John began his hairdressing career with Tony Mitchell Hair and worked at the salon from 1981-1989, which included training seminars in London. He went on to become a colour technician for L'Oréal Australia, based in Queensland for eight years. During this time he worked on weekends for Channel 9 in Brisbane, creating hairstyles for TV personalities including newsreaders. In 1997, John was promoted to overseeing the events and public relations department for L'Oréal Australia and he relocated to Melbourne. John returned to Brisbane and to TMH in 2005 but he remains one of L'Oréal Australia's national artistic directors and is often found working his magic backstage on the models' hair at a range of fashion events nationwide.