Cover Story: Danielle Keasling, SalonEVO’s Newest Columnist

Daring to be our cover star this issue is the one and only Danielle Keasling, our newest SalonEVO columnist. From editorial stylist, platform artist and educator to luxury bridal stylist, celebrity stylist, extensions expert, colorist, mentor and coach, the list of Danielle’s roles and specialties is nearly endless. And her main goal in this industry is to help elevate hairdressing and help stylists grow.

Today, Danielle is known as Global Director of the L’Oréal brands Matrix and Biolage, Executive Artistic Director of Great Lengths USA, and a member of the Ulta Beauty Pro Team. She was named 2018 North American Hairstylist of the Year and 2021 NAHA Editorial Stylist of the Year, and has been nominated another 10 times. Her year is off to another great start: she is a finalist yet again for the NAHA 2023 Hairstylist of the Year award, and her team at Hair Biz and Beyond is a finalist for NAHA 2023 Team of the Year.

When she isn’t working with one of the brands she has aligned herself with, Danielle runs her coaching business, Hair Biz and Beyond, where she provides one-on-one coaching for individuals and businesses to help them make their next move. This issue, we wanted to dive deep into Danielle’s story and learn what motivates her and makes her tick.

From editorial to educator

To start, we wanted Danielle’s story from the very beginning. She explained: “There are two main sides to the hairstyling world. There’s the public or fashion-facing side, where stylists work with celebrities, designers and models in session and editorial styling. And there’s the professional-facing side, where stylists become educators, brand ambassadors and platform artists.

“While most professionals know me as the latter, I actually started out in the editorial world of hairdressing. I was assisting and working at fashion weeks, working with designers, and doing set work.”

After years of grinding in the editorial world, Danielle opened her own salon in 2011, an employee-based salon in her area. “So I really needed a strong culture and a strong education system to attract employees. We were a L’Oréal salon and I loved Matrix, so I thought, why don’t I become a Matrix educator, so I can teach their curriculum in my salon and get experience teaching other classes as well? That was really successful for my salon and strengthened that culture.

“Being a Matrix educator was sort of my side hustle. I flew under the radar for a couple of years, until one day I landed an industry magazine’s front cover. All of a sudden everybody was asking, ‘Who is this Matrix educator, Danielle Keasling?’”

I have worked with celebrities, worked on film sets, and styled for editorial. And so now, my main goal is to share my knowledge and experience to help other stylists get to where they want to be.

Photography: Richard Monsieurs.

First published in SalonEVO, April/May 2023.