After building his reputation across Ukraine and Eastern Europe, the Beverly Hills hair designer chose to rebuild from the ground up in California.
When Zhenya Masko and his wife arrived in Los Angeles in 2016, he was not arriving as a beginner. He had already spent more than a decade building a professional career in hair, developed a private studio in Kyiv, worked on fashion shows and industry events, and established a reputation through years of hands-on work and advanced education.
None of that, however, transferred automatically to California.
Masko enrolled in English classes while navigating California’s licensing requirements. Within roughly a year, he had earned his California cosmetology license and joined Giuseppe Franco Salon, a long-established Beverly Hills salon. He worked there until the pandemic disrupted the salon industry in 2020. Around 2022, he opened his own private studio in Beverly Hills.
The transition was less about beginning a career than proving an established one all over again.
From the Ural Mountains to Kyiv
Masko grew up in a small town in Russia’s Ural Mountains and moved to Kyiv at 18. His entry into professional hairdressing came through formal training rather than a family background in the industry.
His early career expanded quickly. He worked as a hairstylist on fashion shows, developed original haircut and color collections, and continued his professional education. His experience also included work with Kérastase in a brand ambassador capacity and later as a collaborator and brand trainer for Philip B Botanicals in Eastern European markets.
After roughly seven years in the industry, Masko opened his first private studio in Kyiv. Over the years that followed, the studio grew alongside his professional reputation.
By the time he applied for U.S. immigration, his combined professional work as a hairstylist and visual artist contributed to his eligibility for a Green Card. In 2016, he and his wife moved to Los Angeles.
Starting Over Without Starting From Zero
California presented a different kind of professional challenge. The language barrier was immediate, and professional credentials earned abroad did not automatically translate into a California cosmetology license.
Masko approached both requirements directly: studying English while completing the licensing process and passing the state examination. He then spent several years at Giuseppe Franco Salon, building a new professional network in Beverly Hills.
The process required him to separate reputation from expertise. The reputation he had built overseas could not simply be transferred, but the experience behind it could. That distinction became central to the way he rebuilt his career in the United States.
What Defines the Work Today
Today, Masko’s private Beverly Hills practice centers on precision haircutting, bob architecture, advanced blonding and color work, and individualized hair design.
His process begins before a technique is selected. Face shape, bone structure, hair density and texture, natural growth patterns, lifestyle, and maintenance expectations all influence the final direction. Techniques such as AirTouch, balayage, precision cutting, and advanced color are tools within that larger design process rather than the definition of the work itself.
After more than 22 years in professional hairdressing, Masko’s focus has increasingly shifted toward creating results that feel specific to the individual. The goal is not simply to reproduce a trend, but to understand why a particular shape, proportion, color, or movement works for the person wearing it.
A Career Rebuilt in Beverly Hills
For a professional who had already built a career once, establishing himself in Los Angeles required an unusual combination of experience and willingness to begin again.
Masko rebuilt through licensing, language study, years inside an established Beverly Hills salon, referrals, and eventually an independent private studio. What carried forward was not a job title or an address, but the technical judgment developed over years of practice.
His story is less about starting from nothing than about discovering what remains when familiar credentials and reputation are removed. More than any single technique, that process helps explain the way Masko approaches his work today: observe carefully, understand the individual, and build deliberately from there.
