Meet Ronnie anderson | hairstylist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ronnie anderson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ronnie, what is the most important factor behind your success?
energy ! We are a hair salon and I started my career as a hairstylist in London , lucky to be surrounded by the top stylists in the county . Imagine you’re in a business where you see something new everyday that excites you and gets your creative juices flowing .. It was definitely a revolution in style . That kind of energy doesn’t come around that often and and it took a few years for me to realize just how lucky I was to have the training I received at Vidal sassoon .
As Blue Mambo has grown my partner , Julie Deal and I have realized everything i’s a learning experience. and have had an amazing journey .
We have experienced quite a few changes in the 25 years seeing great stylists come into the family . That to me is one of the most important factors in our business.
We are only as good as the staff we have and that’s where that different type of energy appears . The positive vibe !
You can feel an energy when you walk into a business . I want nothing but good , for anyone who walks into the salon . stylist or client .. people are smart , they can feel warm and fuzzy just as they can feel uptight .. We are in a people business so there’ are always those times where someone just isn’t on their game , that’s life . but in the most part
our mantra is . be positive , its catching .

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I have to say I’ve had the most amazing journey. I’d like to qualify the art thing first .
I’ve taught at loads of hair shows around Europe and one thing I would say when teaching is Hairdressing , like life is 80 percent bullshit and 20 percent ability .( you can change that to bs if you want )
The 80 percent is having to sell yourself to a client and the 20 per cent is your work .
Now that 20 per cent has to be great but in the beginning if a client likes you they’re more likely to like what you do .
So I take the art thing with a pinch of salt even though we have definitely moved on with painting hair .
Yes ! there is an artistic part to hair but my favorite name of all salons was Architects and heroes …
Anyway! back to Scotland !!! My partner and I did shows in London , Barcelona , Basle and other ciities around Europe .for about 5 years before coming to LA to do a big show there … We got the bug and fell in love with the States .
As the years progressed we became more confident in our work , as always , constantly learning and having a brilliant time as we did .
In my experience it takes 10 years to learn and perfect your craft . The next 10 are learning more about business and if you’re lucky you don’t lose too much money while making your mistakes. .
At first it was all about being a purist and loving what you did . How many of us can really say we’ve had a brilliant journey in our work life ..
Getting back to my 80 per cent / 20 per cent !!! Only my opinion but I think if you find 20 per cent that loved their job we’d be doing well …
My personal philosophy is don’t take yourself too seriously so I always try to translate that into our brand . I do lean towards artistic people working in the shop pushing fashion as much as we can .
I feel we are also different in that we have a muse in our salon . Urban muse to be exact..
Jo Ann does energy work in her secret room in our shop , as in chakra , eastern philosophy zen like vibe . i feel it helps lean us to a better energy..
We also have Throwing copper , a natural spray tan from the wonderful Samantha

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would have them come in autumn . personally I love the outdoors so would take them to the parks and prove Houston is not all concrete
Monday Herman park , the old rose garden , feed the ducks . evening eat at Flora on Allen Parkway ( beautiful restaurant , Mexican food )
Tuesday breakie at Tiny boxwood ( amazing outdoor patio ) The Arboretum ( love what they’re doing in Memorial Park Area .
Evening , Go to Spain , eat at BCN
You can visit a different county every night with the brilliant food here .
Wednesday take them to the Middle East Do lunch at Hansa in the village . ( great Israeli restaurant,(another lovely patio ) then walk around the area to show we can shop outdoors .
Take a drive down Fairview in the early evening to Boheme . great wine bar . Also love the people watching in the later Evening in that area
Then off to France ( cafe Rabelais back in the village for amazing mussels and the best wine )
Thursday Downtown Post Eatery for lunch , so many choices .. then back to the Museums next to Herman park Free on thursday’s , I think !!!!
Evening would be good at the age old Carrabbas ( italian) there are so many great restaurants here but I still like people watching in Carrabbas and the food is good.
Friday We would have to visit the most Amazing shop in Houston kuhl Linscomb.
I cannot think of another shop like it . A department store right out of a New York movie . My life and work is about inspiration, this shop is a shock to your senses . The most brilliant displays , forget buying anything, just walk around and soak in the pieces of vintage tables , racks , downright works of art ..
They have everything here .. it reminds me of a smaller Harrods .
We’d take drive through River Oaks shopping district to show them what I can’t afford but again good people watching .
Evening , we would take our partner Julie Deal to Le Colonial back in River Oaks district ( she’s paying ) for a bit of vietnamese

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
absolutely! First and foremost i’s my wife , Jo Ann
Our business partner Julie Deal
My mentor is the partner I started business with in Scotland , Brian Drumm .
All the stylists that have passed through our doors are the people who built our name ..
The misfits that work with us now are the best…
perfection is imperfection

Website: bluemambostudio.com

Instagram: bluemambo

Facebook: bluemambo