10 Minutes with Peter Dorio By Louise May

In 1987 Peter Dorio opened Sochi with one main motivation - to do great hair with a ‘keep It real’ attitude. 34 years later nothing has changed. In the past 20 years Peter’s expertise has been sought after by numerous international companies having him feature heavily for both national and global hair shows and packedout advance cutting workshops.

Hair Biz Editor Louise May spent 10 minutes with Peter Dorio to hear first-hand about his journey throughout his hairdressing career, what he has been up to during lockdown, and his love for food and fast cars.

TELL US WHAT YOU DO IN THE INDUSTRY TODAY.

Unfortunately, at the moment and including the last 18 months due to Covid lockdowns there really hasn’t been a lot for me to do both in the salon and external education. However, I have had to take my own and one of my greatest mantras “when there’s nothing to do, there’s plenty to do.” I have literally filled three books of notes, ideas and anecdotes. I have used these lockdowns to seriously reflect on our industry and its ever changing personality. I have also used this time away from the salon to plan and prepare educational classes of advance cutting motivation and rebooting hairdressers’ careers and lives. Helping them to peel away the layers to expose the hairdresser they were when they were originally obsessed with our craft.

PLEASE SHARE A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR UPBRINGING.

I grew up in a working-class suburb with working class parents having migrated from Italy in the 50’s. My father worked six days a week and up to twelve hours per day in plastic factories. He absolutely loved his job right up to his retirement at 70, and never once in all my years did I ever hear him complain about work. My mother worked mostly in retail. She also loved her work and it seemed she went to work for a catch up with friends. Mum with her gift of the gab loved a good old chat and I can see where I got that from, being the eldest I had two younger siblings. We literally had nothing superficial, a lot of hand me downs from older cousins, even our bikes were a mish mash of old bikes painted with house paint by Dad. There was no way in our lives that we were ever bored, especially being surrounded by up to twenty cousins. Sunday nights we were at our grandparent’s house with all cousins attending, and a big weekly feast. In our lives we were completely surrounded by loving family, lots of laughs, great food and never felt that we didn’t have much. Family was everything!

HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INVOLVED IN THE INDUSTRY?

So, my whole young life, I was obsessed with wood and becoming a carpenter. My uncle Bill was an amazing “old school” builder and there was nothing he couldn’t do and in turn he promised me an apprenticeship as soon as I finished school. BIG MISTAKE! I mucked up at school and never really did any good at the academic subjects, ironically only wood work and art got me A’s. Teachers were constantly telling me that I would get nowhere in this world without an education. I used to brag to them “I don’t need to pass; I’ve already got an apprenticeship set up and I’m going to earn more than you ever have in your lifetime”. ANOTHER BIG MISTAKE! In 1981 Australia went into recession and my guaranteed apprenticeship disappeared with it. “Go out and get a job,” my parents said, so we asked friends and family for any type of job I could get. My cousin’s hot fiancée said they needed a helper at the salon she worked in, and I was not at all interested. Well I’ll be buggered. I thought I’d give it a try for a couple of weeks, an easy job wearing funky clothes (it was the 80’s). Making coffees, sweeping hair, washing hair, earning tips and the best of all surrounded by twelve hot female staff members and for a sixteen-year-old kid in the 80’s life couldn’t get any better. I half-heartedly signed on as an apprentice, it was definitely just a plan B for my career. However, my obsession with our amazing industry didn’t really start until my second year as an apprentice.

WHAT ACHIEVEMENT ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF IN YOUR LIFE OR CAREER?

Wow, where do I start? I have been blessed with so many different achievements both personally and professionally which I am extremely proud of. Nothing has ever come easy and I have worked my arse off with everything I have achieved. Personally the thing I am most proud of is my family. My best friend and sparring partner, my wife of nearly thirty years, Lorraine. She has always supported me with everything I have ever wanted to do, and also has reigned me back in on times I needed to be slowed down or stopped for my own good. Two absolutely amazing kids who are killing it in their own chosen professions.

Apart from teaching them manners, respect, humility, being honest and team players, I brain washed them to choose a career that they love and are obsessed with, no matter how hard they had to try. Now me professionally, wow. So proud of many things especially running my own business ‘Sochi’ for thirty-four years. It has been a home that has produced so many successful hairdressers, who have gone on to so many different parts of our industry and beyond. But definitely the proudest is the honour of educating. I have hosted hundreds of classes both here in Australia and have been involved in many shows globally. I have never taken for granted the influence that one could be, when it came to the education and the sometimes changing of people’s lives.

