John Frieda, the British celebrity hairstylist and beauty industry figure who styled Jackie Kennedy and Princess Diana, has died at 75. His salon announced the death in an Instagram post on Tuesday, November 3, saying he passed away peacefully surrounded by his family.
The salon described Frieda as “more than a mentor” and “a true icon of the hair industry,” adding that he taught its team, believed in them and made them better. The tribute places his influence beyond celebrity styling: he was a teacher and a business builder whose name became a global haircare brand.
Born in 1951, Frieda came from a family of hairdressers and trained at the House of Leonard salon in London. In the 1970s he built a reputation as a hairstylist for stars and high-fashion magazines before opening his own salons, which expanded into an international haircare empire. His clients over the years included Twiggy, Mick Jagger, Nicole Kidman and Madonna, in addition to Kennedy and Diana.
His product brand, John Frieda Professional Hair Care, was behind the cult Frizz-Ease line and was sold to the Japanese cosmetics group Kao in 2002. Frieda married twice and had four children. Cetera Lamb, creative director at his salon, said the industry had lost “a true legend, a real maverick in hairdressing.”