After 57 years in the business, Shepparton's Graham Mitchell knows hairdressing is so much more than cutting and colouring hair.
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It's about sharing life with locals — the tears, the triumphs and the truly terrific hairdos.
Just ask his clients; he's been cutting hair for some since the day he kicked off his career at 18, styling as many as five generations of families in his long career.
But now, at 73, Graham is finally calling it a day, packing up the comb and scissors and setting off on the next great adventure: retirement.
Graham started hairdressing in 1964 "by accident".
His sister, who worked in Melbourne at the time, had suggested he get into the industry after school, as he'd always had a creative streak.
But with hairdressing by no means a traditional apprenticeship for a country boy, Graham said a resounding: "I don't think so.”
But fate had other ideas.
Dropping into Shepparton one day with his dad, Graham decided to burn a couple hours by visiting an employment office.
“The bloke at the office asked, ‘What kind of employment would you like'?" Graham said.
“I blurted out, ‘Hairdressing'.”
Before he knew it, Graham was tiptoeing nervously into his new workplace, where his eight new colleagues (all women) turned to eye him sceptically.
He was the newest apprentice to Hugh Lauder in Maude St — one of only three hair salons in town.
It was difficult, daunting work from day one, particularly as he was the only male hairdressing apprentice in the whole of Shepparton at the time.
“Thankfully my boss was very good. And because I looked like a fish out of water, the clients were very supportive,” Graham said.
“The other girls got really jealous, because I used to get all these gifts for Christmas and they didn't.”
A time before trade schools, apprentices were immediately thrown in the deep end.
“My first haircuts were done with a cut-throat razor. Because if I wasn't extremely gentle with my touch, there'd be no hair left,” Graham said.
“My boss used to blindfold me and tell me to run my hands through clients’ hair and tell him where the different weight areas were.
“I still use that technique, as it's better to cut hair by feeling than looking.”
When Graham started in the industry, hairstyling was all about longevity.
In winter, when local balls were in full swing, clients would drop in once a week for a fresh ‘do, with styles expected to hold fast through several nights of dancing.
“We used to do 25 perms a day. We'd have a client every 15 minutes,” he said.
Once his apprenticeship was completed, Graham was offered a partnership in a salon on the current site of the RSL in Wyndham St.
He bought the business after three years and ran it for another decade before transforming a large residence in Maude St into a salon.
He ran this under the name Hair Tis for another 17 years, employing 10 staff.
After trying (and failing) to retire, Graham set up a shared business with two younger hairdressers at Freshair in Fryers St.
Initially planning to stay for five years, that eventually turned into 12 — which brings us to today.
From beehives to perms to mullets, Graham has seen hairstyles evolve throughout the decades.
But he said his favourite looks came out of the bold and bright 70s and 80s.
“In England, (hairstylist) Vidal Sassoon would walk around the streets where all the bohemian kids were and that's where he'd get his ideas,” he said.
“They'd use these outrageous colours and lop-sided haircuts, which Sassoon would take back to the salon and refine.”
In comparison, Graham said styles today could be pretty boring.
“Nearly every second girl has long hair cut straight at the bottom. They were a lot bolder in the 60s and 70s,” he said.
“But where older women would stick to a traditional cut back in the days, they are being a lot more adventurous with colour and cuts after they turn 50. So it's kind of swapped.”
In addition to garnering scores of diehard local fans throughout the years, Graham has made waves in the industry.
He ran trips to hairdressing shows in Melbourne for apprentices who went on to win state awards.
He was then asked to join the prestigious international hairdressing organisation Intercoiffure.
As Victorian artistic director he travelled across Australia and to Europe where he met and worked with hair icons Vidal Sassoon and Toni and Guy.
It's a CV most hairdressers would die for.
But reflecting on his career, Graham said one of the major highlights was working with Goulburn Valley Hospice Care to design wigs for local cancer sufferers.
“When these clients walked through the door, they'd often be surrounded by an entourage of protectors, which I'd have to gently send away,” he said.
“If clients were around family, they struggled to open up because they didn't want to cause distress.
“But when they were with a total stranger like me, they'd openly share what they wanted and how they felt.
“I've never met so many heroes as I did working with Hospice.”
Throughout his almost six decades on the job, Graham has been there for the highs and the lows in his clients’ lives.
“One day I saw a police officer approaching the salon through the reflection in the mirror,” he recalled.
“When I went out to ask if I could help, he asked if a certain woman was in the shop and I said yes.
“He then told me the woman's son had just been killed, and he needed to tell her. I was halfway through setting her hair, so he said I could finish first.
“Then he told her gently in a nearby room. It was just horrendous.”
But overall, Graham's career has been dominated by the highs — the birthdays, weddings and growing families.
Countless snapshots of local lives played out on the salon floor.
Now, 57 years down the track from when he shuffled into his first salon, he's finally retiring.
Although, "retire" is a bit of loose term for Graham.
He still has a salon of sorts set up in his house where long-term clients (more mates than clients) can come for a fresh cut.
As for the rest of his spare time — he plans to spend it with his wife, Christine, and their seven grandchildren in his beloved garden.
“Once the coronavirus took off, my children said, ‘You can't stay at the salon, Dad’," Graham said.
“They were right. When I first tried to retire, it was so tough. This time around, it's not. I'm excited to slow down a bit and spend time at home with my loved ones.
“But I will miss the industry. Every day of my career has been a happy day.”
Senior Journalist