It is Jean Harlow, the American movie star of the 1930s who was the inspiration for the salon's name.
Her beautiful, blonde hair immediately drew all the attention. In the press, she was soon called the " Blond Bombshell " or " Platinum Blonde ".
No one knew the phrase " Platinum Blonde " in 1930s Hollywood. When Jean Harlow first appeared in the spotlight with that dazzling, white-blonde hair, she became famous overnight. It was a real sensation and became the first sex symbol of spoken film. Dark makeup provided an even greater contrast to the beautiful, blonde femme-fatale hair.
It would remain her trademark throughout her, far too short life.
With Frank Capra, she shot the film Platinum Blonde in 1931. In it, she portrays an attractive, wealthy heiress and is given the nickname that will forever be attached to her name. Jean insisted that her hair, which in the black-and-white films seemed to glow like a luminous "halo," was all her own. Film producer/director Howard Hughes, who caused her big break in 1930 with his film Hell's Angels, awarded $10,000 to the stylist-colorist who managed to mimic her color. No one has ever succeeded.
Although Jean was naturally blonde, the platinum color she was famous for was the result of a weekly chemical treatment.
A brief history of the salon...
Salon Harlow opened its doors in 1975 on the second floor of a 1970s building on Antwerp's busy Meir. Covering 300 m2, the salon accommodated a large number of clients who received maximum comfort and privacy here.
At the time, the concept was unique. Very quickly, the salon became a meeting place for Antwerp BVs. It counted the Six of Antwerp and other stars from the world of fashion among its clients and numerous stars from the silver screen, theater, television and also a lot of Misses Belgium became Harlow clients. TV and magazine journalists followed in their wake. A real local success story!
However, the enormous success also had a downside. After a few years, the overloaded agenda, the continuous work and the stress weighed too much and the team decided to take a step back. They were in need of resourcing.
To serve customers more personally and better, a new address was sought. It became Hopland 9 around the corner from the first address and for nearly 20 years the salon was a fixture in the neighborhood.
We could have left it at that But in a world in flux, Harlow Harlow wouldn't be Harlow if we didn't dare take on a new challenge. For that, we needed a new location, a larger salon, a few steps from a parking garage and very close to public transportation. In May 2019, we moved to France Valley, across from the beautiful, imposing building of what was once the National Bank.
Harlow III was held above the baptismal font!