Taste Maker Chronicles

There is one chair in this salon. That is the whole idea.

Jordan Anthony Atelier has just opened in Potts Point, and it is doing the exact opposite of what every other salon in Sydney is doing. No second stylist. No waiting area filling up behind you. No junior rinsing someone else’s colour in your peripheral vision. One client at a time, start to finish, every appointment completed by Jordan himself.

Everyone else is scaling up. He built a room for one.

The space itself was designed by Pinnacle Design Group and built by Max Shepherd of M Corp. Deep wine tones, moody greens, terrazzo, weekly floral installations, angled mirrors that make the room feel three times its size. It reads more like a private apartment than a salon, which is entirely the point.

We sat down with Jordan to talk about walking away from the big salon model, what organic luxury actually means, and the item in his kit that is definitely not a hair product.

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Jordan Anthony Atelier is built around one chair, one client and complete privacy. What made you step away from the traditional salon model to create something this considered?

After 15 years in the industry, working in and co-owning fast-paced, high-end salons, I realised I was beginning to lose some of the love I had for my craft.

Everything was so fast, more clients, more staff, more noise and somewhere along the way I started questioning the purpose behind what I was doing.

I also recognised that my clients were craving something different. Life is already so hectic, I didn’t want coming to the salon to feel like another thing to rush through.

I wanted to create a space where someone could completely switch off from the world. Somewhere beautiful and private where there’s nowhere else I need to be and no one else competing for my attention. They can enter, exhale, and leave feeling incredible.

In a way, creating the atelier was about stripping everything back so I could fall in love with hair again.

Every appointment is completed by you from start to finish. What does that level of attention allow you to offer a client that a larger salon simply cannot?

Me. All of me.

My full attention, creativity and time. There are no questions coming from staff, no phones ringing, no walk-ins and no one else waiting for me to finish. All the things that naturally make a larger salon feel busy are removed.

You settle in at a pace that’s entirely yours. In a busy salon, that level of undivided attention is near impossible. Here, it’s just me, my client and our vision. I think that freedom allows me to do some of my best work because I’m completely present.

From the wine tones and terrazzo to the weekly florals, which design detail within the atelier are you most proud of?

It would have to be the angled mirrors. The atelier is an intimate space, and I didn’t want one large, traditional flat mirror where you’re essentially staring directly at each other for hours.

Instead, the angles we’ve created completely change the experience of the room. They create an illusion of space and allow your eye to catch parts of the atelier you wouldn’t otherwise see, different textures, colours and reflections.

I love that something so functional became such an important part of how the space feels.

I didn’t want to keep the atelier all to myself either. Every piece of furniture can be moved and the heavy green velvet curtains draw back, so the whole room can be manoeuvred and reshaped for a shoot, a launch or a private event.

Is there a piece of advice or an approach that remains the same, no matter who is in the chair?

No one is more important than the person sitting in my chair. So my approach is actually really simple, they will always receive the same Jordan Anthony.

I’ve always hated seeing someone made to feel less important because somebody with a bigger name has walked through the door. I’ve seen it happen many times in larger salons, and it’s something I never wanted to carry into my own space.

Whether you’re a high profile client or someone I’ve looked after for years, you get the same version of me, always. That’s what creates trust and the kind of relationships I want to have with my clients.

No one is more important than the person sitting in my chair.

What does “organic luxury” mean to you within a hair studio? Is it the products and process, the pace of the appointment, or something else entirely?

Luxury shouldn’t be something that has to announce itself. It’s simply something you feel. It’s a combination of all senses: the textures, tones and sounds in the room, the flowers, the music, even the taste of what you’re drinking. It shouldn’t feel forced. It should just feel beautiful.

Time is also the ultimate luxury. At the atelier, it’s slower and considered. Luxury shouldn’t be something that has to announce itself.

The Signature Blow Dry has become a calling card for the atelier. What is the philosophy behind it?

I love the empowerment of a great blow dry. There’s this moment when the brushes come out, the shape starts to form and you can literally watch their eyes light up. There’s something about big, beautiful hair that changes the way you carry yourself.

A Jordan Anthony blow-dry is about manipulating the hair and creating shape, movement and longevity. I don’t want hair to feel too perfect or overly done. It needs to move and make the person wearing it feel incredible.

Nothing makes me happier than watching a big JA blow-dry bounce out the door and down the street.

If Jordan Anthony Atelier were a scent, song or colour, what would it be and why?

Colour: a moody, deep bottle green.
Song: Beautiful Stranger by Madonna. Sexy, nostalgic and slightly unexpected.
Scent: fresh orchids with a hint of tobacco. Something beautiful and feminine with a darker edge underneath it.

That combination probably explains the atelier better than I ever could.

What is next for the atelier and for you personally?

I think this next chapter is really about choosing myself and my creativity again.

Getting back into fashion and editorial is at the top of my list. When I had a larger salon, it became increasingly difficult to step away. There were significant overheads, staff to look after and clients to service, and naturally those responsibilities had to come first.

The atelier has given me freedom again. I want to collaborate with new and exciting brands that genuinely align with me, create more, shoot more and explore where hair can take me outside of the traditional salon environment.

Beyond the better-known brands, what are some of the more exclusive products in your kit, and what makes each one earn its place?

I’m very selective. I don’t need a hundred products, and everything must earn its place. L’Oréal Infinium is my forever hairspray. You can’t get it in Australia anymore, so whenever I’m overseas I’m hunting it down. Maria Nila Styling Mousse and Gloss Coat are also always in my kit for body, control and that beautiful polished finish.

And this might sound crazy, but lube is one of my secrets for a really snatched, high-shine ponytail. Sometimes the best things in your kit aren’t necessarily hair products.

Sometimes the best things in your kit aren’t necessarily hair products.

Taste Maker Chronicles celebrates people shaping culture through instinct, expertise and point of view. What do you feel your approach to hair is ultimately trying to protect?

I’m trying to protect the relationship between a hairdresser and their client. At the end of the day, someone is trusting you to make them feel like the best version of themselves.

Over time you get to truly know them: their hair, their life, what makes them feel amazing and sometimes what doesn’t. I never want that relationship to become transactional. For me, hair has always been personal. It’s about trust, instinct and genuinely caring about the person sitting in your chair.

The industry will continue to evolve, as it should, but I hope we never become so focused on what’s next that we lose the intimacy of what we actually do.

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Jordan Anthony Atelier
Potts Point, Sydney
Bookings and appointments at jordananthony.com.au

Interiors by Pinnacle Design Group, built by Max Shepherd of M Corp. Salon imagery by Mark Morffew.