On Monday, Phorest UK successfully held their live stream event, Uplift! After some technical issues on their first attempt on January 25^th, The Uplift! event came back bigger and stronger for its rescheduled date of Monday February 8^th. Along with motivational and uplifting presentations from guest speakers such as Chancellor of the British Fellowship of Hair and mindfulness leader, Ashley Hodges, and Royal Marine Jason Fox with an inspiring speech about resilience, Phorest professionals shared many inspiring stories as well as tips and tricks to persevere through the pandemic.

The day started with an introduction by Ronan Perceval, CEO of Phorest, introducing the speakers, presentations, and prizes. The prizes that were offered this year included an Apple Watch, an iPad, and a one-year subscription to Headspace App for mindfulness.

Chief Technology Officer at Phorest John Doran, and Head of Product, Evelyn Balfe, then presented on How 2020 Changed Our World. John and Evelyn shared stories from several salon owners and hairdressers throughout UK and Ireland, and how they coped and adapted through Covid with the help of some of the features Phorest Booking and Management Apps have to offer. They also included videos from Phorest users from all over the world, talking about their concerns throughout Covid, and some of the ways Phorest had been able to help.

“Phorest was the first of our suppliers who contacted us and told us, that we didn’t have to stress about the invoicing. They would spread our payments, and take the pressure off us. Phorest were definitely leading the way.” – Gerri Dangerfield Keane, UK.

The next presentation was offered by Head of Product Marketing and Retention Rob Hewitt, and Aisling Scolard, Product Manager. Rob and Aisling’s presentation focusing on marketing, what that means for salons in 2021, and some helpful tips and advice on how to make marketing work for you this year. According to Rob, “Marketing starts with clear, strategic goals, if you want proper results.” In this session, Rob and Aisling discussed all the challenges of the last year, the impact on consumer habits, and what are some ways we can adapt to consumer demands. One change that is certain is the shift to digital. Rob and Aisling offered several solutions to make sure that salons are able to effectively reach their clients online, through Phorest features like: Email Marketing Editor, SMS Marketing Editor, and Client Reconnect.

Next, the Feature Reveal was presented by Richard Cullen, Senior Product Designer, and Verna Wall product researcher, with the topic: Resilience, Motivation, and the Team Effort. Through the data system that Phorest has access to, they were able to compile a list of trends and patterns that successful salons all have in common. There are many misconceptions about what drives success, such as being located on the high street, being expensive, and having a massive team. But Phorest analytics found that these are not always indicative of success. Instead, what they found every successful salon to have was an educated and focused team. The rest of their presentation shared tips on how to motivate staff, how to help them be self-reliant, and to monitor personal and shop goals through the My Performance tool in the Phorest Go app. This tools monitors staff performance, and increases awareness, and helps to avoid awkward one-to-one meetings. This is a free tool and will be available from next week on.

The next presentation was given by guest speaker Ashleigh Hodges, who began her presentation with a group meditation to promote mindfulness. Ashleigh Hodges offered some advice on wellbeing, and how to juggle busy lives. Ashleigh’s presentation encouraged listeners to allow themselves and their staff time to look inward, take care of themselves, and recharge, before they to spring into action to help everyone else, as they are used to doing. During Covid, Ashleigh explained, “we have all had time to think about what is important to us, and clients have had time to realise how important we are to them.” Ashleigh’s advice to listeners is: learn to say no, set boundaries, and treat your wellbeing as just as important as your clients.

The next session was presented by Niamh Greaney, Head of Adoption & Client Education, who educated attendees on how to evaluate and improve your own online health, to ensure businesses are reaching their clients to the best of their abilities. Phorest have created an online calculator to assess your online health, in terms of online marketing, social media, online reputation, and your salon website. This tool is available on Phorest’s platform and online. Niamh encourages owners to check their score, create a strategy, and revisit the calculator, until they are happy with their online health.

Finally, the last presenter of the day, Jason Fox spoke to the audience about resilience and mental health, and his experience in Afghanistan as a Special Forces Officer. Fox shared an inspiring story of how he dealt with a hostage rescue mission in Afghanistan. Fox shared with the attendees his personal ethos of:  courage, determination, unselfishness, and cheerfulness in the face of adversity, and it is these four qualities that have helped him get through traumatic experiences, and will help others face day-to-day struggles throughout their lives, such as getting through this pandemic.

Overall, the day with at Phorest’s Uplift shared inspiring stories of perseverance, adaptability, and determination from salon owners, public speakers, as well as Phorest professionals. Phorest also shared many tips and tools that their software platforms offer to help salons throughout the pandemic, and into the tech-based future.

To learn more, go to https://bit.ly/2MQ8ts5

 For Wahl Professional, providing high-quality education has always been at the forefront of the clipper manufacturer’s agenda. Lisa Finucane, Wahl’s National Director of Education, shares the same passion and goal of providing education to barbers and stylists in a way that helps them reach their creative potential. In an effort to reach Wahl Professional’s end users, Finucane reorganized the Wahl Professional Education Team to touch on different creative aspects of the barber and cosmetologist educational needs.

