September Issue 2013

‘Ready for Change?” a projector screen asked visitors stepping into a packed room at the launch of the first L’Oréal Professionnel Hair Academy in Pakistan. Situated next to L’Oréal’s head office in the Forum building, the new hair-care institution includes state-of-the-art facilities and promises to bring international standards to the Pakistani hairdressing industry.

The new facility can host up to 25 hairdressing trainees at a time, and offers various cutting and styling workshops and diploma courses. L’Oréal is well-known for providing premium products and services to salons over the years — with bottles of X-Tenso, Mythic Oil, IONA and other renowned hair products decorating the academy’s sleek interior — but the Academy is another welcome addition to the city’s limited cosmetology institutions.

The French Consul General, Christian Ramage, was the chief guest at the launch and he participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony. In a short speech, he mentioned that while he is not directly linked to the brand, he considers L’Oréal to be an ambassador of French beauty and culture.

Many leading hair stylists and salon owners were present at the event, including Ujala Jaffer, Ruksana Iqbal, Hina Fareed, Amber Khan as well as Hina Yousuf and Beenish Pervaiz, who are also ambassadors and faculty members at the institution. Yousuf, who at a young age and in a relatively short period of time has carved a name for herself in the makeup and hair industry, mentions that although there are other great institutions like Pivot Point, the Academy is the first of its kind in Pakistan. She adds that the “The quality of training will be amazing, just like L’Oréal’s products.”