THE WRAP UP - KAO SALON

#THEWEEKENDER2024

By Linda Woodhead

On Sunday 17 & Monday 18 March 2024, Kao Salon Division hosted THE WEEKENDER; two powerful days of networking, education, and inspiration for over 300 Hair Salon Owners and Stylists at the chic QT Gold Coast, and as the Official Media Partner, Mocha Group were on hand to capture all the memories!

Celebrating artistic creativity from local and international talent, showcasing new product launches from Goldwell, Kerasilk, KMS and Oribe, and presenting keynote speakers passionate about elevating performance and confidence, the event provided the perfect platform for Salon Owners and Stylists from across Australia and New Zealand to network, connect, recharge, and celebrate.

The opening showcase was a stunning collection by Alannah Jade, Goldwell ambassador (Ella & Jade) to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Goldwell Topchic.

Award-winning hairdresser and educator, Dario Cotroneo, was the MC for the event, first welcoming Rita Marcon, GM Kao Salon Division ANZ, to the stage to introduce the theme of #THEWEEKENDER2024, “Time to Shine”. In her opening presentation, Rita Marcon urged all delegates to; “Ignite your passion for creativity, elevate your talents with knowledge and skills and transform how you show up tomorrow and onwards.”

The first keynote speaker was Sarah Grynberg, a mindset coach to professional athletes, senior executives and businesses, professional writer and creator and host of the internationally acclaimed podcast ‘A Life of Greatness’ where she’s had the privilege of interviewing notable personalities such as Matthew McConaughey, Geena Davis, Esther Perel, Former Prime Minister John Howard, Jada Pinkett Smith, Deepak Chopra, and others. Explaining that we all have the tools to live a Life of Greatness already within us, Sarah shared her powerful advice and provided instructions for all of us to cultivate a powerful mindset.

She spoke in depth about conscious awareness and how to change challenging thoughts with radical acceptance and being careful with words.

As an advocate of the power of forgiveness and kindness through her podcast she has learnt about the importance of listening without judgement, the power of breathwork, sleep, meditation, and healthy food.

The talented trio of Kerasilk ambassadors, Amanda Magistro (Salon Alm), Chris Hunter (Willomina) & Kirby Lago (Pelo by Lago), then took to the stage presenting 3 looks each from 3 models!

Amanda showed ‘hot girl’ hair at its hottest & maxed out accessories in her ‘half frenchy’ look. Chris very creatively used a scarf to divide the hair in one of his looks and took us from high elegance to tousled. Kirby showcased her signature lived-in style and the importance of healthy hair, making the simple stunning.

This was a show of sexy long hair, textured updo’s, accessories and the announcement of a new colour.

Rounding off the day was Adam Dyer for Oribe taking a set beyond next level, with his beautiful model absolutely showcasing classic editorial Oribe with extension tapes and sleek long hair.

The Gold Coast’s stunning new Surfers Pavilion provided the perfect location for THE WEEKENDER evening Celebration, where delegates connected socially and danced the night away, dressed on theme - “Time to Shine”. Dancing, delicious canapes and entertainment that got everyone moving was the name of the game, not to mention the spin pod photobooth that captured some memorable moments.

The following morning kicked off strong with keynote speaker Erika Cramer AKA “the Queen of Confidence”. Bursting onto the stage head-to-toe in pink sequins, Erika inspired all to be the author of their lives, using the 5 C’s of Confidence - Choice Courage Create Consider Continue

With her hairdressing experience, Erika was able to relate directly to salon life. Erika spoke about moving from being self-focused to service-focused, away from worrying about being “salesy” and lacking boundaries with clients, to listening and communicating effectively and as the expert, adding value to the client.

She presented with authenticity, self-belief and trust and was a crowd favourite of the event!

KMS also welcomed Pip Edwards, co-founder of P.E Nation, to the stage to be interviewed by Ali Holmes of Wildlife SOGO. Pip spoke of the longstanding relationship between P.E Nation and KMS and announced KMS as the official hair partner for the P.E Nation 2024 Fashion Week show. She spoke about what inspires her creatively, seeing the every day through her lens, and about her social media success, and how key authenticity and real time content have been to her success. She also shared what gave her the most traction on social media being travel and dressing up! Something we can all do to boost presence!

Ali Homes then welcomed Piet Pantano and their four models to stage to get technical with cutting techniques and tips, celebrating the return of 90’s styles with KMS. This seamless duo showed delegates some of the new KMS products launching later in the year using upcycled ingredients and presenting greater sustainability than ever, at the KMS brand activation. The interactive brand activations area gave attendees the opportunity to preview new launches and connect with the brands (and each other over) the two days.

The final keynote speaker of #THEWEEKENDER2024 was Cooper Chapman, not just a name in the world of professional surfing, but founder of The Good Human Factory. His message was that mental health is not mental illness and that we all need to take care of our mental health. He visually showed attendees with buckets of water that you need to utilize tools, and healthy daily habits, to stop our buckets (brains) from overflowing!

“Knowledge is knowing, wisdom is doing” was the key takeaway and his 5 keys to success being Responsibility, Gratitude, Empathy, Mindfulness/Meditation and Kindness

International artistic talent rounded out the two days, presenting the creative climax of the weekend. Hailing from Austin Texas, Ethan King (also known as ‘The Curl King’), and Boston-based award-winning Colorist Kylie Bussing, presented their ‘IT girl’ collection; Kylie with her Tokyo Drift x Blue Denim and Ethan all about the curl.

A quick bite to eat, long goodbyes and last-minute connections with afternoon tea finished off an inspirational, educational and action-packed two days, leaving delegates feeling it really is their “Time to Shine”.

Photography by Jarred Stedman, mocha group

@goldwellanz @kmshairanz @kerasilkanz @varis_Australia @oribe