Brennen Demelo Studio

Love BDS, especially my stylist David Naddici.
David is professional, sweet, smiley, and most importantly listens and works with you. He’s hands down the best stylist I’ve ever had – have lived in New York, Vancouver and London, UK – and relaxing to be around. His portfolio can be viewed on Instagram @nadicci
Highly recommend making an appointment with David for an ideal salon experience.

My hairdresser moved to a salon that was too far for me to travel to so I’ve been looking for a new hairdresser. Brennen Demelo was my first stop in my quest to find a new stylist… and sadly the search continues.
I booked an appointment with Jacquie who is a lovely person but the haircut was so disappointing. I asked for something similar to what I already had… a trim with layers, but that is not what I got. I basically got a bob. I had my haircut about 2 weeks ago and it already looks tired and style-​less.
For $ 100 with tax and tip I was hoping for something better than what I’d get at First Choice haircuts, but I guess my search for a new stylist continues. If anyone know of an excellent stylist in that price range in the downtown core… please let me know

When I first moved to Toronto 6 years ago I was unsure about where to go for my long, thick hair that I am very picky about. I decided I would try Brennen Demelo as it was close to my work. I am so happy I did — I have been a client for a while now and every time I go into the salon I am happier when I come out because my hair looks amazing. My hair dresser Kaila really knows my hair type and personality and she is honest when it’s too long, needs a cut, or when it needs colour. She has also said when it doesn’t — so I really appreciate her honesty.
The only thing that has irked me about this place is how progressively harder it is to get an appointment now that the salon is becoming recognized (as it should be). I wish us long time customers could get a little preferential treatment sometimes hehee

I’ve seen Enzo here twice, and somehow he makes my crappy thin hair look thicker and less crappy. He’s expensive (for me) but I don’t really care because my hair looks good. Having your hair look nice is more important than being able to feed yourself, ok. Get with the program. He’s also really nice and doesn’t talk too much if you don’t like that sort of thing, like me.
I also had colour done once last year by Ruby who was really nice and did a great job.
This is a terrible review but I’m full and falling asleep so whatever.
Oh yeah, they play good music here. The sink where they wash your hair hurts my neck but I have a giant head so it could be from that.

Enzo was amazing! He really listened to what I wanted and completely delivered. He also had me laughing and enjoying my cut every step of the way. The salon vibe was laid back and cool, and the music was on point. I highly suggest this place!

As noted in my original review, one of the reasons why I loved this salon was because it was no-​BS and totally refreshing. They have some very talented hairdressers (Matt Collins, for example, is an expert colourist and stylist and Shawna). But overtime I started to notice a bit of a change — the prices started to go up (way up), you were offered treatments and products on top of your original appointment, and then the person answering the phone was like an automaton («HI CAN I START OFF WITH YOUR NAME PLEASE??» before you can even get a word out of your mouth) and it didn’t seem as down to earth and humble as it used to be. Additionally, the new-​ish person at the front desk is not very helpful: not taking your coat, offering coffee or tea and not delivering etc. What made this salon shine was how talented everyone was but so unpretentious from the minute you walked in to the moment you walked out.
I had all these feelings but just ignored them — I’d been with my hair dresser Justin for 7 years so this was my go-​to place because he had moved there and I followed. I got a voicemail from BD while I was on vacation that Justin had left the salon. I’ve had my hair done by almost all the senior stylists and they’ve done amazing jobs. I scheduled an appointment with another stylist immediately but the connection was lost. I called back and cancelled. If this was 4 years ago when I wrote my initial review I would have stayed but now it just feels like any other salon to me. It has lost the personal feel that I loved about it. I won’t be back but if you are looking for an on-​trend salon, this place is certainly it.

I am beyond picky with my hair, I have had some bad luck with some terrible places but when I discovered Ruby at Brennen Demelo Im never going anywhere else again, unless she moves! prices are great, my hair is always amazing, and am happier then the time before. Everyone is so friendly, salon is super clean and a really cool space. Prices are great for a Toronto salon, I recommend the place to everyone I know.

