Growing up in a family restaurant, Giovanni Vaccaro was accustomed to the hospitality industry, but at a young age he realized that he was destined for a different type of hospitality. An experience at a hair salon watching the transformation women underwent in the chairs from slouching to smiling after a beauty treatment left him feeling that this was a world he needed to be a part of. 

While Gio knew where he wanted to be, how to get there was a different story. Gio tells us of a moment that changed everything: a recruiter from a top salon had come to his cosmetology school-here was an opportunity staring him in the face. He knew that putting himself out there would be risky, uncomfortable even, but the pay off? That could be huge. So he went for it, he asked for a job. And it worked! Gio landed a job as a shampoo assistant at renowned salon Frederic Fekkai & Co and showed that he was willing to start small and work hard.

Fast-forward and Gio knows the business inside & out and saw that the industry was changing, but not in a way that supported the beauty pros. He thought “why not treat the beauty professional like the client?” From there Gio and his partner David Goldweitz built Glamsquad to be a hospitality-first brand for beauty professionals to book opportunities for events, fashion weeks, shows, photo shoots and more.

For more on Gio’s career journey and to find out the beauty of the “bro-walk” listen to Giovanni’s episode wherever you get your podcasts!