Zuma lifeguards closed the break four times this year after mistaking customers for distressed jellyfish
MALIBU, CA – The Pacific Coast Highway salon Kale and Keratin has confirmed in a statement released Tuesday that its signature “sun-kissed surf blonde” bleach treatment has, on at least four occasions this calendar year, produced hair tones bright enough to trigger temporary beach closures at Zuma, as lifeguards repeatedly mistook departing clients for distressed jellyfish.
The admission follows a viral incident last weekend in which a 26-year-old Malibu surf instructor, freshly treated at the salon, paddled out at Zuma and was identified within seconds by two separate lifeguard towers as a possible man-of-war sighting. The break was closed for 40 minutes. Rescue boats were deployed. The instructor, who spoke on condition of anonymity, has since filed no formal complaint.
Stylist Concedes The Colour Is ‘More Than Advertised’
Brindle Voss, the salon’s senior colourist and the stylist responsible for the incident, acknowledged in a follow-up statement that the resulting tone had “exceeded the original vision.” Voss, whose practice is described on the salon’s website as “vibes-based colour work,” further conceded that the shade achieved was “not, strictly speaking, blonde.”
“It was closer to traffic cone,” Voss said. “I accept that. I stand by the result but I accept the category error.”
The California Bureau of Hair Integrity, a state consumer-protection body that tracks cosmetic outcomes, confirmed in its most recent quarterly report that 62 percent of “beach blonde” services performed in Malibu and surrounding zip codes produce colours outside the naturally occurring human range. Of those, 14 percent fall into what the Bureau classifies as “visible from low-Earth orbit,” a designation the Bureau added to its internal taxonomy in 2022 after repeated complaints from commercial airline pilots.
For extended coverage of California cosmetology scandals, including a full investigation into the Pacific Coast Highway salon economy, readers can consult the long-running files at Bohiney Magazine and the British sister publication The London Prat, both of which have tracked the industry since 2020.
Beach Closures Reveal A Broader Pattern
County lifeguard data obtained through a public records request shows that Zuma Beach has been closed for chemical-cosmetic reasons four times in the past nine months. In each instance, an initial marine-hazard alert was subsequently downgraded once officials confirmed the object in question was a recently bleached human customer, not a hazardous sea creature.
Los Angeles County Ocean Safety Division Captain Dutch Aranda described the pattern as “regrettable but understandable.” He noted that the salon industry has “outpaced our visual identification training,” and said the department is now considering a joint initiative with local colourists to standardise warning-colour thresholds.
Dr. Margot Pettigrew of the Institute for Accidental Cosmetology, a research organisation based in Santa Monica, explained in a recent interview that the increasing intensity of Malibu bleach services reflects a broader cultural shift. “Southern California has, over the last five years, begun to reward visual aggression,” Pettigrew said. “We are no longer in the era of subtle highlight. We are in the era of the hazard cone.”
The Los Angeles Times has documented related trends in a multi-part series on the PCH salon economy, including previously unreported data on repeat customers who require a second appointment to “walk the colour back.”
Industry observers note that the Malibu bleach economy has become increasingly competitive in recent years, with at least six new salons opening on or near Pacific Coast Highway since 2021. Each of those salons has marketed a signature “surf” or “beach” colour service, and at least three have been linked by the Bureau to closures at neighbouring beaches in Santa Monica, Venice, or Zuma. One Santa Monica salon, which declined to be named for this report, has reportedly instituted a voluntary pre-appointment briefing in which clients are shown a chart of hair tones considered “compatible with local marine identification standards.” That salon has reported no closures in 11 months, a period the Bureau has formally cited as evidence that the industry is capable of self-regulation when appropriately motivated.
Representatives for the state consumer-protection office have said a public advisory on the matter is “under consideration but not imminent,” and have urged clients to review the colour charts posted at each salon entrance before agreeing to service.
Salon Offers Remediation Service, State Monitors Situation
Kale and Keratin has announced a complimentary “tone correction” service for affected clients, along with a free smoothie from the adjacent juice counter. The California Bureau of Hair Integrity confirmed that it is monitoring the situation but has not yet opened a formal inquiry. A spokesperson for the Bureau said that, “in this industry, a certain amount of radioactivity is accepted.”
Voss, for her part, has declined to comment further, but has posted on the salon’s social media account a photograph of her PCH chair draped in a fresh white towel, with the caption “still open.” The post has been widely interpreted as defiant.
The affected instructor is reported to be wearing a broad-brimmed hat and has returned to the water on a limited basis. Zuma has remained open throughout the week, and no new closures have been reported.
For British coverage of domestic hair disasters, the team at NewsThump has maintained an archive of comparable high-street catastrophes dating back to 2016.
SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/