Locals Only - Sitting Down With Mr. Smith Creator David Justin to Talk Hair, Sustainability and Keeping it in the Family.

Tell us about the forming of the brand - what inspired you to start Mr. Smith?

I really wanted to build a brand that resonated firstly with myself, but also my beliefs - and what I now think are the wider community’s beliefs. Those beliefs are supporting local industries, supporting local manufacturing, and making a product that is high quality, high performing, and doesn’t take any shortcuts with development. So for us it was about keeping it local, but also premium and luxe at the same time.

You have a strong editorial focus and runway presence, both here and overseas. Do you find yourself designing products to create something you've been missing in your kit?

I’m actually not a hairdresser, that’s Freda (Mother and creative director of Mr. Smith). I look at it more from a marketing and product development background. Absolutely all of our styling products are very much driven by recent looks and trends, but also things that are timeless. We don’t want to bring in a product that’s just a fad and will get discontinued. That’s something I’m really proud of in the years that we’ve had Mr. Smith - we’ve never discontinued a product, or created a product that’s become irrelevant. Everything has maintained its relevancy, and although we develop something that is required in the now, we also think about it in the long term, and the sustainability of that.

Style, substance and simplicity - the three concepts you pride yourself on. Can you tell us why these are so important to your brand?

Firstly style - style above all else. I think you buy with your eyes so it had to look luxe and chic. I wanted something that resonated with me and something I would want to have in my bathroom. If you can take someone to a certain place and have them have that connection with the brand straight out of the gate, I think a lot of the leg work is already done. Substance - unless you’ve got that substance inside you’re always going to let people down because what’s inside isn’t reflective of the outside. All our products are 100% PETA certified so no animal testing, 100% Australian made and owned, we use naturally derived and organic ingredients, and every product is sulfate and paraben free - that’s the substance. And simplicity - unless something’s simple, it’s not going to work. The more convoluted a message is, the harder it is to get across.So simplicity is really the key to make sure that in our current day you get the brand message through all the noise in the market. 

Mr. Smith is a family owned and operated business - what's the best and worst part about working with family?

How long have you got? Haha. Kidding! The best part is you know that you’ve got people who have your best intentions in mind, and regardless of whether they think they’re hurting your feelings or not, they’ll tell you the truth. That can be both good and bad, because you get brutal honesty, but it’s coming from a good place. I don’t think there is a worst part, I think it’s all a positive - as long as you realise that work’s work, and family’s family. And we really try to create that separation when we get home. Phones are put away, it’s family time - and that’s super crucial to making it work.

Bob is all about using the best professional products, without the crap. Mr. Smith is free from sulphates, parabens and animal testing (which we love!). Is low-toxic and sustainable living something you're passionate about in your own life?

Yes! Very much so. I grew up having chickens in the backyard and growing our own fruit and vegetables, the full European style. So for me, wherever possible that I can have things from farm to table, or grow it myself, I will. I try to always be conscious in my choices - take my own tote bags everywhere, minimize my waste. When I was younger I used to print everything because I didn’t realise the impact, now everything is digital. No one’s perfect and we’re always learning and improving, but I try to do whatever I can to minimize my impact and to flow that through the company. It’s really great because a lot of the people in the office are even heavier on it than myself, so they teach me things and make me better. If everyone pulls together, we can make a real change.

Mr. Smith is a Melbourne based company - why should locals support locals?

I think if you don’t support local - there’s going to be no industry left. I’ve always grown up around salons, my mum’s always had salons, I always look at it as - unless we support the local industry and we respect them, they’re not going to respect and support us, and vice versa. 

What's next for Mr. Smith?

Next year’s going to be pretty fun! We’ve got a lot of launches, we’re rolling out in France, the east coast of America and in Spain so that’s really exciting for us. We’re bringing out a lot of new products, but I also just want to keep building with the salons that we’ve got and the people we already deal with because that’s what keeps us relevant and keeps this job fun.

Lastly, who is Mr. Smith?

I wish I knew that! We didn’t want a brand that was driven by ego or name or things like that - we wanted a brand name that was reflective of style, substance and simplicity and we think Mr. Smith encompasses that. That’s just it - there is no Mr. Smith!