Matrix Announce South Australian and Western Australian Collective Competition Winners

With a sense of energy and community spirit one would expect from one of the world’s largest colour brands, the Matrix Collective saw finalists compete for the titles of both Individual Winner and Team Winner in Adelaide and Perth. After crowning these state winners, the competition will be on to Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney next week. A huge congratulations to Western Australian team winners Hayley Keep and Jayde Osterburg from Earth Wind Fire Hair, as well as individual winner Shauna Moore from Lemon Laine. Well done as well to South Australia’s team winners Maria Puccio and Madison Logozzo from Acqua Lounge Hair Studio, as well as individual winner Lauren Hutcheson from Scissor Lounge.

Keeping it simple, the barriers to entry for the Matrix competition nationally were low – free of the need for expensive photography and salon retouching. Any colour background was encouraged to enter creative yet commercially minded images (something you’d expect to see in a fashion magazine). This aesthetic would be celebrated in a live finalist night whereby each individual hairdresser or team had the opportunity to showcase their skill live by recreating or refreshing their entered look.

Hosted by comedic emcee Clint Piper, the energy in the room was primed for a highly approachable level of fun with a Matrix SoColor coordinated lolly bar, a balloon man (and woman) in Perth creating some pretty fun shapes and a rainbow coloured wall of streamers that truly celebrated the fun culture personified by the Matrix brand.

Image via Hayley Keep and Jayde Osterburg

To give the show some added inspiration and educational value, the Matrix Playground Design team, consisting of Kobi Bokshish, Stevie English, Adam Ciaccia and Matthew Johnson took to the stage with some dramatic makeovers, merging both colour skill with strong haircuts to showcase some of the possibilities with hairdressing. Adding in some social media tips and motivational anecdotes for guests everyone left with something to take back to the salon. One of the most dynamic and entertaining groups on stage these leading hairdressers bounced ideas off each other, merging the commercial mindset required for a successful business with some good old fashion fun.

Image via Maria Puccio and Madison Logozzo

With food and drinks throughout the night and three more cities still to go, the momemtum continues to build for this nationwide tour. Follow along to see who will take on the next state finals. The winning participants will take part in an editorial photoshoot for INSTYLE, be featured online with Matrix and INSTYLE and receive PR, social media and marketing support for their creative work. The stakes are high – how will the rest of the competition shake out?