Today we’d like to introduce you to Giacomo Forbes.
Hi Giacomo, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in Rome, Italy, surrounded by the rhythm of the city’s fountains and the colors of its ancient streets. By the time I was five years old, I was already in love with hair. At seven, I could blow out curly hair into smooth, beautiful shapes. By eleven, I was training in Rome — certain I’d found my future.
When my family moved to the United States, I carried that dream with me. At sixteen, I enrolled in a beauty school at the iconic Rainbow salon at White Flint Mall — one of the top salons in the country back in the 1980s. I was lucky: after just three months of school, they hired me as a shampoo assistant.
That salon was like an international academy. It had 35 of the best hairdressers from around the world. One of them worked with Paul Mitchell and soon invited me to tour as his assistant. Paul himself noticed my skills and put me on stage at shows, wrapping perms and setting hair with his then-revolutionary Freeze and Shine spray. I was barely out of my teens, already traveling and learning the craft in ways I could only have dreamed.
After three unforgettable years, I moved to Georgetown in Washington, D.C., to work for a celebrated French stylist whose celebrity clientele taught me about refinement and the French eye for detail. From there, I was recruited by the legendary Bruno Dessange, one of Paris’s most respected names. I spent five years with him in New York and Washington, mastering the techniques of precision cutting, styling, and the art of fashion hair.
In time, the West Coast called. I landed in Beverly Hills with the famed José Eber, where I was lucky enough to style icons like Elizabeth Taylor, Farrah Fawcett, Victoria Principal, and the cast of Dallas. It was glamorous and electric, but the wild L.A. lifestyle eventually pushed me toward New York, where the fashion world was exploding in the 1990s.
I joined Frédéric Fekkai for a year, working behind the scenes of fashion shows, music videos, and magazine shoots. This was the golden age of the supermodels — and I was there for it, styling Claudia Schiffer, Kate Moss, Christie Turlington, and many others. I also had the chance to work with Marisa Tomei, Sarah Jessica Parker, Zoë Duchesne, and a long list of other incredible celebrities whose confidence and style inspired me every day.
Soon after, I partnered in a salon at the Plaza Hotel and later opened my own studio dedicated to private clientele — blending cutting, color, hair extensions, and editorial work. My career expanded into Vogue, Allure, Marie Claire, and many other publications. I even co-hosted a makeover show on MTV’s Makeover Madness and appeared on Fox’s Breakfast Time morning show.
For years, I lived a bi-coastal life — working with celebrities in L.A. and supermodels in New York. Then life changed: I married a model, we were expecting a baby, and we began traveling to find a place to raise a family — Miami, D.C., London — before settling in Austin, Texas, my wife’s home state.
Austin was still a quiet gem back then, but I fell for its warmth. All three of my children were born here. Early on, I was asked by Sandra Bullock to do a makeover for First Lady Laura Bush, and that moment landed me on covers of newspapers and magazines nationwide. It helped me open my first Austin salon — a Moroccan-inspired space at 12th & Lamar in 2000, which became a success.
In 2012, I stepped back to enjoy life on a farm and later spent time in Ann Arbor, Michigan. But just before COVID, the universe brought me back to Austin. I opened a new salon partnership — then faced the challenges of the pandemic like so many others. Last year, I finally found my dream space: GF Hair Lounge — a luxurious, private studio in a secluded corner of paradise.
GF Hair Lounge sits in a historic complex that was once a nunnery and meditation center. The energy inside feels peaceful, almost sacred — the perfect place to create beauty. There, I continue to craft transformative cuts, color, extensions, and styles for my clients while offering them a sense of escape and serenity.
Today, I’m focused on innovating haircare products. I’ve developed La Bomb Hair Duster Organic Dry Shampoo and La Muse Micro-Oil Treatment — my fourth product line — designed for hair rejuvenation, restoration, and color-damaged hair. I continue to do fashion shows, editorial shoots, hair extensions, and color transformations, always staying inspired by the mix of old Austin charm and the city’s new creative pulse.
I travel often back to Italy, my first muse, to recharge and draw inspiration. Austin has grown into a vibrant, stylish city with an international spirit, and I feel at home here — blending Italian roots, French training, New York fashion, and Austin soul into everything I do.
My story has always been about art, resilience, and a deep love of beauty — keeping people feeling confident, stylish, and inspired at every stage of life.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
People often imagine a life in hair as glamorous — fashion shows, glossy magazines, celebrity clients. And I’ve been blessed to experience all of that. From my early days in Rome to working in New York and L.A. during the supermodel era, I was guided into incredible opportunities and surrounded by some of the best mentors in the industry.
