something I try to relay to my team now when training them is that you don’t need to be amazing at all of the methods, just really focus on being the best at a few then you can build on it from there.”
“We’d Love To Hear More About The Services You Offer And How You Think This Benefits Your Business”
“Within the salon, we offer a wide range of services. We are lucky enough to have a nice big team so we can be trained on as many methods as possible. Our main methods include; Mini Tips and Tapes, they are just really popular methods for us. Being able to offer so many different clients so many different methods gains us a really large clientele that fits everyone.”
"We Would Love To Know Your Favourite Products From The Remi Cachet Range And Why?"
“I love the whole Elegance range, I love all of the methods in the range and it really fits my brand well; it’s your top quality hair, the highest in the range and it really fits my brand and salon well.”
"What Would You Tell Another Stylist Who Is Looking To Add New Services?"
“I think just be brave, just try things. You may not love every single thing you try but always add to your knowledge by experimenting with new products and new techniques. This is always the best way to find out what works for you and your business.”
"What Does A Stylist Need To Think About When Choosing A Hair Extension Brand?"
“For me its all about picking a hair extension brand that works for your brand. Really look into the brand ethos, think about 'what is the brand about?' 'is it a brand that really speaks to my clientele?' Or, does it fit your future clientele? The people you would eventually like to have in your chair…I think finding a brand that you can cohesively work with is important."
"What Is The Most Important Factor For You To Consider When Choosing A Brand When Considering Your Clients?"
“For me, I have to be able to work with brands that are evolving in the same way as me. Working with a brand that is constantly evolving to continue to support stylists and really push them to go forward and better their own career is important to me.”
"What Is The Most Common Question Asked By Your Clients When Discussing The Best Options For Their Hair?"
“The most commonly asked question are revolved around method- ‘what method works best for me?’
This question usually stems from a lot of people who see certain methods on social media and really like the person’s hair and tell me “I want this”. But, sometimes the method they want will not work for that client. So, managing expectations, having a really good consultation and really knowing your stuff about your methods is important… think about questions like 'is that going to work with their hair?' 'what is their lifestyle like?'
So following this chat, comes my most commonly asked question… “oh, what is going to be the best method for me?” Therefore, having that extensive consultation is my best bit of advice for this.”
“What Are Your Top Tips For Running Your Business In 2024 And Do You Have Any Hand Hacks That You Rely On In Your Day To Day?”
"At the salon we are planners, we love to plan, we like to be really goal-driven, we use dream books, we have a lot of team communication so we really have 2024 planned out. This plan will obviously change throughout the year but having a really strong idea of what your year is going to look like and what your aspirations are for the year is my advice. My top tip for this is to be realistic but just write everything down, everything you want to achieve and nine times out of ten, we have proven this so many times in the salon that you will over exceed, you will completely go past those goals.
For us, we are worrying less about how busy we are, what we are not doing and all the other things that create a negative worry in the salon, we are just really focusing on those positive changes that can be made, goals for the year and setting targets to meet."
“What Marketing Do You Do That Helps Attract New Clients?”
"Marketing is something that we spend a lot of time on in the salon, we look at it daily, if not weekly, to choose the marketing that is really working for that period of time. Something that would work in January, and February is not going to work in summer, so, we are really unique with it and bespoke to what the goal is for the marketing, what we want to achieve out of the individual marketing campaign and give it a reason. I think sometimes people see marketing and question ‘how do I navigate this?’ but I think it's all about breaking it down into ‘what do you want to achieve?’, ‘how are you going to achieve it?’ and ‘what is the end goal for the marketing campaign?’"
“Where Do You Get Most Of Your New Clients From?”
"We have a multi-platform approach to new clients.
For us, we have a big team of really experienced stylists and ones that are just fresh on the floor so we do have a mixture of word of mouth and social media of where new clients come from.
Having multiple platforms of how you communicate with new clients and giving them a reason to come to you is important to get new clients.”
"You Were Announced As One Of The First-Ever Brand Ambassadors Last Year, How Did It Feel To Get This Acknowledgement Having Worked With The Brand For Many Years?"
“For me, it was a chance to work really closely with the brand. It is a really lovely opportunity to work on product launches and how the brand moves forward. It is a really nice achievement being approached by Victoria for the role and having those conversations with her was just a really nice feeling of “ok, I have got it”.
"What Are You Most Looking Forward To About Being A Brand Ambassador This Year?"
“I think just bringing everyone together, we have all such different expertise in the industry so bringing it together is something I am really looking forward to. I am also really excited about working on campaigns, looking at the brand image and what that looks like going forward.”
"What Are You Most Looking Forward To In 2024?"
“What I am most looking forward to this year is just getting stuck back in again. I had an amazing year last year with new roles and career-defining moments, so for me, I am really looking forward to keeping on that wave, keeping on doing more, keep aspiring to do more and hitting my goals.”
A big thank you to Christopher for sitting down with us to chat all things hair!
