Newbury Street
is rife with salons — some old, some new, some whose “three cuts for the price
of two!” pleas might foreshadow imminent demise. But perched at the very top of
the street is one salon that’s been at the top of the game for decades. Upon
entrance, WBZ’s Lisa Hughes is seen drip-drying; a twinkly-eyed receptionist
practically dances a jig when fetching me coffee.
This is Mario Russo’s fiefdom, an empire he created two decades
ago that’s still buzzing today. In an industry where trends change faster than
Lindsay Lohan’s sexuality, Russo, 49, seems indestructible. His fans are
legion, his clients are loyal, and his colleagues (almost) universally admire
him. A few anonymous scissoristas bristled at his name — I even got one abrupt
hang up — but most were delighted to dish about Newbury Street’s resident rock
star, who enters his twentieth year in business this June.
It’s easy for competitors to be jealous, of course; Russo’s a
whiz with hair, but he may be even more of a genius when it comes to
self-promotion. He has his own New York PR team to promote his olive oil-based
product line, which launched in 2000 and is now carried in boutiques and hotels
nationwide. He’s made his presence felt throughout New England with homes in Provincetown, Beacon Hill, and Vermont. He is on the board of the ICA and moves in a
rarified world of artists and designers; he just has to pick up the phone for a
favored table at a top restaurant. “Everyone knows Mario,” laughs his general
manager, Gina Mancinone. She almost blushes. “He’s a true man about town.” She
points out that Ming Tsai recently sent over a new set of knives. He’s a
customer, too.
But this Boston
bon vivant started out just like his peers, with a pair of scissors and a
dream. Russo was born in Italy
but moved to Boston
as a teenager and hit the ground running. Having trained in Europe,
he quickly made a name for himself with his original salon, Stewart Russo,
which opened in 1985. Next came a namesake salon on 9 Newbury Street, which debuted in 1990.
Today, he oversees three salons: his flagship, an outpost at Louis Boston, and
a new branch in Stowe, Vermont. For decades, clients have doled out
big bucks ($195, currently) for the Russo cut.
Equally loyal are his protégés. In a catty industry, it’s
difficult to locate anyone willing to trash Russo, perhaps because so many
current up-and-comers trained under his watchful eye. Dean Mellen (see page 46)
is one such success. The bicoastal traveling stylist got his start under Russo,
and he’s positively rhapsodic about his mentor: “Mario has always been, in a
way, like Madonna, in that he recognizes artistic people and what it is they’re
good at. He brings out the best in everybody.” Mellen worked with Russo for 15
years, an eternity in a profession fueled by the next big thing. But for
Mellen, Russo is “one in a billion. I have traveled so much, and I’ve never met
anybody like him. I’d never been treated like that by anybody before.”
Kent Newton, owner of Kent Newton Salon in the South End, echoes
the sentiment. Newton
worked with Russo for eight years, most recently at Louis Boston, before
opening his own salon in January. Newton
trained much of the young talent who passed through Russo’s doors, and he felt
the push for excellence acutely. “Mario’s elevated our craft to a much higher
level of professionalism in general. Twenty-five years ago, it was not
the way it is now. He’s one of the leaders in pushing our profession into a
more positive light. He started the ball rolling for other people like myself.”
Those people, says Newton,
longed to make hairstyling a legitimate career, not just a fallback job.
For Russo, it’s a noble business. “Mario’s always had a vision,”
says George Amaral, who’s worked with Russo for 15 years. “That’s one of the
reasons I’ve stayed with him. He’s a businessman.”
Indeed, Russo grooms his career with the same precision that he
cuts hair. You’re just as likely to find him taking classes at Harvard Business School
as you are to see him wielding a pair of scissors. When I ask him to name other
businesses he admires, I expect to hear names like Vidal Sassoon or Sally
Hershberger. “Apple,” he says. “I’m not necessarily looking at other salons. I
don’t know the other salons’ business practices, and I’m not obsessed with
looking at what they’re doing.” When asked which Boston stylists he admires, he gently steers
the conversation back to his own handpicked staff, to whom he’s intensely
loyal.
And, in some cases, intensely intimidating. Mancinone points to a
portfolio folder brimming with Russo hopefuls, each of whom must endure a
rigorous process if they want admittance to the “inner circle,” as she calls
it. There’s the pre-screening interview, haircut and blow-dry tryouts, another
interview, and then a 90-day trial period. After that, education continues
under the direction of longtime Russo employee and educational director Gary
Croteau, with Russo appearing as a special lecturer.
