A haircut in cramped quarters surrounded by mirrors isn’t everyone’s idea of a good time. So it’s always refreshing to find a place in which you can breathe, relax, and enjoy the experience. Bob Cabelo de Autor in Pinheiros is a gem of the architectural variety of salons, all concrete, iron, copper and wood. The result is a clean, sophisticated feel that invokes brightness, texture and design.

The space was opened in 2007 by Bob Toscano, a hairstylist with 25 years’ experience in cutting, colouring, styling, make-up and eyebrow shaping, with a focus on personalised treatment in pleasing surroundings.

‘Since I started out in my career, at my father’s barber shop,’ says Toscano, ‘there have been so many changes in the beauty market. Customers used to prioritise services most of all; but, today, the environment where they are provided counts so much too.' 

True to form, the music featured at Bob’s is as soothing as it is cheerful, and the stylists say they try to adapt the songs to the kind of customer in the salon at any time, taking into account what they know about each client and choosing the most suitable music. It sounds like a musical guessing game to us, though we’re intrigued – we’d love to know what kind of music we appear to like, even as the stylist is buffing our look to a high gloss.