Ariel Vered
April 29, 2008
It doesn’t have to be all-natural to be good. Such is the philosophy of Brannon, hairdresser to the stars at Brannon Salon at the Hard Rock Hotel. A 15-year veteran of scissors, Brannon is expanding his follicle empire to a collection of hair products, a makeup line, and three new salons by 2010. Brannon’s new shampoo and conditioner line, 01, took three years to perfect. The next phases, 02 (a deep conditioning line) and 03 (a styling line), are set to come in later in 2008. The products will be sold exclusively in Brannon salons, Hard Rock Hotel suites, Kitson, Fred Segal and Barneys. Brannon came to Las Vegas at the behest of George Maloof and the Palms Casino to serve as its in-house celebrity stylist. He intended on returning to New York to reopen Brannon Hair, which was closed down after 9/11. And then Hard Rock came knocking. Brannon sat down with us to talk about why he thinks Los Angeles sucks, what it's like to raise a daughter in Las Vegas’s breast-obsessed culture, and getting branded on the ass by Pink.
The Hard Rock is getting some work done. A $1 billion property facelift and expansion of the destination resort is bringing the Vegas game to a whole new level. What exists is being updated—from the suites to the hallways and common areas—and expanded (Nobu, existing casino). What’s to come will entice both seasoned gamblers and Strip newbies alike. 
