Greg Conrad - Conrad Mace VIC
By Rob Kotevski June 4 2009
Greg Conrad has a confession to make.
“I never wanted to be a hairdresser,” he tells myhairdressersearch. “Growing up, I always wanted to be a pilot. I was a pretty good A-grade student.
“One year, I couldn’t imagine going to university and doing all those things and the mathematics and all that. All of a sudden, hairdressing came to me. I had a few friends in hairdressing and I thought, I’m going to give this a go, I’m still young. I was actually old in those days to start hairdressing. I was 18. I was a mature student. No one had a HSC. You didn’t do an apprenticeship if you had your HSC.
“I just did it. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be the right thing for me. The first six months I was a bit lost. I wasn’t sure if I’d done the right thing because all you’re doing is washing hair and cleaning, you’re not really doing hairdressing. But once I started doing the hairdressing side, I loved it.
“Not everyone survives the total apprenticeship. Hairdressing wouldn’t be for everyone. It’s labourous, you’re on your feet, there’s a lot to think about, especially when you’re running a business and you’re not just worrying about you and your clients, you’re worrying about everyone else’s clients and the business running efficiently.
"It’s a youth industry. Most people are under 30. I still love being on the floor, but the majority of the staff are apprentice and youth-based.”
It’s hard to think that someone with such a long and successful career in hair had a period in their lives where hairdressing wasn’t an option.
Now the proud owner of the Conrad Mace salon in Melbourne, Conrad’s illustrious path in his working life has seen him travel all over the world, including in Hong Kong with hairdressing great Kim Robinson.
With his training apprenticeship completed in Australia, Conrad packed his bags and set sail for Europe. After working in Greece, Italy and all throughout the continent, he returned to Sydney and helped Joh Bailey set up his salon in the CBD. When Conrad arrived, there were only a few people working in the salon. During his time there, the salon quickly grew.
As the travel bug had well and truly bit him, Conrad decided to travel abroad again, youthful exuberance accompanied by his training and experience. His destination? Kim Robinson’s mega-salon in Hong Kong.
“I worked in a salon that had 90 staff. That was probably where I learnt more on the business side, where I actually saw what a business could do and what a team could do rather than just what one person could do,” he says.
“I hit 30, so I was probably looking more on the business side; Where am I going now? I’ve had my fun, but how am I going to pay the bills and get ahead rather than just keep jumping on planes.”
Conrad’s jet set days certainly weren’t over when he arrived in Hong Kong.
“I landed in May and by June I was already on a plane to Paris and then Barcelona and doing Miss Asia contests, heading a team of hairdressers.
"That’s where Hong Kong was different. It was the centre of the world. The budgets for photo shoots were enormous. There are more magazines. There are all the Asian magazines and there are all the English magazines and there are all the international magazines. It’s a really amazing market. I worked on television shows all the time, photos shoots all the time, fashion shows all the time.”
The globetrotter can count Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman and Mariah Carey as some of his clients.
“I’ve touched base with a lot of celebrities and they’re not always your client because they’re always travelling. When Linda Evangelista was in town, it was huge to do her hair, just the association with her. I was at that stage where I was easily impressed,” he says.
"That's where Hong Kong was different. It was the centre of the world. The budgets for photo shoots were enormous. There are more magazines. It's a really amazing market. I worked on television shows all the time, photo shoots all the time, fashion shows all the time."
Conrad’s favourite client may not exactly be a celebrity, but they’re a lot closer to home and a lot closer to his heart.
“I think clients that I see a lot more regularly and that are a lot more loyal, they’re my favourite. That’s probably why I do hair. I love seeing them week to week or month to month and knowing what their children have done, what their families are doing. Being involved in important milestones in their life and being invited to those important things,” he reminisces.
As Conrad discovered, home is where the heart is. Launching his own salon in Melbourne is one career highlight among many for the Aussie.
“Coming back to Melbourne and it being my business, having some stability and probably having something to draw me back home.
"It was an amazing first couple of years. It was very hard work. I had to establish myself and the business and I was responsible for a lot of things. It was bloody hard, actually, but it was so exciting. I was on a high from Hong Kong and working six days a week and having that mentality driven in to me, I was ready for it.”
A proud moment came when he saw his name on the door of the Conrad Mace salon.
“That was a proud, little personal moment. It’s not a fan fare thing, it was more just for me. I didn’t realise how important it would make me feel,” he says.
“I’m happy here in Melbourne. We’re only one salon but we’re growing in baby steps.”
Perhaps Dorothy was on to something. There really is no place like home.
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