John Cicione

Hairdressing Barbering Teacher

“It was a pure fluke random decision to become a hairdresser. But it was the best decision I ever made. I couldn’t see myself doing anything else now.”

Going on 15 years in the industry and 5 years teaching. John is passionate about everything hair and the transfer of knowledge. He’s still a very active student of hair. Constantly seeking out the best teachers and workshops.

“I love anything and everything related to hair and especially hair education. Truly the things I love the most are the learning and the teaching. But I’m very equally passionate about Mens womens cuts, Colour, styling, all of it.”

John’s passion and mission are to save his students the TIME, MONEY & PAIN.

Time: by consolidating all of the different knowledge which took him 15 years to acquire. And they will immediately hit the career on a high note. “I’m trying to turn what took me 15 years into 3-5 years for them.

Money: by giving them this knowledge (at the cost of tuition) they can save literally tens of thousands of dollars that I paid.

Pain: by giving them an extremely strong foundational expert knowledge it will make them extremely competent and confident and will minimize painful experiences behind the chair which can ultimately make people quit the career entirely. Even from one very bad experience. By saving them this pain and having this knowledge and also the vocabulary , they will be able to attract mentors within the industry.

I also want school to be an amazing experience for the students. And FUN! I love creating a positive group environment and watching students bond quickly with each other. I’m also NOT A NATURAL at this craft. It was incredibly hard for me and did not come quick or easy. It was very difficult and painful. I’ve made EVERY MISTAKE. Which is actually a blessing because now I can pinpoint students difficulties and problems immediately. I know because I’ve had all the same problems. So I’m able to correct the problems quickly and start them off with very good habits.

Memorable moments: they happen daily. Every time a student has any sort of breakthrough in class and ‘THEY FINALLY GET IT’. And I see that expression and energy and their joy. I have students reaching out to me constantly even now years after they graduate and they thank me for what I taught them and for the career advice I gave them. And they tell me how great their career is going and that I was a big part of that. Every time I get a message like that, it really makes me emotional hahahahaha.

Advice for students: Perseverance beats natural ability everyday all day. So work hard and don’t give up.