But even with all that good fortune, the road hasn’t been without struggle. The hardest season of my career came with COVID-19. Practically overnight, my salon doors closed. My work — so much about human connection — was suddenly gone. Like so many small business owners, I found myself wondering how to keep my children fed, the lights on, and hope alive.
What carried me through was the love and generosity of my clients. People I had known for years reached out with kindness, gift cards, even care packages — gestures that reminded me why I love this work. The beauty industry can be competitive, but in that moment, I saw nothing but community and compassion.
Now, in the years after the pandemic, I’m rebuilding my clientele in a city that has changed as much as I have. Austin has grown, drawing new faces and fresh energy, and I’m excited to reach out to this wider community — diverse clients, fashion shows, magazines, anyone who loves great hair and artistry.
Every challenge has deepened my gratitude for this craft. I’ve learned that beauty isn’t just about hair; it’s about connection, trust, and the way we help people feel like themselves again. That’s what I strive for every day at GF Hair Lounge — a private, peaceful studio built for creativity and care.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Hair has always been my canvas. From the first time I held a pair of shears in Rome as a boy, I was fascinated by how a precise cut could reveal a person’s character — how shape, movement, and color could transform not only the way someone looked, but the way they felt.
I’ve built my career on cutting, styling, and creating color that feels alive — rich brunettes, luminous blondes, sun-kissed balayage, and vibrant fashion shades. My goal is always the same: to craft hair that’s beautiful, unique, and healthy.
Over the years, I’ve seen how stress, chemical damage, and over-processing can rob hair of its strength. That’s why my number-one priority has always been the health of the hair and the follicles beneath it. I became determined to give clients back the hair they thought they’d lost — to rejuvenate, restore, and protect.
That drive led me to develop my own organic hair-care products. I formulate oil-based treatments to act as a buffer before color, to seal in moisture, to shield against heat and environmental damage. When I’m painting on color — I prefer ammonia-based professional color for its lasting vibrancy and precision — I always pair it with these treatments. They keep the cuticle smooth, the scalp calm, and the hair’s integrity intact.
Creating products is an extension of my artistry behind the chair. I’m constantly experimenting, searching for solutions, because I want my clients to enjoy their hair’s natural strength even as they explore bold styles and colors. To me, health, beauty, and fashion are not separate things — they belong together.
At GF Hair Lounge, my private, luxurious studio, that philosophy comes to life. Every haircut, every shade of color, every bottle of oil treatment I create is part of the same mission: to help people wear their hair with confidence, creativity, and vitality.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I grew up in Rome, Italy, surrounded by history, beauty, and three extraordinary women who shaped my life. I was raised by my mother and my two aunts — all three of them six-foot-two, red-haired, green-eyed Italian beauties. They loved me fiercely and unconditionally, and I felt it every single day.
I was a curious, independent kid, always drawn to art and style. At seven years old, I discovered I could blow out their thick, curly red hair into smooth, elegant waves. They adored it — which meant I was loved twice as much: once as their child and again as their personal little hairdresser. That early connection between love, family, and the art of hair never left me.
Growing up in Rome was a gift. On weekends we would travel — to the seaside, to other cities, sometimes to other countries — always surrounded by culture, food, and history. Those experiences opened my eyes to art and architecture, to fashion and design.
When we later moved to Washington, D.C., I was lucky again. I explored its museums, monuments, and nearby New York City. I grew up tall and confident, carrying my Roman roots and my Italian sense of style wherever I went. Every summer, Christmas, and Easter, I returned home to Italy for months at a time, savoring family feasts, the language, the fashion, and the culture that shaped me.
That dual life — Italian summers, American school years — gave me a sense of belonging to two worlds. It taught me that beauty and culture can be woven into everyday life. Those lessons still guide me behind the chair today.
Pricing:
- $150 for a haircut my products are $32
- 250 for highlights
- 250 to 300 for balayage with color
- 300 to 350 for all over color, balayage and highlights
- Hair extensions start at 1000 and go to 3000
Contact Info:
- Website: giacomoforbes.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/giacomoforbes
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/16jDGbjhnC/
Image Credits
Jonathan Garza -photographer https://www.instagram.com/garzajon?igsh=MWJrdWIwdTlybmh3Yg==
