PAUL FRASCA

SUSTAINABLE SALONS With bold new plans for what is usually considered ‘waste’, Paul Frasca is dedicated to improving recycling outcomes in the hairdressing industry.

Hairdressing has always been a passion for Paul Frasca. He started cutting hair at the age of just 11, and by 19 he owned his own salon. Thirteen years ago he was working in Europe when he met his now-partner Ewelina (pictured) in Amsterdam.

At the time Ewelina was studying fashion and sustainability, including what happens to the waste from the clothing industry. “With Ewelina’s interest in waste and sustainability and my interest in hairdressing, we came up with the idea of Sustainable Salons,” explains Paul.

The idea for the business gained momentum when the pair started researching the waste issue in the hairdressing industry. The first thing they did was look at the waste disposal practices of 160 salons across Sydney, including what they did with their hair, metal, paper and plastic waste.

“We really wanted to understand what the problems were, and the first thing we found was that aluminium foil used for highlights made up 50 per cent of the waste in bins, equating to just over one million kilograms of foil going to landfill yearly – just from hair salons in Australia. And we knew that aluminium is easily recyclable, so that’s where we started.”

The pair wrote the business plan 10 years ago, but they only got the business off the ground four years ago because it has been an expensive project to get up and running. “Sustainable Salons is a comprehensive resource recovery service designed for salons,” says Paul. They provide eight bins per salon so that waste can be properly sorted and nothing gets contaminated, then they collect the waste and recycle it.

“The problem with recycling in Australia and New Zealand is that it’s very difficult to separate what’s been put into the recycling bin, so a lot of things get contaminated and can’t be

“We’ve only touched the tip of the iceberg on what we can do with hair.”

recycled. For example, it’s impossible to recycle hair that’s been thrown in the bin with other trash,” says Paul.

They currently service over 800 salons in Australia – and after recently launching the business in New Zealand, they’ve already got 70 salons on the books in Auckland. All the proceeds they receive from recycling the waste go to OzHarvest in Australia and KiwiHarvest in New Zealand, which has meant they have managed to provide over 100,000 meals to people in need.

“Hair makes up 11 per cent of the garbage that is thrown out in salons in Australia. We questioned why nobody was looking at hair as a resource,” says Paul. “People see hair as a disgusting thing falling on the ground in the salon, but I always remind people that when it’s attached to you, people love it – so what’s the difference? It’s all about perception.”

The duo do various things with the hair they collect from the salons, including making ponytail donations to the medical wig market. “Hair is extremely valuable – wigs can cost up to $10,000 and it’s only 500 grams of hair,” says Paul.

Meanwhile, the hair clippings can be used to help clean up oil spills at sea. “Hair is the most absorbent material on the planet,” says Paul. “Twenty-five years ago a barber was looking at an oil spill happening on the Gulf of Mexico, and he wondered why no-one was using hair to clean it up. We use shampoo to take off the oil, why don’t we use hair to soak it up? NASA picked up the concept and about 20 years ago I read about it and thought, ‘Why isn’t anyone following up on this in Australia?’ So we decided to take it on board.”

They’re also looking at producing a hair mat that can be used to clean up oil spills on beaches. “We’ve only touched the tip of the iceberg on what we can do with hair,” says Paul. “We are also looking at it to use as a building insulation, and it can also be used in food-grade products. It’s used in soy sauce in China and chocolate in Germany as a preservative.”

Paul says that the biggest challenge has been getting people to understand their sustainability model. “Most people think it’s just the green element – but for us it’s about people, the planet and profit. When it comes to people, we want to ensure we are providing jobs in local communities. In New Zealand we employ people who have had problems finding work. They may have been out of work for a long time, or have come out of prison. In Australia we have people with disabilities running the warehouse. When it comes to the planet, we have the most comprehensive waste separation system possible. The last part is profit. You can’t save the planet if you can’t save yourself, so we’re very active in driving consumers into salons that are set up to be sustainable.”

Even though they have 800 salons on board in Australia, that’s only eight per cent of the industry – so they have a long way to go. Paul says, “What

I tell people is, ‘Please talk to your hairdresser, ask if they’re sustainable’. Consumers have the power to make radical change based on where they spend their money. Business exists for consumers, not the other way around. Sustainable business is possible if that’s what you choose.”