Welcome Naedlae, to Oxo Tower Wharf

Can you tell us a bit about your experience?

My career has been varied and interesting over the years! I was in the Royal Navy as a Marine Engineer for four and a half years before I discovered hairdressing 18 years ago. Before that I worked in a stockbrokers in the city - this role didn’t suit me at all. Sitting at a desk all day definitely isn’t for me! Whilst I loved the Navy, I realised that I needed to do something more creative and people focused. Looking back, the discipline and attention to detail that comes with the Navy set me up well for a future career in hairdressing.

I started my hairdressing career over 18 years at Trevor Sorbie’s flagship salon in Covent Garden. I was taught by some of the best hairdressers in the industry, there I also worked on fashion and hair shows and assisted Trevor on hair makeovers on morning television.

I spent over four years at Trevor's, I then moved to Taylor Taylor's London flagship salon in Spitalfields. There I looked after Ellie Goulding, Zoe Ball, The Kills, Franz Ferdinand, KT Tunstall and James Blunt, to name a few.

I’ve also worked on London and Paris fashion weeks for shows such as Vivienne Westwood, Kenzo and Chloe. I really loved the buzz and energy of fashion shows. I also became the official hairdresser for the band The XX, where I crafted their hair on video and photo shoots. I also travelled with them for some of their tours at larger events such as Glastonbury.

In 2010 I co-founded the multi award winning salon Jones & Payne in the heart of Shoreditch where I concentrated on running the salon and built a strong, loyal clientele. The salon sadly closed due to Covid-19, hence I started something completely new at Oxo Tower Wharf.
 

What will you be doing out of your Oxo Tower Wharf studio?

My new studio has been created to combine my passion for natural hair care formulation and hairdressing.

I’ll be cutting hair alongside two other experienced independent hair stylists. It’s a cool little hair studio where clients can come and have an excellent hair cut in lovely, chilled surroundings.

I’ll also be using the space to create my own naturally derived hair care products. I’m massively excited about this as it's been my hobby over the last few years. I've just received my certificate on Organic Hair Care Formulation. It takes a huge amount of time to research thousands of ingredients and experiment with hundreds of sample formulations. My wife is happy that all the equipment has left our front room!
 

Can you tell us what inspired you to make this move?

I’ve always been intrigued by how hair care products are formulated and manufactured. I wanted to know how they worked and why there are so many synthetic man-made ingredients used in hair care products.

There are a huge number of hair care ranges on the market which claim to be natural or organic, but still contain man made synthetics hidden from the consumer. I find this misleading and want to offer something different. Producing a fully naturally derived, transparent product range is my mission.

Due to Covid-19 I needed to close my hair salon in Shoreditch as it wasn’t sustainable to continue with such significant running costs. I needed to pivot quickly and change the model - hence this new Studio.
 

What are your hopes and plans for your future at Oxo Tower Wharf and beyond?

My plans are to spend the next year focusing on research and development for my products with a view to start manufacturing and launching after that. We’ll of course continue to give clients fantastic haircuts.

What drew you to Oxo Tower Wharf?

Being part of a unique creative community is just fantastic. Working in a setting with other creatives really helps the flow for innovation.

The location is ideal. It’s central for lots of clients to travel to, and they can make a day of it in London if they want to with plenty to do close by.

The view from the studio on the chilled courtyard sets me up perfectly for the day, giving me a calm feeling. Helping me come up with more ideas and plans for the future.

Book your appointment at Naedlae by visiting his website below or check out their Instagram...