Douglas McCoy- Build Your Brand- The Portfolio

July 22- 24 Federico Advanced hosted Douglas McCoy in Sacramento, CA where he presented his newest class, Building Your Brand- The Portfolio.

Douglas McCoy and The House of Pop are revolutionizing the way social media and hairdressers coagulate. McCoy is a pioneer, paving the path for future independents. His classes offer an exclusive brand of inspiration.- Adam Federico

What did you want salon professionals to walk away with from your class?

I wanted to build a class that would allow stylists and salon owners to start promoting and branding themselves in a way that allows for creativity and personal development. We went through multiple platforms and schools of thought regarding social media, photographing, filming and model selection. We also looked at what branding is to a salon as well as an individual stylist. That made for a fairly full morning before diving into the portfolio shoot.

The structure of this class was non-traditional. Tell us why..

What I was trying to achieve with the hands on portion was an environment where participants could actually practice on what they wanted to work on or felt they struggled with. I have the opportunity to work with some amazing editorial stylists and the one thing they have in common is “they practice”

Most hairdressers either don’t have the time or don’t take the time to practice. I wanted to allow them that opportunity in hopes that they will make it a habit. The class was really dictated by the participants. I wanted to give them techniques not necessarily a step by step,. I wanted to give them something that would make a difference in their work right away. Something they can arm themselves with to make their work cleaner and more efficient.

Each person brought a model with the intention of finishing with a professional photo shoot with Nicholas Wray. (Who is fricken awesome by the way) I also wanted them to shoot images on their phone. All of my early work was done on my phone. no photoshop, just ran it through an app and put it out. that way I could show that you can create quality brand imagery to put out everyday.

You don’t have to hire a photographer or buy an $8,000 Nikon (however they are nice) just to get pictures of your work, anymore. We explored angles, backgrounds, lighting, filters and apps they can use to show them that just their smartphone is enough to get them started.

Working on-set or backstage is different from working behind the chair. What do you think you helped with the most?

Once we got going, a lot of people were doing iron work and because of my varied experiences I maybe have a different way to go about it. There is a way you work back stage. It’s not your normal salon work. That is the cool part of fashion week, you get to work with high caliber hairdressers. There is a way you work, it’s quick and precise. That’s what I wanted to show the students. That there is another way of doing things. Things you don’t learn that in a traditional salon environment

The big thing is keeping the hair and looks in proportion. You get done and it looks right and you think “awesome” but then look through the lens and it looks off. The lens doesn’t lie. Suddenly you see all these little things, the pieces you over looked. They will haunt you. Somthing as easy as a pony tail. You get it all done then the photo is taken and all of a sudden you are off center.

I love that I got to get my hands into their work and show them how to make those things disappear. It helped me as much as it helped them. They were inspiring.

For information on upcoming classes at Federico Advanced, contact Kimber Bootay 916.929.4242.