Name: Cass Preston
Position: Salon Owner

With a family of inspirational business owners behind her, Cass was always destined to be the proprietor of a thriving independent salon. Her hairdressing career began more than 30 years ago in Whalley and thanks to the Ribble Valley’s fashionable selection of independent enterprises, Cass believes the village centre makes the perfect base for Lusso and its stylish clients.

Taking immense pride in her handpicked, homegrown team, Cass’s favourite part of her job at the salon’s helm is nurturing talent and seeing her employees flourish. She is confident that she has the best line-up of staff in the Ribble Valley and is so invested in them that if she won the lottery, she would happily give them all shares in Lusso!

Family-focused Cass puts her success down to believing in herself and not letting other people put her down. Her favourite time of year in the salon is Christmas, her drink of choice is Hendrick’s gin and Fever Tree tonic and the product she couldn’t live without is the revolutionary Wella Plex, as it allows for hair to be coloured without damaging its condition.

Name: Donna Metcalfe
Position: Salon Manager and Style Director

Bringing experience and erudition to Lusso, Donna has been at Cass’s right hand for seven years and is proud to have never turned down a training opportunity in that time. From the prestigious Wella Masters to a Management degree, Donna’s passion for perfection means that attending the academy to expand her expertise is one of the most important aspects of her job and it is this commitment to knowledge that has seen her become the salon’s go-to girl for advice.

Conscientious Donna places importance on building solid relationships with her clients, getting to know them as people and giving them a luxurious salon experience that goes beyond their expectations. In fact, the most rewarding part of the job for Lusso’s manager is seeing clients leave the salon feeling on top of the world after their appointment.

Describing herself as a ‘live for the moment’ kind of girl, Donna lives by the mantra ‘Do what makes you happy’ and as well as hairdressing, for her that means spending time with her dog, Gus, holidaying with her friends and drinking the odd gin and tonic – always a double!

Name: Oli Kenyon
Position: Creative Stylist

With a host of hairdressing and barbering training courses behind him, success in several competitions including the impressive L’Oreal Colour Trophy Awards, and a soon-to-be bestowed Wella Masters under his belt, Oli is one of Lusso’s greatest assets. Known within the team as The Master of Balayage and The Curl King, creativity and a competitive nature are what give Oli the edge – and with hairdressing role models such as colourist Guy Tank and stylist to the stars Chris Appleton, he’s never short of inspiration for his next hair transformation.

Oli’s skills have been exclusively forged in the Lusso salon having arrived under the instruction of Cass four years ago as an apprentice and he claims the best part of his job is the way he’s able to instil confidence in his clients through the mastery of his craft.

Seeing a future in catwalk and editorial work, Oli describes himself as somewhat OCD and he relies on the likes of Superdust and texturising sprays to achieve a flawless finish. Valued as much for his social role in the Lusso team as for his natural talent, Oli’s favourite tipple is rhubarb gin and lemonade and his celebrity hair hero is Rihanna.

Name: Harriet Wells
Position: Stylist

Arriving fresh from the Toni and Guy Academy where she was awarded Diploma Levels 2 and 3, Harriet’s hairdressing career has soared in her two years at Lusso. Having left an unsatisfying desk job in recruitment to pursue her creative destiny on the salon floor, Harriet delights in utilising her repertoire of skills, acquired on a multitude of training courses, to help her clients reach their full hair potential.

The most important piece of advice Harriet has even been given is that the consultation is the most important part of her job and in abiding by this she has established herself as a commendable and popular stylist who clients request again and again.

Putting her faith in Kerastase Elixir Oil to produce smooth, shiny results and Wella Sugar Lift for voluminous roots, Harriet’s celebrity hair inspiration is Khloe Kardashian and her aims for the future are to increase her portfolio and to take part in forthcoming Wella hairdressing competitions.

With a larger than life personality, Harriet could be described as the life and soul of the salon and she believes that having a fantastic boss and a close working family unit is one of the reasons she is so driven to progress. Buy Harriet a holiday to Barbados or a gin martini with an olive and she’s a happy hairdresser!

Name: Connie Greenlees
Position: Graduate Stylist

Connie arrived in Cass’s team straight from school and has already achieved her Level 2 hairdressing, Colour Keys and Colour Change qualifications and is part-way to completing her barbering training. Under Oli’s patient tutorship Connie is thriving in the salon environment, which is perhaps the reason why she appreciatively refers to her learned colleague as her hairdressing idol.

As the self-confessed baby of the team, Connie is eager, enthusiastic and focused on continuing up the Lusso ladder, bringing to the salon a great work ethic and a keenness to learn. Citing Christmas Jumper Day as her favourite working day of the year, Connie enjoys the buzz of the salon floor and says that working amongst the talented Lusso team keeps her striving to improve.

Cass’s words of wisdom – to keep going as it will all be worth it in the end – have given Connie the encouragement to work towards her Level 3 qualification and to aspire to one day own a villa with a private swimming pool in her dream holiday destination of Tenerife.