“I’m sure some of the younger people are intimidated, as you’d be
with anybody so successful,” chuckles longtime friend Helen
McKenna, owner of id.SALON in Wellesley,
who worked with Russo
before going solo. “But I find him personable and funny. I think our friendship
has gone on so long that he probably relishes the fact that I can go, ‘Are you
kidding me?’ ” she laughs.
Russo was a crucial supporter when McKenna launched her own shop
in 2005, something she’s never forgotten. “I think he’s grateful for old
friends; he hasn’t forgotten anybody along the way. He made the time — that
meant a lot to me.” Mellen agrees: “He’s so generous. He recognizes people’s
qualities. He helps them to realize how important they are in a company.” This
extends beyond his nurturing personality to practical matters: Russo says he
was one of the first on the street to institute things like 401k and
health-care benefits for his employees.
Indeed, landing a job with Mario Russo’s company seems to be the
follicular equivalent of a fat envelope from the Ivy League. Today, I Soci
Salon’s Heidi Shvetz is one of Boston’s
most sought-after colorists. But once, she was just a timid suburban girl when
fate — and Russo — smiled on her. “I wouldn’t have traded [my experience] for
the world,” Shvetz says. “It was the best beginning I could have. He’s set a
standard on the street, and I’m glad I was part of it.”
That’s of course not to say Mario Russo is the only game in town
— even if he is, perhaps, the most visible one. While Russo elevated the
industry’s respectability, Frank Xavier “is the godfather,” says McKenna.
“Before Mario, he used to be it on Newbury.” After
years of running his own eponymous salon, Xavier closed shop in 1997. Today,
his devotees visit him at a rented chair
at L’Elegance, a few blocks down the street from Mario Russo.
“It depends what drives you,” says McKenna of their very
different outlooks. “I think Mario really enjoys the business angle. He enjoys
the branching out. Some people just want that.” William George, owner of James
Joseph Salon and James Joseph Studio, agrees. “Mario’s greatest contribution is
PR,” George says. “He’s promoted his name really well and promoted the idea of
luxury hair services — and raised the bar as far as visibility. He was one of
the first salons to get national press, and it opened up doors for the rest of
us.”
Getting coverage in the likes of In Style
and O,
The Oprah Magazine is certainly a sign of success, but Russo does
have some young upstarts nipping at his heels here at home. Salons throughout
the city are expanding and moving out to the suburbs, both for lower rents and
the promise of reaching new segments of the population who don’t feel like
wrestling a meter maid to get a parking spot on Newbury. “Newbury is so over!”
insists Sandy Poirier of South Boston’s Shag,
who worked on the street for 20 years. “We’re rewriting the book on hair. I’m
the wave of the future. Who wants to park on Newbury? Who wants that hassle?”
But even he admits, “Mario’s a good, hard worker. He’s found his niche. He
deserves his success. He’s not just some silly kid.” In short, the guy might be
living the good life, but there’s no getting around it: he is
pretty damn good.
Just how good?
Russo has expansion plans in the works — he demurs when pressed
for details — and he’s set to begin a new executive training program at Harvard
Business School as soon as he can steal
away from the salon. While he does plan to commemorate his landmark anniversary
with celebrations throughout the year, there’s not much time for idle revelry.
“I’m always looking forward,” he says. “Just thinking, ‘Oh, I’m so fabulous!
Everyone will pay attention to me!’ That’s the kiss of death. I’m always making sure the client is at the top.” And with that, an underling pokes a head
in the door and beckons him back to his chair.
HAIR WHERE?
Dean Mellen at Patrice Vinci Salon, 91 Newbury
Street, Boston, 617.267.1900, www.deanmellen.com and www.patricevinci.com
id.SALON, 241 Washington Street, Wellesley, 781.237.1233
I Soci Salon, 8 Newbury Street, 3rd Floor,
Boston, 617.867.9484, www.isocisalon.com
James Joseph Salon, 30 Newbury Street, Boston,
617.266.7222, www.jamesjosephsalon.com
James Joseph Studio, 168 Newbury Street, Boston,
617.266.6600 and 16 Earhart Landing, Medford, 781.393.6800,
www.jamesjosephstudio.com
Kent Newton Salon, 1315 Washington Street,
Boston, 617.426.2640, www.kentnewtonsalon.com
L’Elegance, 105 Newbury Street, Boston,
617.536.1290, www.lelegancesalon.com
Mario Russo, 9 Newbury Street, Boston,
617.424.6676; Louis Boston, 234 Berkeley Street, Boston, 617.266.4485; and 7412
Mountain Road, Stowe, VT, 802.760.4700, www.mariorusso.com
Shag, 840 Summer Street, South Boston,
617.268.2500, www.shagboston.com
