David Stanko's DVD About Lifestyle Coloring helps Consumers & Colorists Communicate

David Stanko

David Stanko is a true color "guru." He's not just a hair color consultant for Redken 5th Avenue, working salon colorist, and client-consultation expert, he rescued my own hair color and transformed it from hideous, to "hot." I've met David at a number of Redken color events, and I've always been impressed with his knowledge, but I was satisfied with the person doing my hair, so I never made a move to be one of David's clients. It took a hair color disaster to make me realize I needed someone great, not just "ok." I knew David was the only one to call! David has developed, evaluated, launched and taught professional hair color all around the world! David’s hair color work has been styled by such talents as Serge Normant, Oribe and Orlando Pita, and been featured in the pages of top fashion publications, including Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, In-Style, Latina and Elle, not to mention nearly every North American trade magazine: American Salon, Modern Salon, Launchpad and Estetica.

This very talented and savvy colorist has a lot to offer both colorists, and consumers. But his most exciting news this year is the release of his first DVD about "Lifestyle Coloring." The concept is important for colorists, but also for you, the consumer.

"Lifestyle Coloring" is a term I hadn't really heard, but when David explained the concept, it made a lot of sense. Most colorists attract clients who are similar to them in age and lifestyle. David realized that this limits the income and success of a colorist. So he came up with the concept of “Lifestyle Coloring,” which demonstrates to colorists how to diversify their clientele. By doing so, they can enjoy a continuous client flow that is not as dependant on the economic fortunes of just one group. By tailoring color services to lifestyles, and then customizing them to individuals, a colorist can discover new ways to use color technology to satisfy clients, the colorist's artistic expression, and achieve financial success. David uses urban analogies to break the client base into three, distinct types: the trendy, edgy and usually younger downtown client, the busy, working woman, midtown client for whom time is most precious, and the sophisticated, uptown client, who insists upon service and attention. The DVD not only describes the basic types of client, it also goes into suggestions for color styles (in technical terms, using Redken products as the model) that any colorist can use and personalize, to their particular clients. Colorists learn David Stanko’s "pasta method" of highlighting (you have to really see the DVD to know how to do this). This approach helps a colorist decide what type of color treatments will make a client happiest, so s/he will want to keep coming back.

Thinking about yourself in the terms David describes, will also help you better communicate to your colorist. That way s/he doesn't have to guess about your goals, and maybe get it wrong. What type you are, and how you communicate it, makes a difference. For example, if you are time crunched, or you don't have the budget for high maintenance hair, some color treatments, even if they are gorgeous, won't work for you. When you go to a colorist, s/he listens to what you say about lifestyle, goals, and the type of style/look you want, and "computes" that to figure out what "type" of client you are. Even how you dress and how you wear your hair (mostly down, or sometimes, up) goes into what a color professional will suggest for you. As David says: ""A well trained colorist analyzes your hair: current color, condition, texture and must inquiry about your lifestyle: where you work, what interests you, where you live, like to shop and the image you want to portray. I need to know this to create a customized color look for you. Dress the part, if you can, so I can see get a snapshot of your daily life."

The DVD is directed towards colorists, not the home user of hair color, so you might consider recommending it to your colorist. The Lifestyle Color concept will spark conversation that will be helpful to you both in taking your hair color to the next level -- one that both of you will feel good about.

This is a brief video of David introducing his DVD

David Stanko travels a great deal and works out of salons in various cities. In NYC he is at the Angelo David Salon right near Grand Central Station. To order the new Lifestyle Color DVD ($125.00 incl. shipping), to check David's schedule, and to learn more about David, visit him on his web site.

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