The Interview —

Alli Webb, Founder of Drybar

Alli Webb founded Drybar in 2010 after spending 15 years as a professional stylist. She attended the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale and began her career in fashion in New York City in the early ‘90s working for designer Nicole Miller. In 1996, Alli left fashion retailing to pursue her true passion—hairstyling. After training at the Toni & Guy Academy, Alli sharpened her skills as an assistant to celebrity stylist John Sahag, famous for his signature dry-cut technique. Having struggled with her own extremely curly hair, Alli was always in search of a great blowout but was often disappointed with the two available options—an overpriced blowout at a traditional salon or a less-than-desirable experience at a discount chain. After leaving the professional hair workforce in 2005 to start a family, she decided to find a way to continue pursuing the creative side of hairstyling at a new-mom pace. Alli began offering weekly in-home blowout services for friends, but her little side business quickly grew into more than a part-time gig. The business exploded strictly by referrals from loyal clients, which led Alli to the decision to expand her mobile operation to a physical location. The first Drybar opened in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles in 2010 and was an overnight sensation. Drybar has since expanded to over 60 locations throughout Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Chicago, San Francisco, San Diego, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and Vancouver, BC. Alli remains active in the business as the Chief Creative Officer at Drybar, overseeing the hiring and training of more than 3,000 stylists across the country and leading the development of Drybar’s line of styling products and tools. Drybar’s growing product line is sold through its own shops, as well as in Sephora, Nordstrom, Ulta, and select Bloomingdale's stores throughout the U.S. and Canada. Alli was named one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business in 2013 by Fast Company, and was featured on the Cosmo 2013 Power List by Cosmopolitan magazine, as well as the Fortune 40 Under 40 list. Abrams Publishing is scheduled to release Alli’s first book, “The Drybar Guide to Good Hair for All,” in October 2016. Be sure to follow Ali and Drybar on Instagram @alliwebb and @thedrybar.