8 minute read
Next Level Beauty – Talitha Price, Founder of Fox & Vamp takes us though her tips to get beach ready
Next Level Beauty
Talitha Price, Founder of Fox & Vamp, takes us though her tips to get beach ready
WORDS: AMY SESSIONS
such a treat to use, so holidays are the perfect opportunity. For my body, I always use minimum factor 20 during the day and I am obsessed with MUTHA body oil. After spending time in the sun I like to shower, dry brush, then oil up. For hair I have 2 products I cannot be without on holiday; one is Balmain Sun protection spray to ensure it stays healthy, shiny and doesn’t fade in the sun and the second is OUAI wave spray which gives the perfect beach wave. Are you a light packer or a heavy packer and are there any go-to pieces you always pack for vacation? I can actually be quite efficient when it comes to packing, I am in general “organised chaos” as my husband likes to describe me. I try to plan my outfits for each day, with meals out etc. so I don’t over pack. However, one thing I cannot compromise on packing is my skincare routine, so this always adds to the weight. I do tend to find myself living in Hunza G bikinis and oversized white linen shirts on repeat during all vacations, I just feel they fit well, are comfy and easy to throw on. Travelling can disrupt our routines. How do you ensure you maintain your habits? After flying I find my skin always gets dehydrated so maintaining my skincare routine helps keep this under control. A good cleanser, serum and tons of my daily moisturiser always helps with this. I tend to conWhat do the first 30 minutes of your day look like at home and tinue my workout regime even when I am away on vacahow does this differ on vacation? I am really not a great morn- tion, for me it really helps start my day, clear my mind and ing person in all honesty; I tend to wake up pretty early around generally makes me feel better. Sometimes all it takes is 20 6ish, I take the first 30 minutes of my day to make myself a minutes. I eat healthily the majority of the time, but life is matcha, quickly check up on emails and glance over the col- short, and vacations are meant to be enjoyable, so I like to umn of clients or meetings I have for the day ahead. As I work think of it as soul food when you eat what makes you happy. with lots of overseas suppliers, I tend to have zoom meetings Fox & Vamp has seen huge success since it launched and or calls pre 7am. Then my 16-month-old son wakes up and the now, you’re bringing it to the Middle East. Do you find there morning gets considerably more hectic. is huge demand for higher quality hair than before and how
On vacation, I have to say it looks pretty similar, when you should we be looking after our extensions on vacation? I have your own business you very rarely switch off, and when think in general, transparency about the hair is key. We you are a mother, you definitely never switch off. choose to source and only work with high quality hair beCan you take us though your top tips to be beach ready? I truly cause it looks and feels the best, as well as looking the most believe when your hair is great, you feel great. For me personal- natural. Hair extensions in general are a commodity and ly I feel good when my hair is full, with body throughout (from like any good commodity are hard to source. It has taken us the right extensions) and a keratin treatment to contain the years and lots of different suppliers to ensure we only offer frizz in the heat which is an absolute must for anybody with the best options to our clients. The hand-picked shades, frizzy hair. I am happy to go makeup free on the beach if I have the texture of the hair in its natural state, as well as its state great hair! In terms of body tips, I love Pilates and practice it after being styled and finally the reliability of the hair exall year round. I try to drink as much water as possible and tensions durability ensures our clients are happy and keep believe in the power of dry body brushing to help with cellulite. returning. On holiday we have some basic guidelines on What are your go-to products for sun-protection both face, how best to look after your hair extensions. body and hair? My face essential is Kate Somervile SPF 50 Rule 1: No top knots in the water as this can cause tanspray; it’s super easy to spray on and has a blurring effect on gling or matting once hair is wet. Rule 2: After swimming fine lines whilst acting as a makeup setting spray. I have re- in the ocean or pool, thoroughly rinse your hair in a shower cently fallen in love with 111skin sheet masks and find them and we encourage you to tie it in a plait to air dry in the sun,
this will keep your hair and the hair extensions the same texture. Rule 3: Use a sun protector spray to stop your perfect shade discolouring in the sun. Rule 4: Take a great hair mask to use in the evening, as the sun and water can dry your hair out, this will keep your extensions in great condition. If you have extensions how do you suggest tying them up for sleep or when in the water to protect them? During the night we suggest that your hair always be dry before bed and to tie your hair in a low pony or plait used with a silk hair band when going to sleep as this will keep them in optimal condition. When swimming, again we advise a low ponytail only or a cap if it is regular swimming. Once out of the water, rinse the chlorine or saltwater off in a shower and use a wide tooth comb through your hair while it is still wet to ensure you detangle it fully. What have been the biggest challenges to date since launching and how did you overcome them? Without a doubt the pandemic was our biggest challenge; I opened our London Chelsea salon doors in November 2019 and were forced to close in March of 2020. We are a services business and at the time did not have products to be able to sell online or any way to make revenue. In a strange way, as hard as the pandemic was for us all especially during the uncertainty, I felt this huge wave of support from our clients in the short spaces we were allowed to reopen. The team and I basically worked around the clock to get everybody in, we also felt this shift in people having a desire to look and feel amazing after being “locked down”; we really felt we could build confidence and were helping improve our client’s mental health by making them feel good in such a bizarre time. How have you found social media in terms of supporting brand growth? For Fox &Vamp it has been instrumental in the success of the brand, the results are very visual, so Instagram works well for us to showcase our work to a wide audience for free. We have been lucky to work with influential people with large followings who have shared their love of the brand and luckily, we have a product they love and are happy to talk about. Hair extensions can come with a little bit of stigma; I think people can automatically think “false, fake, long or even tacky”, so working with the right image of people has helped shift that mindset for our clients. The reality is, the majority of Hollywood has hair extensions, so when you think of somebody like J.Lo, your thought may be how incredible her hair is, but technically speaking it is not all her hair, people just don’t realise that. I think social media has helped “normalise” extensions and make people see they are easy, accessible and even just a few can help make a big difference. I have never paid for marketing or worked with a PR agency to date, I am not ruling it out for the future but so far, our growth has all stemmed from social media and word of mouth. How do you approach scaling without compromising on quality? For me keeping the brand values alive will be critical when expanding. Our guiding principles are about craftmanship; it is all real human hair crafted with a mindful approach to detail. Accessibility at all levels depending whether you want a quick fix to do yourself at home or come to the salon for the full experience and always remembering why we exist will be at the core of the scaling journey. The brand exists to boost the hearts and heads of women around the world who have naturally fine, sparse or no hair. Being the founder of my business, I really want amazing things to happen. I am a risk taker, open to change and I very much act on instinct. Staying prepared, open to constantly learning, growing the team with the best people possible, whilst continually sourcing the highest level of products I hope will give the brand the best chance for the future. This is The Summer Escape Issue – where would you like to escape to this summer? Mallorca is my favourite place on earth, I recently got married there so the island will always be so special to me, I am certainly hoping to escape there again in August.
