Bio
Nana Ogihara is a hair stylist at Kinoshita Gaien East Street in Yotsuya, Tokyo. The 118-year-old salon and barbershop where Ogihara works is owned by 5th generation owner Hiroaki Kinoshita, a well-respected stylist in Japan. Ogihara uses Evernote on her iPad to collect ideas for hair styles, stay on top of new trends, and help her clients find the perfect style. We recently paid her a visit to learn more about how she uses Evernote and, naturally, made sure our CEO got a new haircut.
We hear you use Evernote quite a lot in your work. Tell us about the role it plays in your day-to-day job.
Ogihara: As a hair stylist, I am constantly learning and Evernote is vital in helping me study my craft. I need to keep up with new cutting techniques and trends and Evernote allows me to capture everything in one, easily-accessible place. With Evernote, I’m able to snap photos of hand-drawn pictures and attach images to notes that I can later annotate, something that is especially helpful when it comes to learning new cutting techniques. Because I have a number of different styles saved in my Evernote account, I’m able to quickly search through my notes and show customers various options when discussing styles with them. I also attend hair styling seminars and use Evernote to save whiteboard images with added notations. Having everything in one place, including images, drawings, and notes makes Evernote incredibly convenient, especially given that I’m often on the move.
Does your job extend beyond store hours?
Ogihara: After store hours, we practice on wigs, and on weekends, I often attend seminars to continue my education. Evernote allows me to manage styles, and share what I learn and find with colleagues in my field.
What Evernote features do you find most helpful in your profession?
Ogihara: One of Evernote’s best features is that it allows me to quickly record something and retrieve it. The ability to access my notes from multiple platforms is extremely handy as well. While my iPad is perfect for communicating about styles with customers, I can use Evernote on my desktop to do more detailed work or use my iPhone for quick note taking when I’m on the go.
How else do you use Evernote?
Ogihara: I teach a lot, so I upload pictures from training sessions, model cuts, and examples to show at seminars. I also store images from special events and contests. I can add notes to all of these images, so I’m able to remember more from all the classes and events I attend. I use Evernote to keep me organized around seminars that I teach. Every week, we have a seminar at the salon about new trends, and I pull together articles from various magazines and the web with Evernote. I can then easily share specifics about what new styles my students need to be aware of. I also use Evernote to organize my travel schedule.
Anything to add about using Evernote?
Ogihara: A key part of my work is communicating with customers so I am careful not to be intrusive when using Evernote to show them hair styles and cuts. It is important for customers to be relaxed, and not interrupt conversations, and Evernote makes this valuable engagement time feel casual.
We get some style
We were so impressed by Nana’s work at the salon that our CEO, Phil Libin, and the Evernote team stopped by for a cut on a recent visit to Japan. The salon handles both haircuts and shaving, so the team got quite the full-service treatment, including a massage.
Evernote’s goal is to be a 100 year company, and experiencing such service from a 118 year old company was inspiring!
（PHOTO: T.FUCHIMOTO 渕本智信）