I see Shawna to get my curly hair chopped. She is amazing and professional and my hair always looks fan-​friggin-​tastic. I get stopped all the time by people complimenting my hair and asking who does it. She approaches my hair differently at different times, sometimes dry cutting and sometimes not. She really knows how to work with the texture and craziness of it. She gets my hair and she gets what I want from it. I always come in wanting volume (big hair makes me happy) and she nails it every. single. time. It grows out like a dream and she keeps it looking fresh with the occasional fringe trim. (Phenomenal fringes coming from someone is who is obsessive about her fringe).
She’s away at the moment take care of bebe, and while I am tremendously happy for her, I can’t wait for her to return.

Great open space. The staff are warm and welcoming. Enzo is the only hair stylist I can go to as I never stress out about what the end result will be. It’s always perfect! Definitely recommend.

This place might just house some of the most talented stylists in Toronto — no lie. I get my hair cut by the wonderful Matt Collins and have had it styled by its namesake Brennen Demelo. I always leave happy and have gotten the absolute best haircuts here, ever.

I moved to Toronto three years ago, and did some hairdresser shopping before I landed on Shawna at Brennen Demelo. The salon on Adelaide is open concept, has a cool ambience, good music playing, and has a nice spectrum of hair and non-​hair related reading material. That said, I’ve never had much longer than 5 minutes later than my appointment time to really make use of the collection.
I’ve been seeing Shawna since I started going to BD, and love how she cuts my hair and how she approaches the process. She’s intuitive, gives great advice and is good at sticking to client specifications – notorious breaches of trust (like trimming well beyond a trim’s length) don’t happen with Shawna. Beyond that, she fosters interesting conversation and talks just enough. She seems to be a heavy hitter in TO with gigs at Much and with TV personalities.
Colleagues at the salon either get along or maintain good professionalism if they don’t. Booking is easy and I’ve never had any administrative problems. Gold star!

I got a blow out here and really wanted my hair to come out looking like I just came out of a great salon. Unfortunately, after one hour of having my hair dried and styled it looked almost exactly the same. There was no body, the blow out did not hold and we needed to use the curling iron. It just wasn’t working. Now I have had other blow outs and my hair can hold a curl and volume just fine, so something was off today.
That being said, it is a nice and friendly salon. I did not get my hair cut but I think their haircuts might be better. It is also in a really convenient location.

Brennen Demelo salon is the best salon I’ve found in Toronto. I get really anxious having a new person cut and colour my hair but I’ve always left the salon happy. He makes my highlights look super natural and I can go 12 weeks between colours and my grow out looks great. His cuts are amazing and he never cuts off too much. The staff is super friendly and the salon has a hip edgy vibe.

I was very impressed with all aspects of my experience at Brennen Demelo’s salon. Brennen spent a lot of time with me talking about how to slowly repair my hair and gave me a fabulous cut. He gave me lots of advice. I’ve been searching for the right salon in Toronto for a while now, and I’ve finally found it.

Him: «I want a nose piercing.»
Me: «I want my hair cut.»
Thank god we did it in that order. If I had gone to get my hair cut first, then I would have just wandered into the first place that I found and probably would be writing a terrible review lamenting ever having gone to the place. But hark! We got the nose pierced first, and glory! When we asked if they knew a good place for a haircut everyone in the store jumped all over trying to call Robyn, I think I have Robyn’s card, you really have to see Robyn, Robyn, Robyn, Robyn.
They were so right. She was sweet, she was smart, and best of all she knew what the hell to do with my hair much better than I did. Nothing pushy, politely chatty and gave me exactly the haircut I wanted even though I didn’t know what that was when I first walked in. And that is the sign of a great stylist.

Brennen Demelo’s salon is as laid back as you can possibly get. It’s so casual and cheerful, that you feel like you’re in someone’s living room. Brennen can be a bit of a space cadet and between the salon, and several successful club nights with his promo company partners, Underground Republik, and teaching new hair techniques for L’Oreal, and of course styling and shoots, he can sometimes take on too much. I’ve been juggled around a lot with appointments, but who cares, he sorts out my bean better than anyone else. Plus, he’s quick and thorough and no frills, and it doesn’t hurt that he’s a babe either.