Head Spa, Review: This Tingly Massage Offers A Moment Of Grounding

At Morgan & Morgan, you’ll find a senior stylist offering a tingle-inducing head spa, advice for deep-cleaning hair care and an excellent blow wave. Viva takes the treatment for a test drive.

The Promise

At Morgan & Morgan, the Japanese head spa appointments are led by senior stylist Koji Hirota.

Koji trained and worked as a stylist and spa practitioner in Osaka, Japan, before moving to New Zealand — he’s been in the business for 20 years and started learning the massage technique at the beginning of his training.

Koji has also passed on his knowledge to two other Morgan & Morgan stylists in the salon, so more than one stylist is available to book for the head spa. When I ask the senior stylist about his primary goal in providing the head spa to clients, he says he wants to focus on both hair and scalp health while promoting relaxation and wellbeing.

The Practice

Koji begins the appointment with an extremely close look at my scalp, with the help of a magnifying camera. This is an aspect of the treatment I have been apprehensive about. I have no idea what might be going on up there. Could there be some flakes? Damage from over-washing? Microscopic bugs playing in a punk rock band? All of these possibilities have been none of my business — until this intimate moment.

Koji takes a look, asks how long it has been since I’ve last washed my hair (two days) and says he’s simply looking to assess my scalp before we begin. He reports that it all looks normal and my shoulders relax (though, I am slightly disappointed there’s no scalp-based equivalent to Double Whammy rocking up there).

Therefore, the focus of our session is giving my head and hair a really good clean. This guides him in recommending the shampoos and conditioners for the appointment — he tells me to pick them based on their scents (my preferred ones are mildly sweet).

He starts the massage with my hair dry, pressing and rubbing on my scalp and neck with different parts of his hands — when I feel it’s a little too firm he responds quickly and loosens up. I found it more comfortable to shut my eyes at this point, to avoid looking at my distracting massage face in the mirror in front of me.

After this section was complete, we relocated to the hair-washing sinks at the back of the salon. Koji directed me to a massage chair and swaddled me in all the usual towels and a cosy blanket. Then the massage chair starts up, along with music from a small speaker, and the main massage begins.

Koji washes and massages my scalp, using a few different methods — he scrunches at my roots, lathers up my hair and massages some of the muscles in my neck. At some points, the more static pressure gets a little firm, but whenever I ask for a relief in pressure, Koji is quick to respond. For my tolerance levels (low), it’s a vigorous and tingle-inducing scrub. Overall, the hair wash is a really relaxing experience — it’s like an extended and more intensive version of the wash you usually receive when you’re getting your hair cut.

By the time we finish, and I dozily sit up in the chair, I notice that some tension has left my usually stiff neck.

When we return to the salon chair, we take another look at my scalp. The difference is subtle — the most obvious thing I can spot is a reduction in the shine atop my roots.

The final step of the appointment was a blow wave. Koji assesses my head of very thick, fine hair (which is definitely overdue a trim) and opts for a slight wave, achieved with a round brush and dexterous twisting technique.

The Place

Morgan and Morgan, 462 Lake Rd, Takapuna, Auckland. Morganandmorgan.co.nz

The Price

The Verdict

After leaving the head spa, with an uber bouncy blow wave, I definitely noticed a silkier finish to my hair than usual. My roots were especially shiny and had lots of volume — which is something I’ve struggled to manage with my overgrown layers.

One of my favourite parts of hair appointments is watching precise professionals at work. They’re often generous in their recommendations to clients who trust them with a small but intimate part of themselves.

Koji was direct and practical in his recommendations. He showcased how to clean and treat my hair and scalp intentionally and encouraged me to do one focused clean a week to shoo away excessive product or grease on my scalp.

I really appreciated the grounded approach Koji takes to the head spa. I tend to baulk at overly prescriptive wellness sells that goad clients into appointments by inducing anxiety. With this head spa, Koji is focused on prioritising enjoyment in the practice. Instead of touting any benefits, he plays low-key music, focuses on areas at your request and encourages you to pick the products you want — no stress or self-consciousness is evoked to promote the massage.

This appointment made me realise I’ve been approaching my own hair washes in auto-pilot mode, running through my routine in an obligatory matter rather than an intensive scrub. With Koji’s advice, I’m going to dial into a more mindful routine and express more care and kind intentions for myself.

I’d recommend the head spa as a gift for someone in your life who could use a moment of care — perhaps pooling cash together to treat a hard worker who rarely takes a moment for themselves. It would also be a great treat for anyone with a bit of cash to splash (who really loves those strange jellyfish-ish, whisk-shaped head-scratcher things).

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