An exclusive interview with Larry King

I was at college not working that hard, and my mum suggested that I should get out and learn a trade. She reached out to Toni & Guy in Cambridge as she had a friend who worked there, and from day one I just loved hairdressing. It was my whole life. 

It was a surreal moment. A friend of mine said if you want 200 people to come to the launch party, then you need to invite around 300 to 400. So, I invited all my clients and friends in my phone; everybody I’d ever worked with and literally 300 to 400 people turned up. 

It was carnage! There were a lot of big names and celebrities, too. Niall from One Direction turned up, so did David Gandy and a lot of other friends. It was actually so big that it made the newspapers. It grew quite a momentum. But being in the salon cutting hair together with my stylist friends was a very proud moment.

‘A Social Life For Your Hair’ is the ethos behind our whole brand. Our salons are friendly and not intimidating when you walk in and that comes from the friendship that all our staff have with each other. Clients feel welcome and everyone feels a part of the movement. The salons were designed to be like old-fashioned barber shops but moved into a hair salon environment, crossed with Soho House - where in the early days you would turn up and always know people that were there. And all of that is underlined with a luxury service.

Yes it was actually. We got goosebumps when we walked in as it was like a mini version of our South Ken salon. We turned it around quite quickly and launched with a great team. It had a difficult start as we opened three months before Covid, but now it’s unbelievable. There are stylists that work between the two which keeps the brand ethos and the ‘Social Life For Your Hair’ story going.

I was offered the space as they saw how large our brand is in London. Monaco is such a well-known but also such a small place, I felt that it lent itself to growing the brand internationally from our products through to the salons themselves. And also, being linked to Hôtel de Paris, one of the grandest hotels in the world, has helped elevate the brand to global status.

We’ve always had a dream to open in America. We’ve done some small pop-ups in the past, but opening a salon has always been on our list of things to do. We were originally thinking LA, but now we have shifted our focus to New York, and it’s on the plan for the next one to two years. If Covid hadn't have happened, we may have achieved this already.

My very close friend David (Gandy) and I entered the hair shoots world together and worked alongside each other. But I’ve also done lots of other people from Cara Delevingne and Poppy Delevingne to a lot of big supermodels including Gigi Hadid and Karlie Kloss. My client list is quite large and long. It includes everyone from the film industry to the music industry and the fashion industry. But I think the first celebrity I did was Annie Lennox. I only did her hair a couple of times, but she was my first.

I’ve done close to 50 flights this year, which is the most I have ever done annually in my whole career. I travel all around the world and in just three days’ time I am flying to Australia. At the beginning of the year, I spent six weeks travelling with Jared Leto doing his hair for different premieres and press days. He was in two films and also a series on Apple TV. I travelled from Mexico to lots of different states of America and then through Europe with him. It was incredible.

Maldives. Actually, David Ox (Winged Boots’ MD) booked me a holiday to One&Only Reethi Rah which, for me, will always stand out as one of the best hotels and one of the best holidays I have ever had. I have to extend a big thanks to David for setting that all up. It was an incredible holiday. I loved snorkelling the reefs and the service at One&Only is next level. I’m a big fan.

I haven’t been to Thailand and I would like to go to some of the South American countries that I haven’t been to yet. I’ve visited Brazil but would like to see Peru and Argentina.

I have worked in Claridges and The Connaught many times doing celebrities hair for events and royalty that have travelled in from around the world. I’ve also stayed there and put those dressing gowns on myself. So, I would say they are my two favourites. They have an old London heritage too which is very special and gives you a sense that you’re staying in our capital. I am also a big fan of The Nomad.

I often visit some of Jason Atherton's London restaurants: Pollen Street Social, Social Eating House and Berners Tavern. I think he is an incredible chef, and he is a very good friend of mine. His restaurants are second to none. However, if I fancy Japanese, I also go to ROKA on North Audley Street. It is quite small and intimate, has good music and a very buzzy vibe.

I would go to Borneo to see the orangutans and I would take my wife. Also, just off the coast of Mexico, there’s a small island called Guadalupe and that’s on my list. I want to swim with great white sharks and the giant ones of the world often congregate around that island. I’d love to take my daughter with me.

A football. It seemed to keep Tom Hanks alive. Or maybe a picture of my family. That would keep me more alive than anything. Or a snorkel and mask so I could catch fish a lot easier.

Wash your hair before you go to the beach, leave the conditioner running through it, and gently tie it up. It will nourish the hair and stop it drying out. Also, embrace that beach hair and don’t use too many heat tools. 

The service that Winged Boots has to offer is exceptional. The concierge style of booking that Winged Boots provides is second to none and I know that multiple groups of my friends use Winged Boots for the same reason and that’s because of the service and professionalism that is needed to achieve that dream holiday.

Alongside Larry's three salons, he also has a haircare range of essential products from shampoo and conditioner to specific curl enhancer treatments and a 'fly away' kit to help perfect any style. What's more, there are also refill kits available to save you money and help the planet. Discover a few of our favourite items...

"I don’t treat anyone differently from a client to a celebrity. You need to look at their hair type and the products that you are applying. When we launched Larry King Haircare, I made sure they were very manipulative products. You can really use the products to layer onto the hair and combine them together to suit all hair types and textures, as well as enhance cuts and styles."

To purchase Larry King Haircare, visit larryking.co.uk

Good Life Shampoo, £39
City Life Shampoo, £39
Nourishing Curl Enhancer, £26
Velvet Texture Clay, £22
Everywhere & Anywhere Duo, £33
Liquid Hairbrush Conditioner, £42
Liquid Hairbrush Conditioner Refill, £42