This issue, Errol sits down with Desmond Murray. As one of the most familiar and long-standing faces on the uk hair scene, Desmond has managed to carve out a career that has stayed as fresh, dynamic and forward-thinking as the day he started out. Known for his bold vision and big personality, he’s a multi award-winner of some of the industry’s biggest accolades. Arguably one of the few fellow trailblazers who can claim to be as diverse or multi-dimensional as Errol himself, this was a conversation not to be missed!
Hi DES, THANKS FOR CHATTiNG TO ME TODAY. WHEN iT COMES TO HAiR, WHAT DOES THE TERM iNCLUSiViTY MEAN TO YOU?
Hi Errol. Pleasure to be here. In my opinion, inclusivity means any human, any hair type. Simple as that.
IS THERE ENOUGH OF A SPOTLiGHT ON THESE CONVERSATiONS iN THE HAiRDRESSiNG iNDUSTRY?
Well, like you, I’ve been in this industry for an awfully long time. When I first started out, even from those early days, I said to myself, I would like to learn everything there is to know; no matter what type of hair, I want to master it. Anything that I was weak in, I made sure I did a course on it. Even back in the days when I was at my salon in Covent Garden, I was really proud to be able to look after anyone that walked through the door. No matter who you are, no matter what hair type you’ve got, no matter what colour you are, no matter what you’ve asked for, we had the knowledge and the skills to help you. It’s taken years to get to where we are now with these kinds of conversations, but that’s okay – Rome wasn’t built in a day! What matters is that we are now able to have an open debate about it. I have to say, from a personal point of view, I do like where our industry is going. I like the fact that everyone seems to be in a much better place when it comes to embracing different things in hair.
DO YOU CONSiDER YOURSELF A ‘TEXTURED HAiR SPECiALiST’? IS THAT A LABEL YOU EMBRACE?
I’m proud to say that I’ve won many awards associated with Afro and textured hair – I’m in the Hall of Fame for the Black Beauty Hair Awards as well as the BHA Afro category. I used to just get labelled as only doing a certain hair type, and I’m not taking anything away from that, but I do consider myself as someone who is able to turn his hand to every head of hair, absolutely. What’s really nice now is that I’ve won awards in all kinds of categories with a cross section of different things. I prefer people to know me as Desmond Murray ‘hairdresser’, not a ‘textured hair specialist’ or even a particular kind of cutter or colourist, just the hairdresser that does it all. To me, being pigeonholed is a dead-end street. So no, when it comes to labels, I wouldn’t say I embrace it.
Hi DES, THANKS FOR CHATTiNG TO ME TODAY. WHEN iT COMES TO HAiR, WHAT DOES THE TERM iNCLUSiViTY MEAN TO YOU?
Hi Errol. Pleasure to be here. In my opinion, inclusivity means any human, any hair type. Simple as that.
IS THERE ENOUGH OF A SPOTLiGHT ON THESE CONVERSATiONS iN THE HAiRDRESSiNG iNDUSTRY?
Well, like you, I’ve been in this industry for an awfully long time. When I first started out, even from those early days, I said to myself, I would like to learn everything there is to know; no matter what type of hair, I want to master it. Anything that I was weak in, I made sure I did a course on it. Even back in the days when I was at my salon in Covent Garden, I was really proud to be able to look after anyone that walked through the door. No matter who you are, no matter what hair type you’ve got, no matter what colour you are, no matter what you’ve asked for, we had the knowledge and the skills to help you. It’s taken years to get to where we are now with these kinds of conversations, but that’s okay – Rome wasn’t built in a day! What matters is that we are now able to have an open debate about it. I have to say, from a personal point of view, I do like where our industry is going. I like the fact that everyone seems to be in a much better place when it comes to embracing different things in hair.
DO YOU CONSiDER YOURSELF A ‘TEXTURED HAiR SPECiALiST’? IS THAT A LABEL YOU EMBRACE?
