Fulvio Tirrico, founder of I LOVE RICCIO

Hello FulvioTirrico. You are the founder of I LOVE RICCIO, which is becoming more and more known and famous among curly-haired women in Italy. Currently, your Facebook profile counts 14.251 fans, congratulations. Please, tell us about I LOVE RICCIO.

Hello. I LOVE RICCIO is the first specific Italian Brand for curly hair.

The Brand focuses on the whole curly-hair world (from wavy to Afro) and it includes a specific method of cutting, named X-curl, a hair dye technique suitable for this kind of hair, a drying method, products, accessories and gadgets.

I can assume that a hair stylist like you has travelled a lot and attended a prestigious school.

I use to travel a lot, both in Italy and abroad. I think that facing different realities is the key to success for every hair stylist. I practice at the Devachan Academy, which is the most important academy for Curly Hair Experts in United States.

Besides, I have been included among the top 15 most influential Curly Hair Experts worldwide (refinery 29) and I joined the CHA (i.e. Curly Hair Artistry). This organization arranges an impressive conference twice a year, with all the 15 artists. The next one will take place in Washington.

That is great! I am honored to interview you. However, why curly hair? Where does this passion come from?

Maybe, it is because I am curly as well and I went through all the troubles my customers usually tell me (e.g. difficult management of the hair, lack of specific products, difficulties in getting a proper haircut etc..). Nevertheless, the experience in the US has been essential, since I worked at a salon specialized in this kind of hair and I decided to continue on this path, once back to Italy.

At the beginning of this interview, you mentioned your specific haircut named X-Curl. Can you tell us something more about that?

Curly hair is totally a different world.

X-curl consists of cutting hair when it is dry, without using any comb or hairbrush, avoiding traditional split that classical academies taught us. It is a real revolution.

That is interesting and ambitious. Congratulations! In which hair salon are you currently working? By the way, you have been travelling to different Italian cities recently.

We work in Milano, Bologna, Roma and in other cities on request. That is why we called it Curly Hair Tour. A huge salon in one single city is not our philosophy anymore, we focus on the Tour and on a high level service, which is customized and studied in detail, listening to the customer's needs.

It is an original idea. You are known even abroad and you are one of the 15 most influent Curly Hair Experts worldwide. How does an artist like you feel today?

Being part of the Top 15 Curly Hair Experts, together with Ouidad and Lorrayne Massey, is the most important achievement of the last few years. It is the reward for all my studies, journeys, work and branding.

Fulvio, congratulations! I suppose that your original and internationally appreciated idea is supported by a unique mission. What added value are you providing to Italy in order to spread the curl culture?

Our Mission is to introduce the culture of curly / wavy / afro hair into Italy. We would like to show our colleagues that the approach to curly hair should be different from that used to straight hair.

The spread of this new trend is carried out by a staff composed by more than 15 people who work “behind” I LOVE RICCIO. In addition, our first book is coming out next summer.

I am sure your colleagues hairdressers will appreciate your technique and I wish you to organize training courses around the country. Congratulations for the idea of drawing your story into a book. All the staff of Il Giornale del Parrucchiere will have the pleasure of reading it. I wish you and your team all the best, in order to bring innovation into this craft and show these revolutionary techniques to the whole country. I am sure that all the curly-haired women and men of Italy will be even more attractive in the next years. Thank you Fulvio.

Interview by Gioele de Liso, founder of “Il Giornale del Parrucchiere”

Translation: M.C.

If you wish to follow I LOVE RICCIO and getting to know this interesting brand, like the Facebook page: