Chris Guidry is living proof that a stylist career can take you anywhere. Born in Hammond, he counts Nicole Kidman and Madonna among the celebrities whose hair he has styled. His career has taken him from New Orleans to New York and back again. We’re honored to be a part of his journey—and what a journey it has been!
“This hairdressing world I live in is ever-changing,” Chris says. “Paris Parker has always provided stability in a changing world and encouraged us to do better.”
Chris rocks a fauxhawk at a hair show in 2001. | Source: Chris Guidry
Chris meets the Material Girl
After attending the Aveda Institute in Covington, Chris worked at several Metairie salons before moving to New York to work as an assistant for celebrity hairstylist Luigi Murenu. You might have heard of him—Elle calls him a “superstylist” and he’s done hair for Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Moss, among other celebrities.
“In my opinion, Luigi is in the top three current hairdressers in the world,” Chris says. “He is a fantastically fabulous hairdresser—and I don’t even say the word fabulous most of the time.”
Murenu worked frequently with Madonna, and Chris was part of the styling team for a 2003 performance by the artist that would electrify the world. Even today it’s an iconic image: Madonna and Britney Spears making out at the VMAs.
What Chris recalls about the event is how detail-oriented Madonna was when it came to her hair. “Madonna was very specific in her requests,” Chris says. “It was just a ballerina bun, but she was telling us where she wanted it—on the high part of the back of her head.”
Chris would go on to do Madonna’s hair again, for a Gap commercial where she wore waves along with gold chains and a man’s muscle shirt. “People are still doing that look today,” says Chris, who says he’s grateful his work has had such a major and lasting impact on pop culture.
Embracing his Louisiana roots
While doing Madonna’s hair was a memorable experience, as was working with iconic Vogue photographer Irving Penn, Chris has formed many of his most meaningful and lasting relationships with clients right here. When we opened Paris Parker Prytania 17 years ago, he was hired to work there—and his first paying guest, Karen Maggio, still visits him today. However, his favorite guest might just be his wife, whom Chris met when she sat in his chair. They began dating, and today, they have been married for 13 years and have two children.
“She doesn’t pay anymore, but I still do her hair,” Chris says, laughing.
The Origins of a Celebrity Stylist
Speaking of clients, that’s what Chris was before he worked with us. Chris launched his Paris Parker career after a chance conversation with the friend who cut his hair. “He told me how much he loved working in a salon,” Chris says. “He said it was the greatest thing and he got to travel—all these fringe benefits went along with it.”
Chris’s experiences reveal the paradox within a stylist’s career: it can serve as the passport to the world, or it can ground you as a business owner and pillar of your community. In Chris’s case, it did both—he met his wife while traveling back and forth between New York and New Orleans. Regardless of the changes in his own life, however, he appreciates the stability Paris Parker brings. Ironically, that stability is only possible because of Paris Parker’s willingness to embrace the new.
“I know Paris Parker is always going to adapt to a change, whether it is rainbow hair or a recession,” Chris says. “I feel confident in our ability to survive and be on top.”
Chris cuts a model’s hair on stage at Elevate in 2016. Conceived by the Neill Corporation, Elevate is a hair event that unites stylists from different salons at locations nationwide. | Source: Chris Guidry
