M.O.H & Co sits on High Street in the ever-trendy Northcote, Victoria, as an alluring, blush pink haven of hair style and femininity, with a TV in the window and a welcoming team indoors. It’s a salon that would be at home in any fashion-focused locale as a hip place to hang out and have your hair styled. The point of difference is that this salon is female hair loss specific, and looking at it you could never know, aside from the transformations shining on screen – that’s kind of the point.
Taking the scary, harsh, medical feel out of hair loss solutions, M.O.H & Co, as run by industry veteran Dejana Abouzeid and her team of four hairdressers, is in the business of making clients feel comfortable and pampered – and then truly solving their hair loss problems.
“It’s that comfort of it,” Dejana confirmed. “The salon is very girly, it’s got a little bit of industrial with the brick wall, but then it’s all blush pink, it’s soft, it’s not a harsh environment. I have a great team of people and it’s all about making people feel as comfortable as possible and not making them feel like they have a problem, that’s the biggest thing.”
“The reason I opened the salon is because I didn’t want hair loss to have a stigma, I wanted clients to know that even if they have this issue they can be in an open space and a funky and relaxed environment,” she continued. “You can have your champagne and wine and feel like every other client who has no issues with hair and be approached delicately rather than standoffish as if they have a problem that has to be kept away from the salon floor. I find that clients that come to us love that. They love that when we consult with them it’s like they don’t have any issues, even if they know that they do, and then we give them different scenarios and solutions for how to fix it.”
Tailored care is significant when it comes to something as sensitive as hair loss. The team works with global hair extensions brand Hairdreams in using their extensions and MicroLines technology, while also manufacturing their own hair toppers. The salon also partners with high-profile brands such as Pureology, Redken and Balmain for style, care and colour and is affiliated with specialists from Sinclair Dermatology in Melbourne and Hair Transformations in Sydney. This more medical approach means they are ready for whatever hair loss problem comes their way. Clients can enjoy the salon floor or be kept more private if that would make them feel more comfortable – personalised care at every level is key.
“We don’t overbook people, we’re appointment only, we do respect clients and some clients do want their personal space. We have a screen to shut them off if it’s a severe case,” Dejana explained.
Dejana has worked in the industry for 28 years and, while boutique salons have often been her environment of choice and Hairdreams hair extensions have long been a significant relationship in her career, this more extreme form of focus developed organically through a long and storied career.
“The fact of establishing a relationship with clients is that as you grow with them you both get older, their needs do change over a period of time as you work with them for a very long time. That’s what got me into this because my clients were starting to suffer hair loss from either stress or pregnancy or disease, all sorts of stuff, so it became a bit more of a personal journey rather than just a hair journey,” she said. As such the salon caters to everything from hormonal to cosmetic hair loss and more.
The salon, which opened in January this year, came with Dejana’s already established clientele and a channel of always-glowing word of mouth, but has also comfortably fit into its trendy suburb.
“We have a TV in the window, and let people know that we’re an option for people with hair loss, rather than thinking it’s a medical thing and they have to go to the doctor,” Dejana said. “We have so much exposure, the suburb is wonderful and very community based, and the area’s very hip and fashion-oriented, but there are a lot of people that have issues in regards to hair. They’ve put the walls down and they come past and look at our TV and see all our transformations with our before and after looks and say that they didn’t realise there was a place they could go to and see what options they have. It’s been really cool.”
Like every salon, the pandemic has added another layer on top of these business practices, but M.O.H & Co has responded with resilience. As a cornerstone salon, their space offers a much-needed escape. As hair loss experts, their work and service is even more essential.
“During COVID-19 people see that you’re open and trying to stay open. When people walk in we try to make people feel like they can get away from everything that’s happening,” Dejana shared. “The last two weeks have been quiet since the renewed restrictions, but our clientele is still supportive and our clients need us, there’s maintenance with these products. There’s a lot of serious implications when you’re dealing with stuff like this because you’re dealing with their feelings and emotional state.”
At their best, salons should be a place where people can escape to, indulge in and leave looking great and feeling their absolute best. The cases M.O.H & Co deal with make these factors even more necessary, and the salon’s work and success, both in emotional comfort and physical transformations, that much more inspiring.
“I think the salon is probably the home of makeover and because we do specialise in hair extensions and hair thickening and we do use some of the world’s best products, I really do believe we have something to offer a very different range of people. We’re killing the stigma that there’s no place to go if you have hair loss issues,” Dejana said. “We want to make it feel very open. There are so many things on the market that we can do for men and women to get away from the wig look and make it a lot more street-savvy.”
“It’s not about covering it up, it’s about utilising what the person has and really bringing out the best in them so it’s a complete package,” she finished.
With this focus and mentality, it’s no wonder M.O.H & Co is an essential part of Northcote, its clients’ routines and the hairdressing landscape at large.
For more information visit www.mohandco.com.au
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