INTERVIEW WITH MIKEY PEARSON, MANIFESTO

“The best way to introduce something into an environment is through education”

the interview

session to salon

Mikey Pearson’s passion for session styling has helped create a unique experience for clients visiting his two London-based Manifesto salons. We found out more about bringing session skills to the salon.

@manifesto_ldn

Concept Hair: Tell us about your session styling experience before you opened Manifesto.

Mikey Pearson: Before I opened Manifesto, I was working as a freelance session stylist. No two days were the same. My time was spent working on editorials, magazine covers, Fashion Week runways, films, music videos, live music performances and TV. I also worked with numerous celebrity clients from the music industry which made my day-to-day work very interesting.

CH: What did you love about session styling?

MP: I really loved how each day was different, not just the job but the location and vibe.

CH: What makes a good session stylist?

MP: There are so many types of session stylist, but they all have the same important foundation skills. You always have to be ready for anything, be on time, open-minded and well equipped — some session stylists have six suitcases full of tools for every project they work on. Most importantly, however good you are, you need to practise, practise, practise different techniques. CH: What did you want to achieve with Manifesto?

MP: Myself and my business partner, Corrado Tevere, wanted to create a new brand which would become respected in the men’s hairdressing industry — a brand that would challenge and push the limits, taking this amazing industry in a new direction.

CH: How do you bring session styling skills into the salon environment?

MP: For me, it was just something I did naturally with my clients without even thinking about it. The best way to introduce something into an environment is through education. Rino Riccio, who is head of education at Manifesto, is also a session stylist, and he educates our team, introducing different techniques, building up the team’s confidence and bringing the skills into the salon.

CH: What do you look for when taking on a new team member?

MP: We look for someone who is passionate, open-minded, and, most importantly, someone who is a team player. CH: How do you combine session styling work with running two salons?

MP: At the moment I do not have time to do session work while running the two salons but I do get to be creative with our photographic collections and stage work. I am aiming to start dedicating more time to session work now that the salons are established.

CH: Tell me about the relationship between Manifesto and Davines.

MP: We have an incredible relationship with our product company, Davines. Our whole ethos of ‘cut technically style naturally’ and their ethos of sustainability couldn’t be a better partnership. Manifesto is the official Davines men’s education team for the UK and Ireland.

CH: Any plans for the future of Manifesto you can share with us?

MP: Now things are getting more settled with the pandemic, we can get back on track with our education and start teaching live classes again. We’d also like to start travelling internationally, sharing our knowledge, so our plans for the future are very education focused.

“We wanted to create a new brand which would challenge and push the limits”