DNA Salon appointed as the newest

Joanna Serkowicz chats to salon owner Donovan Grove about being recognised by the LABEL.M brand and discovers what makes DNA Salon stand out in the market

Donovan Grove

Founded in 1999 by Donovan Grove, DNA Salon is located within Ryan Nursery in Bedfordview, Johannesburg. As to why DNA was selected to be a LABEL.M Concept Salon, Larry Le Roux, General Manager of LABEL.M SA, says: “We choose our Concept Salons on the merit of creative ability, leadership and commitment to education. Ongoing education and the heritage of Toni & Guy (i.e. Giuseppe ‘Toni’ Mascolo and Gaetano ‘Guy’ Mascolo – the founders of LABEL.M) is synonymous with the hairdressing industry and it is essential that the salon subscribes and commits to follow the Digital Academy, where students enroll for certified courses and weekly updates.

DNA differentiates itself from competitors by having a reputation for being ‘the renowned hair colour specialist’, which is where the salon does most of its business.

“Donovan from DNA Salon has a strong passion for educating himself, his staff and wherever he can, for uplifting the skills of students. He is an award-winning stylist and creative director for Intercoiffure. LABEL.M was a natural fit for his business and clients alike, while also adding that extra flair and an environmentally conscious aspect to the salon.”

When asked what becoming a LABEl.M Concept Salon entails, Donovan explains: “You make an investment in your salon’s future by getting into LABEL.M culture trading and education. My motivation for taking this step was realising that our industry needs an injection of the first world standard and that’s where brands like LABEL.M come into effect.

“The appeal of LABEL.M is the longevity of their brand, the culture of their brand and most importantly for us, the education and training available under this flagship. Their latest range is a new addition to our retail offering.”

Donovan made a presentation at the recent Salon International Expo at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, He continues: “I was speaking on behalf of LABEL.M to drive the importance of education and training home. We are responsible for the future of our craft so we must protect the profession whenever we can and ensure to upskill the youth wherever we can.”

Staying power

For a hair salon to remain in business since 1999, especially through the economically harrowing Covid and post-Covid eras, is quite something.

Commenting on the secret to his salon’s enduring success, Donovan says: “We have stayed invested in the evolution of the game of hairdressing ever since we started up. As such, we pride ourselves on understanding the importance of constantly upskilling ourselves in what we do daily.

“That’s not to say that this year has not been tough – it has been. But I find that as long as we remain sharp and implement wise strategies in terms of our overhead structures, we can survive the storm.”

He believes that DNA differentiates itself from competitors by having a reputation for being ‘the renowned hair colour specialist’, which is where the salon does most of its business.

We find that the Balayage and Ombre techniques are still on trend, but in our experience, all round great shine and wellconditioned hair will still prevail.

Specifics

DNA is comprised of a 110-metres square hair salon, as well as a nail and beauty section that also makes up another 100 square metres.

The decision to add a nail bar to the salon’s menu a few years ago gives clients a convenient opportunity to get their services done simultaneously and this helps busy people.

Because the salon is situated in a picturesque nursery setting, it was designed in the style of a calm and tranquil environment for clients to come and relax in.

In terms of clientele, Donovan prides himself on the fact that the salon caters for everybody’s hair and beauty needs. “We will work on all the clients that wish to experience our company.”

At the moment, five hairdressers make up the DNA team.

Trends

What have been the most popular hair colours at DNA this year?

Donovan responds: “There are so many different shades of trending colours at the moment but we really do a lot of blondes. We find that the Balayage and Ombre techniques are still on trend, but in our experience, all round great shine and wellconditioned hair will still prevail, regardless of placement choice.”

A quick scroll through on TikTok reveals all sorts of weird & wonderful styles like Butterfly, Wixie and Wolf Cut, to mention just a few, but are these types of hairdos what DNA clients have been requesting?

Says Donovan: “Haircut choices for the year are always based on the same type of cuts that are trending, but when you understand the terminology of hairdressing language, we would still refer to our work as either variations of foreword graduation, or round layered crop type haircuts. These will always trend provided they are executed correctly.”

Talking of trends, DNA is very active on Instagram. “Social media is so important today that we can’t look past it as a marketing tool of note. We must always strive to create our content and keep moving with the times,” he concludes.