Creative HEAD October 2019

Louis Byrne and his “mission” – celebrity client Emma Willis
POSITIVELY
C H A R G E D
YOU CAN’T LOOK AFTER CLIENTS PROPERLY UNTIL YOU’RE LOOKING AFTER YOURSELF, SAYS
MOST WANTED INDEPENDENT STYLIST 2019 FINALIST LOUIS BYRNE. AND HE SHOULD KNOW…
It’s actually not that far from Northampton to London, but for Louis
Byrne it’s been a hell of a journey. Four years with the legendary Sam
McKnight and countless fashion weeks saw his career skyrocket,
with jobs for Vogue, ELLE and L’Officiel and a lengthy stint with
singer Ellie Goulding as her personal hairdresser. One memorable
week featured a private jet, a performance for Donatella Versace
and a gig on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
But along with the ups, there have been downs. There were times
when Louis didn’t feel in complete control of his career, exacerbated
by issues with alcohol and drugs and bouts of depression. He was
feeling intimidated by the pressures of social media. In October
2018 he fell and broke his leg, and during his recovery realised
he had to take back control – of his relationships, his health, his
networks and his time, as well as his work.
#ICanIAmAndIWill – Louis’s personal empowerment project
that uses social media as a platform for positivity – aims to break
the cycle of negative behaviour that almost did for his career. It
celebrates its first anniversary this month. “My opinion is that
everyone, through self-discovery, can regenerate their unique skills,
creativity and wellness and thrive as a motivated, educated and
inspired professional,” he says.
As part of the programme, Louis has created a motivational
workshop based on a three-step empowerment formula of skill,
creativity and wellness. Largely autobiographical, the session
is full of honesty and insight learned from his past, and aims to
inspire a new way of thinking that will lead to healthy and creative
collaborations in the future. There’s also a series of podcasts and a
YouTube channel, all based around the theme of enhancing natural
beauty and enabling us to love who and what we are. The podcasts
explore the relationship with his celebrity clients but with topics
exploring themes ranging from life in the public eye to pregnancy,
cancer and gender fluidity.
A major part of #ICanIAmAndIWill is a photographic shoot project
(extracts seen on facing page), featuring street-cast models and
diverse individuals, predominantly from sub-culture, that Louis finds
interesting and inspirational. Most of the people featured have a
story to tell – cancer survivors, travellers, adventurers – and the
raw, uncompromising and yet defiantly upbeat photographs, taken
in London, Lisbon and Ibiza, serve to show how much hair is part of
one’s identity and strength.
For Louis, taking back control has led to the opportunity of salon
work at Nicola Clarke by John Frieda and, more recently, the role of
creative director of the John Frieda Ibiza salon. It’s also meant he’s
been able to work closely with TV presenter Emma Willis, whose
hairstyle (The Quaff) has become part of her celebrity brand and
social media following.
“There is a mission behind Emma’s haircut,” says Louis. “Together
we aspire to motivate and inspire women to have the courage to try
something new and to break with the norms of what a ‘feminine’
haircut should be. We want to empower women to ‘go for it’; to
show that short hair is versatile, sexy and cool. Working together as
Emma Willis and Louis Byrne, I think we have achieved that.”
DISCOVER MORE AT ICANIAMANDIWILL.COM
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