L’Oreal Professional Hair Academy Setting Benchmarks
The first L’Oreal Professional Academy for freshers – Hair, Internatinal Hairdressing Academy passed out it’s first batch this year and can be easily applauded for the work exhibited by the students in the passing out fashion show organized at the academy itself. Now very much into it’s second year, having become a year wiser, Beaute Espace spoke to Caroline Lanuzel , Manager of the Academy, Priya and Cybelle, instructors and a few students to understand the workings, plans and the nature of students enrolling in a course that costs a hefty 2,00,000 for six months of intensive initiation into hairdressing.
Whilst Lanuzel has studied hairdressing in France for over 5 years and was trained at the Jacques Dessange Hairdressing School in Paris, her career initiated at Jacques DESSANGE Salon with international experience in hairdressing in countries like UK, Cyprus, Middle East and India, where she set up salons and provided extensive training to hairdressers. Over the past one year, Caroline has been working closely with international hairdressers such as Bertrand Kaizner and international communication expert Julie Eldrett. Caroline has been instrumental in setting up the INTERNATIONAL HAIRDRESSING ACADEMY - the first hairdressing academy established by L’Oreal Professionnel worldwide. “It has been a fantastic learning experience” shares Lanuzel.
“The curricula”, she explains “combines both theory and practical experience and that is perhaps the most unique aspect of the educational experience in this academy”. She feels that the entire experience in a salon comprises of 50% emotional and the rest technical and hence the hairdresser has to be good at diagnosing and understanding the customer’s psyche. Spread out in 4000 sq. ft., the academy offers a course for beginners that hones their skills in understanding the science of hair, shampoo and conditioning, cut and style, colour, perm and straightening, usage of styling products and communication. The students spend 3 days in a week at the academy and the next 3 days at practicing their skills at the L’Oreal Professionnel partner salons. Caroline Lanuzel lists “passion, motivation and ability to communicate” as perhaps the only eligibility criteria that they look for in a student. The academy also has facilities for translating communication in hindi and a class includes maximum 16 students and two educators.
Given such low numbers one wonders if L’Oreal Professionnel with its resources could do with facilities for recruiting bigger numbers. Explains Patrick de Dainville, GM, L’Oreal Professional Products (Africa- Orient- Pacific Zone) “at this stage our objective is to create a benchmark – in terms of standards in the industry”.

Lanuzel emphasizes that placements are easy for students from the academy. Deepa, who started as a fresher is currently completing six months apprenticeship at a local salon before she opens her own salon in a year’s time. While a large percentage of the students were freshers, at the same time they came from backgrounds with a familiarity to the hairdressing profession or makeup and beauty. Says Meera, initially a makeup artist, “I became more confident by learning new communication skills besides rounding up my know how”, whilst Dhruv, a 17 year old who had observed his mother at their salon feels that the course made him “technically very strong in a highly motivating environment”. Though Dhruv is not sure yet of his future course of action, Aradhna, a graduate of Hotel Management and enrolled in the current batch, seems well settled to complete this new venture. The educators Cybelle and Priya felt rewarded when they realized “ that at the end of six months, some of our students were at par with us” says Cybele. Adds Priya “we have incorporated some of what we might have lacked in the syllabus for the first batch”.
Cybele has experience with Jacque Dessange salon in Mumbai having trained under Lanuzel. Priya on the other hand has had experience of both learning and training with Pivot Point India followed by more than 2 years of teaching with Pivot Point. As of 2007, Lanuzel shares their plans to introduce different courses for existing hairdressers that would go deeply into techniques. “We will have international instructors conducting seminars in colours, cuts & styles, communication, photoshoots, and colourscopy” says Lanuzel. Though, starting in a microscopic way, given the sea of demand in the hairdressing industry, the L’Oreal Academy seems set for an exciting journey ahead.

Harish Bhatia
A renowned name in the Hairdessing World in India!
Famous for Blindfold haircuts - been recognised by the LIMCA BOOK OF RECORDS
Achievements-
• Proprietor of Big Boss Salon with 32 years in har cutting and styling
• Make Up Artist fr the Mumbai Film Industry wth 18 years of experience
• Creator of his own brand of Ayurvedic Products
• Brand Ambassador of Keune Hair Cosmetics
• Performs the Seemingly Impossible task of Teaching Hair Cutting to Blind and
Handicapped People
With Professional Qualifications from-
Vidal Sassoon, London
Tony & Guy Academy, London
Awarded VIP DIploma at Hair World 2000, Berlin, Germany