A rich history in the professional salon industry of more than 140 years has been further strengthened for Wella via a new creative partnership with infamous Australian singer and redhead Vera Blue, writes Cameron Pine.

Through a renaissance of the classic ‘Wella Woman’ campaign, Wella has called on its heritage and far reaching appeal to women across the globe with the ‘You can tell a Wella Woman by the way she wears her hair’ jingle and given the brand a fresh and empowering new spin.

By harking back to the brand’s strong consumer appeal, but minus the larger than life hair and shoulder pads, Wella has welcomed a much more heartfelt and fresh new aesthetic in their collaboration with music star, Vera Blue. The artist brings an inspirational and uplifting aura wherever she goes, not just through music but via her refreshing and humble approach to life.

With the most striking and healthy looking naturally red hair, made even more appealing by the team at Wella, Vera has injected a completely new soul into what it means to be a consumer of high-quality professional haircare and colour, being an advocate for low-maintenance yet striking hair.

On Friday May 21 the brand transported guests to a whimsical wonderland at the artist Dina Broadhurt’s striking art deco mansion in Sydney’s Vaucluse. The rustic, yet charming home was adorned in the classic Wella red flower arrangements, reflective of the campaign video Wella have launched featuring Vera Blue in an almost magical ‘Garden of Eden’.

Flowers by The Make House were more than just an arrangement, they are the curator of objects and spaces, and managed to completely translate the essence of Vera’s and Wella’s newly launched video campaign. With Veuve and catering from Katering the mood for the day personified a fantasy-like magical wonderland.

Vera first met hairdresser and Wella Artistic Director Richi Grisillo on set and their relationship blossomed immediately. Not sure what to do with her hair, Richi was soon travelling overseas within six months and working on Vera’s Lady Powers film clip. The relationship organically developed into a highly beneficial creative partnership for both parties.

“For me it was about maintaining Vera’s hair without changing the person that she is as Celia, but when she’s on stage as Vera as well she’s still her but amplified,” Richi said. “It’s important to keep in mind that artists have off-duty time so you don’t want them to be restricted always by their signature style. With the update of Koleston Perfect Me+ with the new molecule, the condition of the hair is paramount.”

Later on in the lunch, Wella tested guests’ memory retention skills with a short quiz – whoever was the quickest with their hand up and the most right answers about Wella’s history and technology won a custom Dina Broadhurst and Vera Blue piece. The perfectly aligned strategic partnership piece featured Vera in a stunning red dress with floral work customised by Dina.

Vera first came to prominence in the 2013 season of The Voice Australia as a singer and songwriter and now combines her love of folk music with moody electronica. Her vibe and aesthetic perfectly suits the new Wella Woman – understated yet striking and sophisticated.

A talented and authentic change-maker, Vera paves the way for the new era of the Wella Woman. With her flowing hair being a standout characteristic of her artistic image, Vera often refers to her locks as ‘another limb’ when performing and regularly refreshes the tone and texture to keep reinterpreting her image.

“My hair is a key feature of what I do on set, on stage and must always be striking yet understated and natural,” Vera said. “My hair has been an instrumental element in my persona as Vera Blue, so I am extremely protective of it, but also enjoy experimenting with it as a part of my image. Richi has been my hairdresser for many years now, so when the opportunity came up to lead the new way of the Wella Woman, I leapt at it.”

Richi is not only the Wella Artistic Director but also the 2020 Australian Hair Fashion Awards NSW Hairdresser of the year. Over his four-year partnership with Vera he continues to be responsible for some of her most striking colour and looks.

“I’ve been a part of the Wella family for 14 years now, and as Consumer Director I am so proud that my friend and muse Vera has joined me, representing our Wella Woman. There couldn’t be a union better suited, as Vera embodies Wella so perfectly,” Richi shared.

We are seeing a shift from models as faces for brands and partnerships being formed where values, lifestyle and other more whimsical elements combine and the Wella X Vera partnership is no exception of these personal and professional values blossoming.

 “Vera Blue and Wella is such a unique opportunity, partnering a face and an icon made for each other. We’re so thrilled to celebrate the role Wella has played in supporting Vera to express herself and bring excitement, disruption and a fresh reinterpretation of an iconic brand,” said Wella Marketing Director Matthew Foster.

After launching the Vera Blue project with debut single ‘Hold’ in 2015, Vera’s album debuted number 6 on the ARIA Album Chart and amassed six Aria single and a Triple J Album of the Year nomination, a Top 10 Triple J Listeners Album of 2018 and an ARIA Award Nomination for Best Pop Release. Since then, she’s continued to go from strength to strength, releasing the globally penetrating Flume collab ‘Rushing Back’ and accumulating over 86 million streams on Spotify. Her latest release ‘Lie To Me’, was voted #68 in this year’s Triple J Hottest 100 countdown.

Guests left not only transported to a new world of music and powerful branding but with the new ColorMotion+ range, inclusive of the shampoo, conditioner and mask, in addition to the EIMI Ocean Spritz Texturising Spray, Thermal Image Heat Protectant Spray and Dry Me Dry Shampoo, which Richi used on Vera’s hair on the day. Guests also received Vera’s favourite Quenching Mist and System Professional Luxe Oil Reconstructive Elixir.

To a new era of the Wella Woman, with Vera Blue as the ultimate muse.

For more information visit www.wella.com

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