A boy with an imagination
At Nashwhite we love a story, everything we do has to have purpose and history, so it only felt right for you to get to know Jordan like we know him.
We asked Jordan where it all began.
Growing up in rural South Yorkshire, with ADHD, and not a lot of money, meant that I had to develop a sense of imagination. I was always considered, by my teachers/ peers to be “creative” and I would, ‘create,’ in any capacity. Whether I was making my own clothes, choreographing new dance routines or creating characters (some might call them imaginary friends) and drawing them, (with my executive set of sketching pencils that I’d won in a creative drawing competition held by the local newspaper – proudest achieve- ment to date?…Possibly!) in the back of my old (spice girls) scrap book. Prestigious accolades and “talents” such as these made me quite unpopular from my class mates and I was often segregated. I found comfort in music, art and performance, always looking for an outlet to express myself and I would 100% BELIEVE in all my “creative” concepts, even if others weren’t so convinced. This dream world I’d manufactured of vivid colour, sparkle, and ‘step ball change’ was my positive place, my happy place, and, try as they may, nobody could burst my bubble.
With the attention span of a goldfish and a longing to innovate, it wasn’t long until I got my hands on my rst box of Schwarzkopf LIVE XL (on o er at the local Superdrug) and a pair of my mums old kitchen scissors (specically used for cutting bacon, if I remember rightly.)
Resourceful as I was, I was soon getting “creative” on the heads of my class mates, fashioning lurid, plum purple botched bobs and pixelated pixie cuts, in the same putrid purple shade, whilst making a tenner a pop. This combination of satisfying my artistic motive’s, and earning a bob or two was very motivational and opened my eyes to new prospects.
When I’m inventing, I’m at my happiest, at my most positive. That feeling of being inspired by something – anything, and the creative urge it gives you. Embarking on an artistic en- deavour and not knowing where its going to take you. Going on the journey and throwing away the rule book. It’s just a total place of freedom, a place I can let my hair down (no pun intended) and vanquish my anxieties. It’s crazy how this place of uncertainty can make me feel so secure.
At school the word “creative” was often used as a bit of consolation, for not being academic or theoretical. I had to be my own pioneer and at time’s felt a sense of impending doom or failure for not functioning in the same way as my peers. These days, Ive taken complete ownership of my “creativity” and incorporate it in to my everyday, everyday!
Jordan’s vivid imagination, inventive vision and bold sense of aesthetic has transcended into his adult life, with a keen passion for fashion, art and a previous career as a performer we have a lot to talk about when it comes to this inspiring individual.
Coming into hairdressing a little later than most, Jordan brings a wealth of experience from fashion and performing arts that translates beautifully into his career.
A classically trained dancer, Jordan is a graduate from the prestigious North- ern School of Contemporary Dance. The dedication and discipline required to train at such a high level and at such a young age is commendable and these qualities are ingrained in him, with him demonstrating them to us everyday.
After spending a few years touring with and working for various companies and choreographers, Jordan took matters in to his own hands and applied for, and won two large grants from Arts Council England. This enabled him to express his creativity and become a Choreographer/Movement Director for several Opera and Performing Arts Venues.
It was a brave move for Jordan to eventually hang up his dancing shoes
and make the transition into hairdressing. At the age of 25, he showed us determination and passion as well as a willingness to take a pay cut, work long hours, and invest a lot of his own time, all within the basic tasks of an apprenticeship, making it clear to us that he really wanted the opportunity. He saw in hairdressing the ability to combine all of his passions, and we saw something quite special in him.
The qualities Jordan accumulated over his previous careers have made him an inspirational team member from the day he started at Nashwhite. Two years into Jordan’s hairdressing career, he has qualied as a colourist (April 2018) and his ascent into the industry is going from strength to strength.
This boy has presentation skills and standards that are beyond his hairdressing experience. Since becoming an IT List Rising Star finalist last year, we’ve seen Jordan work extremely hard to push himself, thriving for more education, test shooting most weekends and even shooting his first colour collection “Canvas”. His hard work and commitment to his craft has lead him to become a key member of the 2017/19 L’Oreal ID Artist team as well as being crowned the winner of the prestigious L’Oreal Colour Trophy Afro Award 2017.
Both of these career milestone’s were achieved as an apprentice and i’m sure we can all agree that accomplishing such accolades only 18 months in to an apprenticeship is pretty unbelievable.
Jordans social profile has grown considerably since these successes, seeing him and his work being featured several times in industry publications, gaining a fantastic network- ing platform and becoming a much talked about up and coming colourist.
