All eyes were on Chris Appleton at WWD’s inaugural Los Angeles beauty conference.
The celebrity hairstylist, a star in his own right, has been making headlines for his engagement to actor Lukas Gage as of late.
“What do you dream of?” asked WWD’s executive West Coast editor Booth Moore in conversation with Brooke Wall, founder The Wall Group — the management company for creative talent, and Appleton. Working with the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian, Dua Lipa, Katy Perry and Ariana Grande, Appleton — signed to the agency — has garnered more than 3.5 million Instagram followers. “You have so much visibility now. What’s on your dream list?”
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“I dream about…” Appleton pondered.
“Getting married,” Wall softly jumped in.
“What?”
“Getting married,” she repeated.
“I regularly write down what my long-term goals are,” Appleton replied, staying mum on the personal news.
“I’m completely aware of where I’m going and what I’m doing,” he continued. “But for me, what’s really important right now is expanding — I think a lot of people want to put you in a box of what you do. And listen, I do hair and I love it and I’m very passionate about it. But I’m 39. I’m not going to do it when I’m 60. So, I think it’s really important to evolve as an artist and grow. I love doing TV. I love going on shows and showing real women at home how to create looks. I love doing the content online and showing people how they can achieve certain things and just breaking it down and being the face of beauty. I mean, I get to see all the time. Why sit on that information, you know?”
It was at 9 years old, growing up in Leicester, England, that Appleton began having an interest in hair, he explained: “My first model was my mom. And I used to do her hair, because I realized that when I did her hair, she kind of changed her whole persona. And I’d say, ‘Mom, look in the mirror.’ And I tried to make her look more glamorous. She had a tough life, and I felt like I wanted to make her feel good. And I noticed her shoulders go back, and she stood up a bit taller to recognize herself, and I loved that as a kid, having the ability to make someone look good.”
At just 13 he got a job in a hair salon.
“I watched people walk in one way, the head down and the hair tied back,” he said. “And when they walked out, they just walked out with different swag.”
From getting a degree in color to understanding extensions and barbering, Appleton said he’s tried it all.
“I did every aspect of hair you could do and then I kind of just tried to figure out what really turned me on and what I felt like I was good at,” he added. “And it took me time.”
Over the years he’s developed a signature look, making a name for himself.
“Kim says, ‘I can always tell when you’ve done someone’s hair,’” Wall said of Kardashian. “There’s a quality to the hair that is different. It’s important because then obviously, just like a brand, if you have sort of a hero look or you have a signature sort of way of doing things, people want that.”
There are more opportunities in the beauty landscape, the two agreed. And what lands is authenticity.
“It’s about evolving and changing and giving artists an opportunity to share,” Appleton said, adding he’s been inspired by Kardashian and her Skims business.
“Anna Wintour once said that she wouldn’t put the Kardashians on the cover of a magazine, and now look,” he said.
Wall, whose company works with influential fashion stylists, hairstylists, makeup artists, manicurists and production designers, said she noticed Appleton’s talent right away. But he also brought to mind another big name in hair: the late Oribe Canales.
“Historically, there’s only one other hairdresser that he reminded me of,” Wall said. “Oribe was very rare. He trained himself, and he made women look sexy and feel good.”
Anastasia Soare of Anastasia, who worked with Canales for many years, echoed similar sentiments when she stood up to praise Appleton during audience questions. He has passion and exceptional skill, she said.
“The one thing that I’ll say to the whole room is finding talented hairstylists in the U.S. is harder than it looks,” said Wall. “So, for me, the minute he opened his mouth with that accent, I was like, ‘Wait a minute. You’re not only charming and kind and lovely,’ but he also has the ability to do unbelievably great hair.”
Of brand building she added: “When I first started, [the question] was, ‘What fashion shows are people doing?’ And then it was, ‘What celebrities or people are you working with?’ And now it’s ‘How many followers do people have?’ It’s evolved and changed, and so, if you’ve got a huge social following, you’re a brand…and that translates to product.”
When it comes to partnerships, it takes “integrity” and a “relationship has to make sense for both parties,” she said.
Would Appleton — who has partnered with hair brand Color Wow — release products of his own? It seems there’s possibly something in the works.
“I can’t hear you,” he teased. “Can you hear her? I can’t hear her. Babe, I can’t tell you that right now. Sure, something will happen at some point, but right now, I’m really enjoying my journey with Color Wow.”