Lab salon

Victoria’s style and fashion scene has taken another step forward with the opening of Lab Salon. A new venture by iconic local stylist Matty Conrad, the community-focused salon is now open in a beautifully renovated heritage building at 541 Johnson St.

Though Lab is a continuation of Conrad’s successful history, the salon’s opening represents a significant progression in the range of hair services available in Victoria. With a strong focus on creativity and collaboration, Lab’s standards of stylist education and experience are unmatched on the Island. The salon’s Creative Director and Education Director both developed their skills in leading salons in London, England, and the shop’s established stylists have trained in a range of locales including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Paris and New York.
While the shop is closely connected to the latest in international fashion, it is strongly rooted in the Victoria community and its stylists will continue to be an integral part of the city’s emerging downtown scene. Conrad also plans to continue his history of running fundraising events for local charities like the Queen Alexandra Foundation for Children, the Salvation Army, WIN and Our Place. To emphasize its community focus, the salon is also taking the unique step of creating all of its own imagery and photography, working directly with clients instead of professional models.

The salon’s opening has also given its staff an opportunity to rethink their approach to styling. “A big thing for us has been greening our business,” Conrad says, “and really taking a look at the environmental impact of what we do. We’re making our shop as green as possible, with compact fluorescent lighting and high-efficiency water heaters, and all of our paper is 100% post-consumer recycled. We’re also using organic and ammonia-free product lines to cut down on our wastewater impacts.”

With its gorgeous interior and welcoming atmosphere, Lab is poised to become one of the best-known salons on the coast. The salon also offers its customers a complete range of amenities—free wireless, premium tea and coffee service, a range of fashion and coffee table books, and a custom mix of music from DJ Longshanks, a key member of Victoria’s independent music scene.

“At Lab we basically think that everyone can have cool hair,” Conrad says. At its core, it’s high fashion with the high attitude removed.

Lab Salon is open for bookings now, and new clients are welcome at any time.