Artist Spotlight: Larisa Love

Meet Larisa Love (@larisadoll), salon owner, master colorist and Joico Global Brand Ambassador. With more than a decade of experience in the beauty industry, Larisa has worked with the world’s top brands, while educating and inspiring fellow stylists around the world. 

Her drive for creative freedom began at an early age. When she was 18, despite her parents’ wishes, she enrolled in beauty school, determined to prove she could succeed on her own. After graduating in 2010 and working in salons across Beverly Hills and West Hollywood, she opened Larisa Love Salon in Studio City in 2015. Now, she’s launched her own brand of professional brushes and aprons (available at marlobeauty.com) to meet the real-world demands of working beauty professionals.

We sat down with Larisa to learn more about her brand, the role community plays in the industry and what she’s looking forward to most in 2026.  
 

Marlo Beauty: What made you want to pursue a career in beauty and what do you love most about this industry?
Larisa: I was drawn to beauty because it sits at the intersection of creativity, confidence and connection. I loved that I could create with my hands while also impacting how someone feels about themselves. What I still love most is that this industry changes lives, not just hair. It gives people a voice, an identity and often a sense of belonging.

Marlo Beauty: You’ve worn so many hats in this industry. When did you start exploring new directions alongside your work as a stylist?
Larisa: Pretty early on I realized I didn’t want to be boxed into one lane. As much as I loved being behind the chair, I was always curious about education, branding and building something bigger than myself. I started exploring new directions when I noticed that my impact grew exponentially when I shared knowledge instead of keeping it to myself.

Marlo Beauty: Education has always been a big part of your brand. When you’re teaching stylists today, what resonates with them the most that wasn’t talked about early in your career?
Larisa: Mindset and sustainability. Early in my career, it was all about technique, speed and perfection. Today, stylists want to talk about confidence, burnout, boundaries, pricing and longevity. They want permission to evolve, slow down and to build careers that actually support their lives. 
 

Marlo Beauty: What advice would you give younger stylists for how to gain confidence, avoid burnout and create boundaries?  
Larisa: It starts with ownership. Confidence doesn’t come from going viral, instead it comes from repetition and keeping promises to yourself. Pick one thing to master at a time, not 10. 

To avoid burnout, raise your prices before you raise your workload. Most stylists exhaust themselves trying to make more by doing more. Instead, refine your skill, elevate your experience and charge accordingly. Work smarter, not just longer. Boundaries are built through structure. Set cancellation policies, set working hours, stop answering DMs at midnight. If you don’t protect your energy, no one else will. And sustainability means thinking long term. 

Build a career that supports your life, not one you need to escape from. Take days off, invest your money, develop skills beyond the chair. Your artistry should expand your world, not shrink it. That’s what stylists are really craving permission for right now.

Marlo Beauty: How do you balance creativity with the day-to-day realities of being an entrepreneur?
Larisa: I’ve learned that structure actually protects creativity. Systems, schedules and clear boundaries allow me the freedom to create without chaos. Creativity thrives when you’re not constantly putting out fires, so balance for me is about intention, not perfection.
 

Marlo Beauty: You now have your own tool brand, including brushes and aprons. What gap did you see in the market and what did you do differently with these tools?
Larisa: I saw things missing that I personally wanted as a working stylist. There weren’t enough stunning, edgy, fashion-forward aprons that felt like an extension of personal style, or longer round brushes that truly supported modern blowouts and lived-in finishes. I designed everything based on real needs behind the chair, combining performance, intention and elevated design so stylists don’t have to choose between function and aesthetics.

Marlo Beauty: How specifically do your brushes support blowouts? What other specific features of your tools help the modern stylist?
Larisa: Longer brushes allow me to work with larger sections while still maintaining tension from root to end. Tension creates smoother cuticles, longer-lasting shapes and that soft, lived-in bend instead of overly tight curls. With a longer barrel, I can stretch the hair, polish it and create movement without over-rolling or over-directing. They also save time. When you can control more hair evenly, you reduce unnecessary passes with heat, which protects the integrity of the hair and speeds up your service.

I designed them with varied lengths so they grip without snagging and glide through layered or extension hair seamlessly. Lightweight handle, balanced weight distribution and a clean, elevated aesthetic were non-negotiables. Modern stylists are filming, traveling and building brands. Our tools need to perform under pressure but also look like they belong in a luxury space.

Marlo Beauty: When you’re designing tools for stylists, what’s a non-negotiable for you?
Larisa: Function first. If it doesn’t make a stylist’s job easier, faster or better, it doesn’t matter how good it looks. Every tool has to earn its place behind the chair.
 

Marlo Beauty: This industry evolves constantly. What’s one thing you believe will always matter, no matter how much changes?
Larisa: Integrity. Trends change, platforms change and techniques evolve, but authenticity and how you treat people will always matter. Clients and artists can feel when something is real.

Marlo Beauty: In this current season of your life and business, what feels most exciting to you right now?
Larisa: Expansion with intention. I’m excited about building globally while staying deeply connected to my purpose. Creating education, tools and experiences that align with who I am now feels incredibly fulfilling. 
 

Marlo Beauty: You just bought a house in Amsterdam! How did that come about? How will that change your plans for the future? 
Larisa: Buying a house in Amsterdam honestly still feels surreal. My husband,Sebastian, and I had been traveling back and forth for a while, and every time we landed there something just clicked. The pace, the creativity, the architecture, the energy all felt aligned with the season of life we’re stepping into. It wasn’t impulsive. It was a lot of vision casting, long conversations and really asking ourselves what kind of life we want to build long term.

And we’re not just living there. I’m opening a salon there too! For me, this move was never just about owning property. It’s about expansion. Amsterdam represents evolution. It’s me stepping into a more global chapter of my career and creating a space that reflects everything I’ve built over the years. A salon that feels intimate, elevated, education driven and rooted in modern lived-in hair. It doesn’t replace LA. It expands it. If anything, it makes my future plans bigger. More international education. More global collaborations. I’ve always believed when something keeps calling you, there’s a reason. So we answered it and we’re building something beautiful there.

Marlo Beauty: What is a quote or life mantra you live by?
Larisa: Authenticity will ALWAYS WIN. 

Shop Larisa Love Aprons and Brush Sets at marlobeauty.com!