IF YOU WEREN’T DOING WHAT YOU DO NOW, WHAT WOULD YOU BE?

I definitely would be either a chef or a carpenter. The attraction of cooking is very similar to the emotion of pleasing someone in the salon. I love the planning, the prep, the cooking and in turn the pleasure food gives people. However, hate cleaning up. I still harbour a love of carpentry and building and over thirty four years of trading at Sochi I have constructed most of all the building and renovating of four different salon locations.

WHAT ARE THREE THINGS YOU’RE PASSIONATE ABOUT?

Definitely my industry, the love of cooking as well as cars and car racing. My son and I race together in amateur racing.

DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL SUNDAY.

In winter, being forced to stay inside doing couch duties. In summertime, being outside gardening, general house maintenance and a kick arse barbeque with family and friends.

WHAT’S ON YOUR BUCKET LIST?

To drag our caravan around Australia and enjoying life in our own backyard. Visiting the birth towns of my parents in Italy and try to work out why the hell they left. Owning a 1974 Ferrari 365. Sadly, I really don’t have a massive bucket list owing to the fact that I have achieved so many of them already.

WHAT’S PLAYING ON YOUR SPOTIFY RIGHT NOW?

To be honest, I cannot believe that my Gen Z staff are obsessed with so much retro music that I am constantly listening to their playlist on Spotify.

DO YOU OR HAVE YOU EVER HAD A NICKNAME?

Sadly, I can’t mention the nicknames from my youth, in fear of being politically incorrect. However, later in life and since I opened the salon doors in 1987, I am known as Sochi, Soch, the soch, Mr sochi which is hilarious because there are many people out there that don’t know my name’s Peter.

IF YOU COULD LEAVE THIS INDUSTRY HAVING ACHIEVED JUST ONE THING, WHAT WOULD THAT LEGACY BE?

Helping people get the best out of themselves and how to enjoy life.

WHAT’S SOMETHING INTERESTING OR QUIRKY WE MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT YOU?

I have already mentioned cooking, there is nothing I won’t try and love to be challenged. However, my specialty is wood fired pizza’s. The other thing a lot of people don’t know is I love fishing. I have owned my own boat for many years and just love being out on the water - whether I’m catching fish or not and for me it is a way of stepping off earth and drifting with mother nature.

DO YOU HAVE A LIFE PHILOSOPHY?

1. Keep it real 2. This too shall pass 3. Life’s success is the destination and not the journey 4. If it aint broke, break it and rebuild it

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?

Usually myself, however I am a massive fan of comedy. My two favourites are George Carlin and Mel Brooks. I really do enjoy creating different characters with weird accents and I thoroughly enjoy taking the piss out of myself.

WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST FEAR?

1. Being ordinary 2. Being normal 3. Not getting the best out of life 4. Fear of failure 5. Heights

YOUR GREATEST INDULGENCE?

Professionally, at the age of 40 I purchased a pair of left handed Fuji scissors. My thought at the time was if I was ever to indulge in a pair of these amazing blades, it had to be there and then. Personally my greatest indulgence is the best wine, with the best food, with amazing people and with me cooking the meal.

WHAT TRAITS DO YOU EXHIBIT?

Positive:

1. Passionate 2. Loyal 3. Positive 4. Generally laughing all the time 5. Inspiring 6. Motivational

Negative:

1. Easily bored 2. Procrastinator 3. Addictive personality 4. Crammer

WHO HAVE BEEN THE GREATEST IINFLUENCES IN YOUR CAREER?

Second year TAFE teacher, Oscar, who recognised that I was not misbehaving or disturbing the class, I really wanted to know ‘why’, not just ‘what’. My first boss taught me all there is to know on being the best people person, and in hindsight he’s probably the worst hairdresser I’ve ever seen. An ex apprentice of mine, Tim, who now is a great brother of mine in the industry, with his obsession of gaining better skills… even at our age. Benni, for teaching me on how to be true to myself and to always be myself. Last but not least, current Gen Z staff who have shown me that I am still relevant at the top end of our industry and that I still have a lot of professional capital.