We’ve managed to pin down John Paul DeJoria for a chat about the values that shaped Paul Mitchell and why human connection will always keep hairdressing relevant.
What roles have compassion, ethics and sustainability played in your business decisions?
Compassion goes into everything I do. I try to make sure that, in my business decisions, I do the greatest good for the greatest number of people, where everybody benefits and no one takes advantage of anybody else. When we started John Paul Mitchell Systems in 1980, even though we had no money, we were immediately focused on sustainability and not testing on animals. To me, it’s very important in business that we integrate sustainability. For example, our Tea Tree brand has committed to planting two million trees around the world. We use tea tree from Australia, where it’s native, and we source awapuhi from our very own farm in Hawaii that is solar-powered and uses captured rainwater—we always try to be more sustainable in big ways and small.
Can you share a moment in your life when giving to others changed you more than the people you were helping?
Oh, definitely. When I was six years old, our family had nothing. It was just my mom, my brother and me. My mom took us to downtown Los Angeles on a trolley car. It was during Christmas time. She gave my brother and I ten cents, an American dime. And together we put the dime in the red bucket of a man that was ringing a bell. Now, this was 1950. In those days, a dime was two soda pops or three candy bars. My mom explained, well, guys, that’s the Salvation Army. And there are people that don’t have food to eat or places to stay. And that’s why we donate. And remember this, boys, as long as you live, there’ll always be somebody that needs something more than you. I never forgot that. It became part of my life.
What does legacy mean to you, not just in business, but as a human being?
I want my legacy to be someone who came to this planet with nothing and left behind things that gave people better lives. That’s it. That I made millions of lives better because I was here. It’s like paying a little bit of rent for being on planet Earth.
In times of hardship or failure, what inner voice or principle has guided you back to purpose?
Do not look at the past—what happened, what you regret, what you would do differently—because you can’t change yesterday’s newspapers.
Instead, I look ahead. For example, at one time I was homeless. We had no car, no money, no food. We needed transportation. I found someone that had an older car, but the water pump was broken. So, every four hours, I had to put water in the car, right? But at least I had a car. I could do that. And then my son and I would go out and collect soda pop bottles. Because in my day, you got two cents for a little bottle and five cents for a big one, and that’s how we got money. My focus was, we’ve got to eat and we need transportation, as opposed to, oh, poor me. You have to look ahead, start there.
If you could pass on one core belief or value to hairstylists, what would it be and why?
Be prepared in life for a lot of rejections but keep going.
Number one, you’re in an industry that’s only going to grow. And number two, look at what you want to do in the future. Do you want to own a salon? Work behind the chair? Go into the movie industry? There are so many things you can do. Look at everything that’s available to you, see
what interests you the most, and start working towards that. Because success is really up to you. You’re the one that’s got to make it happen, nobody else. And we have all the tools for you.
It’s a great industry to go into. Even with the presence of AI, hairdressers will still have jobs in 10 or 20 years, and likely be in even higher demand, because the human connection will always remain key. Hairdressers truly make people’s lives happier—that connection and the moment spent in the chair is special. Clients walk out with their heads higher and shoulders back, feeling great because you’ve made them look and feel beautiful.
What does the future of Paul Mitchell look like to you?
Paul Mitchell will always be in the professional beauty industry. We’ll always support pros. Every industry is changing, and I see our future growing. Because people are looking to take care of themselves, and a hairdresser makes them feel good. Not just look good but feel good. And as we spend more time on social media and online, a lot of people really crave that one-on-one connection. As long as we remember to make the customer feel happy. Tell them how great they are, remind them of the good, and include them in the conversation. A lot of people don’t get that in their everyday lives. Let them know you appreciate them, and that you truly value them.
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