4 The National Hair Journal Winter 2004
He’s Bee n Called “The Ar mani of Hair Replacement”
GREAT PAGE!!!!
Meet Edward Katz
dward Katz and his wife Anne Marie run Edward Katz International, a non-surgical hair replacement center that counts some of the most famous names in Hollywood among its clientele. We describe him as Hollywood’s “second best kept secret” because Ed keeps a low profile to protect the privacy of his clients. But if the outside world does not know the name Ed Katz, hair-management and fashion professionals certainly do. Time magazine called him, “An undisputed leader of hair replacement” and Vanity Fair told readers “Edward Katz is the Armani of hair replacement.” Playboy trumpeted, “His work is unequalled in the world.” In fact, over 100 editorials have been written about Edward and he has been featured on CBS, NBC, KTLA and ABC. He also has over 600 films TV shows and theatrical projects to his credit. Edward is sure to raise eyebrows because he uses only synthetic hair for his clients and eschews overseas factories, preferring to personally oversee the production of all his hair systems right here in the United States. To learn more about Edward Katz, the man, the technician and the “Italian fashion designer,” we visited him in his studio on Cahuenga Blvd. in Los Angeles. NHJ: You have a business that would be the envy of any hair replacement professional. Glamorous and powerful people from all over the world seek your services. How did this come about? EK: I’ve been in this business for 20 years so I have benefited from a lot of word of mouth. If you take care of your clients, sooner or later they are going to tell a friend about you. I also have personal connections. I’ve always been a really active tennis player. I would play six days a week every week and, having lived in Hollywood all my life, you can imagine I have met a lot of celebrities. They were part of my social scene. When I started my business, I naturally felt comfortable helping the same people I’d been playing with. NHJ: Hollywood stars have the best makeup technicians and stylists anywhere on the planet and yet they come here. Why? EK: Because we know how to make a superior hairpiece. We don’t use human hair. It always shocks people when they hear this… they think human hair is the only way a hair replacement can look real, but in reality, I believe synthetic fibers are better. NHJ: This statement will surprise a lot of readers. EK: Yes it will. But this has been my experience. My clients are the final judges. NHJ: Is all man-made hair similar? EK: Kaneka Corp. makes the finest fibers
I’ve seen so far (Kanekalon). With these fibers we can take any person, whether they have no hair whatsoever or just a fringe, and duplicate their existing hair color and texture in f ive or more different areas. NHJ: Explain the f ive areas. EK: It’s a sophisticated process. We take hair samples from different parts of the client’s head to get a perfect match. We blend these existing hair samples with some two hundred different colors to capture all the color variations and highlights. Then, for added realism, we create different shades, with the front being the lightest, the top being a little bit darker and the back being the darkest part. NHJ: How does this compare with a traditional template and hair sample? EK: You may have noticed hair wearers who have what I call a “one-dimensional” look. That’s because their hair system does not have the kind of subtle blending I’ve just described. I try to make my client’s hair look “lived in,” natural. Here in California, I want my client’s hair to look “sunlit.” Their hair has to be right for the life they live. NHJ: Let’s go over things step by step, starting with blending. You mentioned two hundred different shades; how does that compare with other hair centers? EK: Any discussion of color has to start with the type of hair. I mentioned that we work only with synthetic hair. This is a key factor. In most hair centers, a client provides a swatch of his or her hair which is then matched against another blend of human hair. Unfortunately however, human hair can start to oxidize and change color after only a day, or a week or two because of exposure to the sun, pollution and poor hair quality and so it will no longer match the client’s existing hair. It will have to be dyed or replaced. NHJ: So there are two moving targets; the client’s growing hair, which is oxidizing as a result of exposure to the sun and pollution, and the hair system which is subject to its own color change at a different rate? EK: That’s correct if you are talking about human hair systems. It’s a huge challenge for the blenders and for the stylists. The processed human hair used in most factories is especially vulnerable to oxidation because it has been stripped of its protective layer of cuticle. NHJ: If human hair is constantly changing, why don’t the human hair factories work with a greater range of colors? EK: Human hair would be unmanageable. Every color oxidizes at a different rate. We can work with a broader palette than they do because our colors do not change. Where they limit themselves to five or six shades, we may use fifteen different shades to get a “full dimensional” look. We may use gray, or a combination of grays and blondes, in the front because the front should be “sunlit.”
