Peter Saerang was already in medical school when he realised that he’d rather play around with hair than dissect cadavers. So he set out from his hometown of Manado in Sulawesi for Jakarta, to study under top hairdresser Rudi Hadisuwarno. He then headed for London in the late ’70 to train at famed academies like Tony&Guy and Vidal Sassoon. Upon returning to Jakarta, Saerang worked in Hadisuwarno’s salon before starting his own eponymous hair and make-up studio.

Armed with glow-up superpowers and an astute business sense, Saerang grew his client base and added branches through the years. Today, with ten branches to his name, the 71-year old Saerang could simply bask in his success. But instead, he still reports for work every day in his Plaza Indonesia flagship salon while overseeing the training of future stylists at the Peter F Saerang Academy.

That’s not all: through his foundation, Yayasan Cipta Lestari, Saerang raises funds for the education of Indonesia’s under-privileged youth who dream of following in his footsteps.