10 MINUTES with WENDY ISLES

By Louise May

Wendy Iles is the internationally acclaimed celebrity hairstylist responsible for creating iconic looks as seen on the world’s most prestigious magazine covers, A-list celebrities and global campaigns for luxury fashion and beauty houses such as Dior, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermès.

Over the course of her 4 decades in the industry, Wendy’s philosophy has always been firmly rooted in hair health. This passion for healthy hair, combined with her tireless quest to find formulas to boost hair recovery, led her to create Iles Formula.

Wendy spent a decade scouring the globe to find powerful ingredient blends and complexes that would provide instant results for her high-profile clientele. What began as an onset hair secret is now available to you all, thanks to the insistence of her celebrity clients.

Wendy continues to juggle an A-list celebrity clientele together with the demands of being the visionary and driving force behind Iles Formula.

HairBiz Editor Louise May chats with Wendy Iles about her career in session styling and her haircare brand, Iles Formula.

Could you share some highlights or memorable moments from your career that have contributed to your success and reputation in the industry?

I’ve been fortunate to have several standout moments in my career. Most certainly, winning the Hollywood Beauty Award for Outstanding Achievement in Hairstyling was a landmark moment. The trophy sits on my desk and I’m forever grateful to Hollywood for the award. And of course, making the decision to officially launch Iles Formula as a haircare brand, at the insistence of my celebrity clients, has been a career highlight too.

How do you approach each session and ensure that your work aligns with the vision of the creative team or the brand you’re working with?

The hairdresser’s seat on an editorial or campaign shoot is a fabulous one. Typically, on an editorial shoot, the whole creative team gathers together to first view the fashion, after which the stylist and photographer will first ask the hairstylist their vision, followed by makeup thereafter. It’s rarely the other way around unless it’s a beauty shoot in which make up may take the lead. Hair can dictate a mood, a feeling, or an era and so it plays a powerful role on set. On an advertising job, there is usually a story board or mood board to follow that is most often shared ahead of time so it’s more about ensuring you are prepared to execute all they ask or need on the day.

Can you tell us about a time when you encountered a particularly demanding or unexpected situation during a session, and how you managed to overcome it?

Yes! Back in the day, I was working on a hair campaign for a major brand when the celebrity turned up 5 hours late. To make matters worse, she insisted she only had 4 hours on set ahead of her flight. So somehow, I managed to accomplish 9 hours work in 4! I’m known for working fast, but that day I was a Mighty Mouse!

How do you stay inspired and constantly push boundaries in your work, while also maintaining your own unique style and signature?

Once the creative juices start to flow, they flow in abundance. Experience helps and of course I love hair so am always, even subconsciously, observing. I love watching young people in cities like London, Tokyo, and Berlin where the hair on the streets is very inspiring. I also pull inspiration from history, museums, galleries and of course, the internet.

What do you believe are the essential qualities and skills required to effectively collaborate and create a cohesive final result?

To work well as a team, it’s all about comradeship amongst the crew - respecting and listening to each team member’s voice and opinion, even down to the most junior assistant. And most importantly, the person in my chair is my priority; to keep them calm, confident, and feeling majestic.

Can you share any insider tips or tricks that you’ve learned throughout your career, which aspiring session stylists can benefit from?

My most avid tip is to never use traditional styling products such as hairspray. Hairspray is specifically designed to ‘hold’ the hair by blocking its memory and freezing it in place. Once that memory is blocked, a residue is left behind even when the hairspray is brushed out, preventing the hair movement from being as spontaneous as it was before spraying. The only styling product I use are my serums. I have 2 serums, the Finishing Serum with a silk base and the Curl Revive which is similar but with a cashmere texture. When heat activated, both will transform damaged, dry, dull hair back from the dead on the first use to lustrous sumptuous, repaired hair.

Can you share with us the inspiration behind creating the Iles Formula product range and how it differs from other haircare products in the market?

I was travelling the globe doing many of the biggest hair campaigns when one of my main clients, a multinational company that own many of the household name brands decided to introduce a new policy banning hair extensions in all their advertising. It was around this same time that hair models were being replaced by celebrities. Celebrities are chosen for their fame, not the quality of their hair which most often is tortured and filled with extensions.

So having to remove these extensions was a catastrophic moment for me as the stylist entrusted to deliver these multi-million-dollar hair campaigns. However, it turned into a blessing as I spent 3 years and my life savings formulating a revolutionary 3 step system that instantly repairs ALL hair textures from the very first use without depositing residue of any kind. These formulas are unique in their performance and deliver spectacular, soft, nurtured, and repaired hair, which has now become known as the Iles Formula signature finish.

What specific ingredients or blends did you incorporate into the formulas that make them so effective in boosting hair recovery and delivering instant results?

My key ingredients are from the forest floor of the Amazon. Our ingredients are sourced sustainably; natural harvests of pracaxia, and tucuma butter, which are 2 of my favourites, which are then blended with science at the highest level.

How did your celebrity clients insistence on making the formulas available to the public, influence your decision to launch the Iles Formula collection?

Without the insistence of my celebrity clients, I’m not sure Iles Formula would be available to the public today! It was never my plan to be the Founder of a haircare brand. I have enjoyed a very successful career working with some of the biggest stars (who I still work with to this day), and some of the biggest luxury brands too.

It was only at my clients’ insistence, that I had started to produce limited edition annual supplies of my signature formulas; the Shampoo, Conditioner and Finishing Serum, intended for their use only. But from there, word soon spread, and it was the call from the Beauty Buyer at Bergdorf Goodman in NYC that changed everything.

How did you source and select the powerful ingredient blends and complexes that form the foundation of Iles Formula?

I grew up in Tasmania, Australia on an opium poppy farm. From a young age, I understood the power of plants. People nowadays spend their time on Netflix, whereas I google ingredients. I started creating my first formula during my editorial years around 25 years ago. All the images in my Archive II book were created using my number 3, what’s now known as the Finishing Serum.

To this day, the formula is very similar however, with the help of a chemist, we’ve elevated the formula even more to offer protection against heat + UV + colour fade + humidity. We managed to do all of that without changing the performance. Let’s also take the Conditioner for example, it’s complicated and complex and very time-consuming to produce. To this day, I still test every batch that is produced – wherever I am in the world, I must sign off before it is bottled for retail. It’s the level of quality control that I insist upon. www.wendyiles.com

How does Iles Formula stand out and offer a unique experience for consumers?

Minimalism meets maximum performance. I have never been interested in launching endless new products for the sake of boosting numbers; it’s unnecessary, causes confusion and is wasteful. Formulate less and do it extremely well. Iles Formula is a customer experience with a strong emotional tie. Once you use it, you will never stop because the performance is unbeatable. In fact, the more damaged or distressed the hair, the more spectacular the performance.

How has your extensive experience shaped the development of the Iles Formula product range?

My experience in the industry, working under intense pressure with some of the biggest names and brands in the world has been invaluable in shaping Iles Formula. With experience comes a knowing when touching the hair. I also know the results that many clients expect, and also the challenges that many stylists face. That’s why Iles Formula has had such great success with many of the leading salons around the world which also recognise the power of these formulas.

Iles Formula is available in Australia through Rogue Beauty. For stockist information please visit www.ilesformula.com