This is where the sun would be hitting your hair. We are looking for a very natural, soft look that will blend into the client’s skin. NHJ: I’d like to talk about templates. You mentioned that a lot of hair replacement salons only take a hair sample from the back of the head. I’m looking at one of your templates and it looks very complicated. What is it telling me? EK: You’re looking at those “zones” we talked about. If the person has temple hair and sides, we’ll take a blend from there. We’ll also take a blend from the back. Then on the top of the person’s head we will make another blend, probably a shade lighter. That may take another fifteen different shades of color. Then we will go to the front and create a hairline that is totally different with another group of colors. All of these zones have to come together and match to give a full three-dimensional look instead of the one dimensional look that human hair pieces commonly give. NHJ: What about the mold? What method do you use? EK: We take plaster molds because they provide a very detailed map of the client’s head. Most hair centers use a film and tape template because they have to mail them to an overseas factory. This is not a concern for us because we do all our production right here on our own premises. NHJ: Let’s talk some more about human hair and synthetic hair. What led you to decide to work with synthetic? EK: I told you that synthetic hair does not lose its color, but it is also very light. Our whole hair piece weighs only 3 grams, which is about 50 to 100 times lighter than a human hair piece. NHJ: I’m going to interrupt you Ed, because I don’t cook and I don’t know how heavy 3 grams is. Give me a comparison! EK: It’s about the weight of a business card. NHJ: That’s light! I’m glad I asked the question! EK: It’s so light the client does not feel anything on his head. There are no ridges, no tracks or anything like that. The base is transparent and porous so you can look right down and see the scalp. NHJ: There’s another thing you do differently. You typically create multiple duplicate hair systems for your clients. How does this work? EK: It began with the movies. When the studios shoot a film, a scene may be started today in one location and then continued three weeks or a month later in another. The pace of production does not allow studio stylists to work on the actor’s hair after every take, so he will probably be wearing another hair piece for the second scene; especially if they are filming action sequences! That hair piece must be identical in every respect. The camera picks up everything. In a close up scene,
you could be looking at a ten-foot hair line on the theatre screen. There’s nowhere to hide! So we learned how to create identical hairpieces… initially for the movies and now for all our clients. NHJ: Actors put a lot of trust in their make up and styling technicians. That’s a huge responsibility isn’t it? EK: It is. We have to be very particular, because these are the twenty million dollar movie stars who want - and need - the best! We have to be very detail oriented, but it’s worth it when we have a result that satisfies that customer… and his fans! NHJ: What about your non-Hollywood clients; you said you create multiple hair systems for them too. EK: If you are a public figure, you cannot look different every couple of weeks. Most of our clients do not want to look different every time they visit our studio. They want to maintain the original style we created for them. They can do this by alternating between identical hair systems. Most of our clients have multiple “switches.” NHJ: How do you get them all the same? EK: Our ventilators are highly trained. To create the template or map, we use approximately forty to fifty rolls per customer. Our technicians pick and record the roll or the color for each area of that map. We can make a hundred hair pieces and they will all be identical. With human hair, you would have a hard time making two hairpieces the same. NHJ: People have always said that the best hair available to our industry is “virgin” or “remis” European hair. Now you are claiming that synthetic hair is better. What’s wrong with remis hair? EK: In the past twenty years we’ve tried the finest European hair in the world. In fact, we still buy fine human hair, which can cost approximately $100 an ounce, but we will only use one line of it for the very front of our hair systems. It is very thin, fine hair that gives the front hairline a special softness. However, because it is human hair, we know going in that we will have to replace it every couple of months. NHJ: Could you use human hair for the rest of the system? EK: Human hair is going to tangle, no matter what quality you use. And it’s going to oxidize. We have clients who are ready to spend $3,000 - $3,500 on a hair piece, so it’s not about the money. It’s about natural color that lasts. Human hair, even the most expensive, will begin to turn green, red or whatever in a matter of months. When it comes to the movies, it’s a waste of my time to deal with a human hair piece that will only last a matter of weeks. EK: If I was given the finest human hair in the world, and even if it didn’t lose its color, I still wouldn’t use it (continued on page 6)
5 The National Hair Journal Winter 2004
13 The National Hair Journal Winter 2004
A DV E R T O R I A L
FARRELL HAIR REPLACEMENT Industry News & Views WIN TER 2004 - DEDICATED TO HELPING THE HAIR L OSS SUF FERER THROU GH ULTRA-CUS TOM PRODUCTS AND TECHNIQU ES
RICHARD FARRELL ISSUES RALLYING CRY: “TAKE BACK OUR INDUSTRY!”
