Jen Atkin is a hairstylist, entrepreneur, and columnist. She is considered to be one of the most influential hair stylists in the world. Atkin is the owner of the hair care line OUAI, founder of the digital magazine , and columnist for Glamour Magazine. She is well known for working with Chrissy Teigen, Jennifer Lopez, Gigi and Bella Hadid, and the stars of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. She is represented by Blended Strategy Group.
Career
Atkin moved to Los Angeles at the age of 19 to pursue hair with only $300 in her pocket. Lorraine Schwartz helped Atkin when she first moved to LA. In 2000, she began working as a receptionist at Estilo Salon in West Hollywood. Later Atkin worked at the Chris McMillan and Andy LeCompte salons in Hollywood. In 2006, Atkin was a member of the hair team for Madonna's Confessions Tour. She also worked as a personal hairstylist for John Galliano. While working for Galliano, Atkin traveled to Paris to work at fashion shows and made connections by talking herself into VIP lounges. Atkin frequently works with the stars of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, including styling their hair for the interview portions of the reality show. She met Kim through friends and began working with her in 2010 for a shoot for Cosmopolitan. She met Khloe during the shoot, who asked her to create her looks for The X Factor, and eventually began working with the rest of the family. She became friends with the Kardashians through this interaction and is featured on Kim Kardashian's video game, . On several occasions, Atkin has collaborated with hairstylist and wigmaker Tokyo Stylez to complete looks for Kylie Jenner. Since 2012, Atkin has traveled regularly to the Middle East, where she cuts hair at salons in Dubai, Bahrain, and Qatar. Atkin's motivation for continuing to cut hair in the Middle East is that "There are not a lot of trained stylists in the Middle East who know how to do modern curls, or know how to really cut thick, coarse hair in a way that grows out nicely." Occasionally, Atkin also cuts hair in Los Angeles at Andy LeCompte Salon, where her appointments cost upwards of $600. Atkin is well known on Instagram, and credits her social media marketing skills to scrapbooking during her childhood. She released a hair accessories collection called Jen Atkin X Chloe + Isabel.
OUAI
In 2016, Atkin launched a hair care line, OUAI, online as a store and subscription service. The name OUAI comes from an informal way of saying the French word “oui,” and is meant to sound casual and unpretentious. Later, she partnered with Sephora to put the product in stores, after realizing that there was a market for both online and in-store sales. She wanted the hair care line to be developed by a community, rather than "a lot of men in boardrooms". In 2019, OUAI launched its first body care product.
ManeAddicts
Atkin began a digital magazine in 2014 aimed at hair education alongside some of her colleagues. She serves as the creative director for the magazine, which provides tutorials and hair advice. The magazine also features interviews with other famous hairstylists such as Harry Josh.
Mane University
Mane University is the name of the educational courses and seminars provided by ManeAddicts. Atkin and other famous hairstylists, such as Rita Hazan, teach courses on hair products and styling hair.
Personal life
Atkin was born in Utah, but spent her childhood between the North Shore of Oahu and St. George, Utah. She was raised a Mormon At the age of 19, she moved to Los Angeles with her best friend to pursue hair. She had only $300 and a Honda Civic at the time.. Atkin is also adopted and recently found out her real ethnic background through 23 and me DNA test. Atkin dated director and photographer Mike Rosenthal for five years before they were engaged. They had never discussed marriage prior to his proposal on a vacation in Greece. They married in 2016 at the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris, which is where Rosenthal took her on their first date. They were in Paris attending another wedding when they decided to elope. Atkin, Rosenthal, and the officiant were the only people in attendance. When they returned to the United States, they had a small ceremony at a courthouse with 40 family members and friends in attendance. All of the wedding guests wore white, while Atkin and Rosenthal wore black. Together, Atkin and Rosenthal have one dog and no children. Atkin has stated that she and Rosenthal are focused on their careers, but do want children "one day." They have spoken openly about their decision to freeze their embryos. They live on the Miracle Mile in Los Angeles, although she often splits her time between Los Angeles and New York Atkin considers herself to be a feminist.