I’m proud to say that I’ve won many awards associated with Afro and textured hair – I’m in the Hall of Fame for the Black Beauty Hair Awards as well as the BHA Afro category. I used to just get labelled as only doing a certain hair type, and I’m not taking anything away from that, but I do consider myself as someone who is able to turn his hand to every head of hair, absolutely. What’s really nice now is that I’ve won awards in all kinds of categories with a cross section of different things. I prefer people to know me as Desmond Murray ‘hairdresser’, not a ‘textured hair specialist’ or even a particular kind of cutter or colourist, just the hairdresser that does it all. To me, being pigeonholed is a dead-end street. So no, when it comes to labels, I wouldn’t say I embrace it.
WHO WERE YOUR ROLE MODELS WHEN ADVANCiNG THROUGH THE HAiR iNDUSTRY? WHO iS PROJECTiNG THE RiGHT KiND OF POSiTiVE MESSAGE ABOUT iNCLUSiViTY?
I’ve had many, many role models. I trained with a gentleman who used to work at Splinters – his name was Audley Lougheed, and he was the one that really got me into hair and showed it in a whole new light. I suppose he opened the door for me, but because I wanted to diversify beyond curly and coily hair, I used to take myself to all the hair shows on my days off. I’d sit and watch people do hair. Andrew Collinge is someone I remember seeing crystal clear at Salon International years ago doing awesome haircuts, I would then go back and practice those same haircuts at home. Other people that have inspired me are the Rusks, Anthony Mascolo, Charlie Miller, Robert Lobetta, Trevor Sorbie, Vidal Sassoon and Winston Isaacs. Back in the day, I wanted to become a hybrid of all those guys. When you take your inspiration from a range of sources, it kind of cross-pollinates and it gives you a totally different perspective to hair.
HOW MUCH OF A PART DOES EDUCATiON PLAY iN THE QUEST FOR iNCLUSiViTY?
Education for me is the key. Doesn’t matter where you are in your career, you have to continue to learn or put yourself in a position where you’re always evolving. Without educating yourself, you won’t be able to grow, and without growing, you won’t be able to evolve. However, I believe formal education is just the start; it’s going to give you the foundation you need, but there’s so much more you’ll need to do to become an accomplished hairdresser. One really important philosophy I’ve learnt is: ‘You get results where you put your focus.’ I live by that mantra.
WHAT DO YOU THiNK SALONS CAN DO TO OFFER A TRULY DiVERSE AND iNCLUSiVE SERViCE? DOES THE RESPONSiBiLiTY LiE WiTH SALON OWNERS?
The statistics on this are really shocking. How many salons in the UK do you think offer a service for curly and coily hair? It’s less than one per cent. When we estimate that in around ten years’ time the majority of people in the UK will have at least some kind of curl or coil in their hair, that statistic is a real eye-opener. My point is that – whether you like it or not – that’s what’s happening in our marketplace. There’s going to be a big shift and you’re either going to be in that shift or, if you’re not, you’re going to get left behind – it’s as simple as that.
WHAT’S THE BEST TECHNiCAL TiP YOU COULD GiVE ANYONE REGARDiNG TYPE 4 HAiR?
Keratin has changed the way clients look at their hair. Whilst a lot of people used a chemical relaxer to straighten their hair before Covid, they’ve now turned to keratin straightening or embraced a more natural result. Overall, I’d say the best tip is to encourage anyone to embrace the actual texture rather than work against it. Product is the key; it’s all about knowing which combinations to use to enhance that curl. A cream and some form of gel is a great foundation – if you need more moisture, you use more cream, and if you want more hold, you use more gel!
ARE PRODUCT COMPANiES DOiNG ENOUGH iN THE ADVANCEMENT OF iNCLUSiViTY?
Some companies have taken the lead more than others. For instance, L’Oréal has worked hard on all the terminologies by developing a hair diversity chart, which has then been influential in getting the curriculum improved in colleges to reflect more diversity. I was part of the consultation process and I shot some of the material, which I really enjoyed taking part in. I’m also proud of the work that Matrix have done in this area, and I run a signature course on curly and coily hair as their Global Artistic Director. Since then, I’d say all the other companies have kind of started to follow, and that’s got to be a good thing
WHAT iS THE ONE THiNG EVERY HAiRDRESSER SHOULD DO TO EDUCATE THEMSELVES ON TEXTURED HAiR?
Let’s take away this idea of textured and Afro hair and think of it as every kind of hair. I think all hairdressers should look at themselves, be true to themselves and turn their weaknesses into strengths.
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