Farrell Hair Replacement announces the
Continuing the theme from his muchtalked-about presentation at the AHLC show in Nashville, Richard Farrell is a man on a mission. “I am determined to help change
Take Back Our Industry Tour February 6 & 7, 2005 The Fontainebleau Hotel – Miami, Florida
Two Days of Private “One-on-One” Demonstrations of Farrell “Ultra-Custom” Hair Replacement Technology To illustrate the difference between factory-made hair systems and Farrell “UltraCustom” hair replacement systems, Richard Farrell will be hosting FREE private “oneon-one” demonstrations for prospective Farrell Affiliates.
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RICHARD FARRELL FOUNDS HAIR REPLACEMENT ACADEMY Just months after making his award-winning hair systems available to affiliates, Farrell has announced the establishment of the first full-time hair replacement academy. “After receiving many appeals from professionals who desire more training, it seemed like the
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Farrell Hair Replacement, Inc. 518 N. La Cienega Blvd. Main website: www.farrellhairreplacement.com
Wholesale website: www.farrell-wholesale.com
this industry with education.” Farrell said. “There is no reason for hair loss sufferers to wear factory-made, detectable hair systems.”After outlining his concerns to the AHLC Board and membership last September, Farrell is utilizing his high Internet profile and influence to take his case directly to the salon operators. “Somehow, someway the large manufacturers have tricked salon owners into believing that the manufacturers are the industry when the reality is the exact opposite,” Farrell added. “On my websites and in my direct mail campaign to salon operators, my message is simple:You are the industry! Stand up, speak up and force a change” With Farrell’s successful wholesale operation, his affiliate program and his newly christened hair replacement academy, Farrell stands ready to go toe to toe with whom he calls “the Good ol’ boys.” “Nobody should be reliant on these companies. With Farrell education, with the AHLC sponsored industry shows, there are alternatives.”
Farrell Website Supports Your Clients Farrell aff iliate training is not limited to aff iliate staff. Fa rr e l l ’s aff iliate program also grants affiliate clients access to his Client Support website, a f irst in the industry. “Like so many things Farrell does, we were the f irst in the industry to provide our clients with online support ,” said Farrell. “Since ultra-custom hair systems are comprised of so many elements, problems can arise with the client and the Client Support website is only one click away.” Clients may access the client support website to communicate with Fa rr e l l ’s client support department to remedy a problem. Maintenance issues are tracked until resolution and the website features live online assistance, a chat room and a user forum where a client may solicit advice from other clients. Online manuals feature easy step-by-step written and photographic instructions for attaching, bonding and coloring hair systems. “We promised to always be on the cutting edge of new hair systems technologies across the board,” said Farrell, “and we’re simply making good on that promise.
Los Angeles, CA 90048 Phone: 310 289-9260
Fax: 310 289-1253
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