The world isn’t going to change overnight. In fact, it takes the bravest of the brave to see that a change needs to be made, and actually implement it. It is also having the courage to stand by your words and create new trends that will shape the industry. Joico is doing just that. Incorporating inclusivity at all angles. For this project, their approach was to replicate the modern woman with no limitations. No specific age range, hair type, size etc. They were looking for the most authentic representation of women in today’s world. Here’s what the team had to say about their experience.

The world isn’t going to change overnight. In fact, it takes the bravest of the brave to see that a change needs to be made, and actually implement it. It is also having the courage to stand by your words and create new trends that will shape the industry. Joico is doing just that. Incorporating inclusivity at all angles. For this project,their approach was to replicate the modern woman with no limitations. No specific age range, hair type, size etc. They were looking for the most authentic representation of women in today’s world. Here’s what the team had to say about their experience.

What did you have to do differently?

“This was almost easier to cast because we didn’t have to have any limitations. We were not bound by what the model ‘needs to be.’ It was so refreshing that when we casted the models, we didn’t have any boundaries. We wanted our brand to represent ALL women. We wanted to truly be modern, with an eye to the future.”

What was the biggest challenge? 

“Our internal team was not particularly well-versed in working with all textures – we had different textures that we needed to embrace. Although it posed the biggest challenge, it was also our greatest opportunity to work with stylists outside of our brands to learn.”

Favourite experience? 

“There was such amazing energy at prep. The collaboration of multiple artists who had the chance to share their knowledge was incredible. It was amazing to experience what can happen when you combine talent from all over. We had the pleasure of adding a few of the Efe Magazine educators to our team for the day. What a JOI! There were so many learning opportunities for everyone. From styling new hair types to the application of colour. We were able to watch all the artists dive into the unknown; it was incredible. Artists who weren’t familiar with 3C and 4C hair, got that experience. We’ve never had so many experts to bounce ideas off of, or talk things through with. It was a huge takeaway for everyone.”

Moving forward, will this be something that you’ll do with all of your campaigns?

 “Yes, this is our path moving forward. Not having specific requirements for models is key. We want people to know that everyone’s hair can be beautiful with the right products. This is the future but this is also the now. It’s an opportunity to see your brands perform on everyone and every person. It is important for clients to see themselves represented within our brand. Removing the standard model guidelines really opened our eyes to knowing that we were working on something special. There was a collective understanding of what we wanted this shoot to represent. There was an unspoken collective agreement that we would to come together and create something amazing. Our goal was to create a visual representation of the joi of healthy hair. We did that. We were able to achieve that joi throughout the day and the outcome will hopefully be a joiful feeling looking to the future of Joico.”

Camille Bartley

“It was a first for me, working with a colour brand on a photo/video shoot. It was refreshing to see a brand intentionally have all women represented. They went above and beyond to also ensure the comfort and proper execution of hairstyling for everyone. The best part of the day was collaborating and learning from different artists. I think the best thing I have ever done in my career as a hairdresser was to ensure I knew how to work on all hair types.”

Aisha Loobie

“The industry didn’t always feel inclusive, especially since I chose to focus on a hair type that wasn’t very popular. And even though now there is more attention on my chosen expertise, I feel there is still a long way to go. However, having the opportunity to be a part of an inclusive shoot with such a big brand is a great example of the future of industry. It was a great pleasure to learn and share my knowledge.”