Meet the Owners

They say, “Blessed is the man who finds his work” and that’s exactly Gustavo Tundela’s story. . Born in central Brazil (in Goiania), he actually first started his career in the beauty industry as a high fashion model, having placed as a semi-finalist in the 2002 “Mr. Brazil” competition and immediately finding work thereafter in South Beach, Miami. After his first year of modeling he decided to take on some part-time work at a salon, where, suddenly, he was immersed in a completely different side of the industry. Gustavo quickly began learning about the styling world, hands on, through hair trade shows, discovering a hidden talent hair to only for styling hair, but also for working directly with clients. As a departure from just being in front of the camera, this excited Gustavo to now be helping others achieve the look they were trying to bring out in themselves.

Realizing that modeling was probably behind him and wanting to waste no time, he started beauty school. All the while Gustavo continued to cultivate his skills, traveling to Las Vegas, Miami, Orlando, New York, and Brazil to participate in more hair shows. Soon his experiences segued into commercial level projects like cover shoots for magazines (People, 944, Ocean Drive & Telenovelas), working on the sets of commercials, tv shows & films, and being involved in high end events like Miami Fashion Week.

This and much more became Gustavo’s growing reality as an establishing artist in South Beach, but things, as they do, changed again for him when he met a very special woman visiting from Philadelphia. When Gustavo & Margarita first met their relationship was long distance. Margarita found him clients in Philadelphia, so the two could see one another every month, but soon, Gustavo became overbooked during his short visits. Eventually, it became clear that he would need to leave South Beach behind him.

Typically, when a man uproots his entire life and moves himself twelve hundred miles away from all he
knows it’s for one reason: a truly amazing woman. Margarita Gazaryan was raised in western Russia
(Rostov-on-Don) by her grandparents, both of whom actually happened to be hair dressers. They owned
a shop and Margarita frequently spent time watching them cut & stlye hair. As she got older, her travels
all throughout Europe as a young girl were marked by a growing fascination with beauty & fashion,
particularly the vogue styles in Italy and France. Artistry, she attests, is just something that’s always
been a part of who she is.

Nevertheless, Margarita is also a very driven individual, which is why her passions led way to practicality.
She was accepted to an esteemed university in Russia, graduating with a degree in law, and in 1998
secured a position at a law firm in Philadelphia. From 9-5 she worked as a legal assistant. Weekends,
however, were spent singing & performing at the northeast renowned Russian night club, “Golden
Gates”, where she was free to express her passion and creativity.

She met Gustavo while on vacation in Miami, and the two continued their relationship long distance.
Shrewd, she gradually strung together clients in Philadelphia for Gustavo to style while visiting her every
month. But eventually, the number of clients she garnered soon outweighed the timeframe of his visits.
Something had to shift. So Margarita, by that point already intertwined with aspects of Gustavo’s work,
decided to reignite her creative side and started Paul Mitchell beauty school.

Together, Gustavo & Margarita bring their energy, their experience, and their expertise to Tundela & Co.