Devereux & Villiger is a hair, makeup and beauty studio at 18 Union Street in Claudelands, central Hamilton, run by Michelle Devereux and Eric Villiger. Between them they bring more than 20 years of internationally renowned expertise to the Waikato — careers that included working with photographers for Vogue, Harpers Bazaar and Elle in Milan, Zurich, Sydney, London and Munich, and with celebrities such as Cindy Crawford, Naomi Watts, Cate Blanchett and Elle Macpherson. As they put it, they love what they do and love being home in the Waikato, bringing the world of beauty to their clients.
On the hair side, the studio lives style, couture and colour, working closely with international technicians to bring the latest techniques and products to Hamilton. The team keeps its finger on the pulse of global fashion, delivering current styles alongside expert tips on how to grow beautiful, healthy hair, and supports eco-friendly styling brands — stocking Davines, GHD, ANTI and Davroe.
Makeup is an equally strong string to the bow: Devereux & Villiger is an award-winning retailer for the exclusive Velvet Concepts, The Edit Cosmetics, Madara makeup and Crown brush brands. Consultations with a professional, experienced makeup artist let you experiment with colours before you buy, and every look — from a natural no-makeup finish to a 'smoking hot' eye — comes with the skills to recreate it at home. The studio also provides hair and makeup for all occasions, from school balls to major events, all from its central, easily accessible Claudelands location.
Step off Union Street in Claudelands and into the studio of Devereux & Villiger, and you're stepping into a salon with an unusually glamorous backstory. Michelle Devereux and Eric Villiger spent more than two decades working at the top of the international hair and makeup world — Milan, Zurich, Sydney, London, Munich — before bringing that expertise home to Hamilton, where they now run their hair, makeup and beauty studio together.
The pair's credentials read like a fashion magazine masthead. Michelle began her career in Sydney doing makeup for fashion magazines such as Vogue, building a portfolio that spanned high-fashion editorial, beauty trend forecasting and ad campaigns for the likes of Country Road, Witchery, Sportsgirl, Westfield, David Jones, the Australian Wool Board and Kenzo perfumes. She travelled to Morocco, Tunisia, Milan, Rome, London, Singapore, Hong Kong, Egypt, Hawaii and Thailand to shoot with designers including Colette Dinnigan, Jayson Brundson and Leona Edmiston, and worked the runways of Milan, Rome, Australian and New Zealand Fashion Weeks — serving as Smashbox Team Leader at New Zealand Fashion Week from 2008 to 2016.
Eric's path was just as headline-worthy. After winning New Zealand Hairdresser of the Year early in his career, he opened his own salon, Undercover, in central Sydney, then freelanced for Mode Brides, Cleo, Elle, Dolly and Vogue. Europe followed: years in Milan shooting for Italian Vogue, Grazia and Interview, then Munich, doing hair for advertising campaigns for La Perla, Nestle and L'Oreal. Along the way came music videos for Annie Lennox and Fine Young Cannibals, and celebrities including Danni Minogue, Bryan Brown and Rachel Ward. Between them, the two have also worked with Cindy Crawford, Naomi Watts, Cate Blanchett and Elle Macpherson — and there's a treasured anecdote on their site about the night INXS invited them out partying, declined because work called in two hours.
What makes the studio special, though, isn't the celebrity roll-call — it's how thoroughly that experience flows into everyday appointments. 'We absolutely love what we do and we love being home in the Waikato, bringing the world of beauty to you,' they say.
On the hair side, Devereux & Villiger live style, couture and colour. Working closely with international technicians keeps the latest techniques and products flowing into the studio, and the team keeps its finger on the pulse of global fashion, delivering current styles alongside expert tips on how to grow beautiful, healthy hair. Eco-conscious clients will appreciate that the salon supports eco-friendly styling brands and stocks Davines, GHD, ANTI and Davroe.
Makeup is the other great strength. The studio is an award-winning retailer for the exclusive brands Velvet Concepts, The Edit Cosmetics, Madara makeup and Crown brush — and the team knows these brands intimately, even working at New Zealand Fashion Week. Appointments are shaped to your contours and colouring, whether you're after a natural no-makeup look or a 'smoking hot' eye, and you'll leave equipped with the skills to recreate the look at home using your own makeup and tools.
One of the studio's most practical offerings is the makeup consultation: time with a professional, experienced makeup artist in which you can experiment with colours before committing to a purchase. For big occasions — school balls, milestone events, anything worth dressing up for — Devereux & Villiger provide hair and makeup for all occasions, with a dedicated school ball hair and makeup service.
Booking is straightforward through the salon's online booking system, and the Claudelands studio is centrally located and easily accessible for clients. If you're stuck for gifts, the online shop carries Xmas holiday gift packs alongside the brands the team retails.
Two decades of Vogue shoots, fashion weeks and celebrity dressing rooms have distilled into something refreshingly local: a small, expert studio on Union Street where world-class hair and makeup is delivered with Waikato warmth.