Claire
Claire has spent more than 30 years at Kao Professional Hair, the parent company behind Goldwell, KMS, Kerasilk and Varis. Her career started at the salon chair as a stylist, before moving into global haircare education and, eventually, senior commercial leadership. She's currently Commercial Director of Education for Kao Europe - a role she holds alongside co-running The Establishment, which she founded with Ross in 2013.
In her Kao role, Claire educates salons and leads shows and events across Europe, builds creative teams both locally and internationally, and works on new product concepts from initial idea through to launch. She regularly visits salons around the world and brings back the best of what she sees - part of why The Establishment's team includes stylists with genuinely international backgrounds. It happened organically, through Claire's own network and standards.
Senior industry access, in your chair
Running commercial education for Kao Europe means Claire is directly responsible for ensuring Kao's countries and salons across Europe are profitable and successful - genuine, senior business experience most salon clients never get near. It also means she gets early access to industry trends and advance knowledge of which products are worth investing in, well before they reach the wider market. For a client in her chair, that translates into deep, current product knowledge and access to Goldwell, KMS and Kerasilk formulations chosen because they work, not because of a marketing arrangement.
Claire's business and team-building experience also shapes how The Establishment itself runs. Together with Ross, she built a salon designed to feel good for team and clients alike, where stylists are genuinely invested in clients' long-term hair plans rather than a single appointment. Her own way of summing up the salon's philosophy: "Strong, Visionary, Nurturing."
Strong, Visionary, Nurturing.
Building The Establishment with Ross
Claire co-founded The Establishment alongside Ross in 2013, choosing Downing Street in Farnham for its fiercely independent, community feel. Since then, the salon has become an authorised Goldwell and Kao salon - a status not every salon qualifies for - using professional Goldwell, KMS and Kerasilk products chosen for hair health, not just short-term results. Read more about the products the salon uses on the Goldwell salon page.
Every client who sits in Claire's chair benefits from that same rigour: a proper consultation before anything begins, honest advice about what's realistically achievable, and product recommendations backed by genuine formulation knowledge rather than a sales script.
Claire · Salon Director
Book Your Appointment
30+ years of Kao expertise, early access to trends, and genuine senior industry knowledge in your chair. Book online or call the salon on Downing Street, Farnham.