“Dividing the Wahl Professional Education Team into three “sub-teams” ensures that we are reaching customers at all levels of skill and creativity. There is such rich diversity and legacy in Wahl Professional Education, and my goal was to showcase the talents of the education team and leverage our stellar reputation while providing the end-user with the flexibility to choose classes and educational events for all skill levels,” says Finucane. “Our goal is to present educational offerings that can provide the barber or stylist the opportunities to learn fundamental clipper hair cutting up to the most creative cutting techniques that utilize multiple Wahl Professional tools.”

The Field Education Team comprises the majority of the Wahl educators, who all share the goal of helping barbers and stylists learn new skills and master classic cuts. The educators on this team are tasked with teaching at distributor classes and trade shows, while continuously helping build a strong foundation of education for the barbers and stylists.

The 1919 Artistic Team has been established to influence and create high-end editorial styles. Led by creative consultant Jamie DiGrazia, they will provide education for those barbers and stylists looking to turn up their creativity with their tools, including the Wahl 1919 styling and finishing line. DiGrazia identifies as a stylist and barber, which allows her the creativity and skill to create hairstyles that are a hybrid of the two. The other educators on the team share similar knowledge and collaboratively will be helping create a connection with stylists. However, hair cutting will not be the only education provided by this team; the 1919 Artistic Team will also be creating finishing techniques, retail classes, and product knowledge classes all with a focus on Wahl Professional’s 1919 Men’s Grooming Line.

The role of the Wahl Professional Creative Team is to create and inspire. These educators are featured on the Disruptour, a nation-wide barber education tour created by Finucane and Byrd Mena of SharpFade. The goal of the Disruptour is to provide high-end education in intimate settings across the United States. 2021 brings a combination of a “look and learn” stage presentation followed by a “hands-on” learning experience where attendees will learn the Disruptour Trend Cuts. The Disruptour Team is a group of highly creative individuals with a passion for educating and the skill set necessary to be visionaries and trendsetters. This team will be responsible for setting the trend cuts, styles, and creative social media content.

In addition to the new teams, Finucane will also have help from her Lead Educator, Nieves Almaraz. Almaraz continues to be a driving force in the success of Wahl Professional Education. His background as a barber, cosmetologist, and barber educator has significantly contributed to the success of Wahl Professional Education. Almaraz and Finucane collaborated on Wahl Professional’s Pop Up Academy as well as the creation of five fundamental haircuts that are now the basis for Wahl’s clipper education.  As a two-time NAHA Nominee, Nieves is also a creative collaborator for Finucane.

“Nieves has been a tremendous resource and solid partner as I approached the new educational formats, events, and team diversity. He and I have the same goal of providing education that reflects the journey of Wahl Professional,” says Finucane. “We are both traditionalists at heart. However, we also have a keen understanding that pushing creative limits and boundaries are necessary components to staying fresh and relevant. Our goal is to enrich the lives of our long time Wahl users and also attract new, young users by providing education that inspires all levels of barbering and cosmetology.”

For a list of available classes, check out wahlpro.com/education. To learn more about Wahl Professional, follow them on Instagram at @wahlpro or visit the website at wahlpro.com.

We at BarberEVO, along with the rest of the barbering world, are shocked and devastated by the loss of legendary barber and friend, Allan Stone.

46 year old Allan Stone was the owner of Stoney’s Barber Shop in Laygate, South Sheilds. Allan was a named a Grandmaster Barber by the British Master Barbers (BMB) Alliance, he was a Master Barber, and was also recognised by the British Barbers’ Association. Allan Stone was a a big supporter of the barbering industry ­– always pushing for higher standards and education, and he was a regular at most barbering shows, always offering advice and kind words.

Stone began his career in the industry as a young man, working as a Saturday worker at Saks Hairdressers in Newcastle while he was still at school. Allan Stone, was dedicated to sharing his knowledge and skills, and worked as part-time lecturer at South Tyneside College, while running two locations of his barbershop in South Shields.

We, at BarberEVO, are absolutely devastated to learn the news of the passing of our friend Allan Stone.

Full of energy and a real zest for life, Allan truly was one of the most genuine, larger than life guys you could ever wish to meet.

His presence MADE barbering trade shows worth attending alone, Allan put a smile on everyone’s face, almost effortlessly and we will cherish those memories forever.

Only last week Allan reached out to check in on Andrew and David, full of that Geordie banter and light-hearted exchanges that epitomised why Allan was liked by so many.

Our thoughts are with his family, his friends, and the very many industry peers throughout the UK and beyond who will be truly saddened to hear of his passing.

If you are able to do so, please consider making a donation to this fund set up to help support Allan Stone’s family with funeral costs.

The outpouring of emotions in the aftermath of Allan’s passing has been truly sad, but equally heart-warming to read all of the kind words every single person has had to say about the one and only Stoney.

Rest easy Stoney.

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/allan-stone?utm_term=AxGXWgeAv&fbclid=IwAR0HwgUWVLTjoSY_X9wtDbKyzTwhojtxKj9HwwbNyWXLVBudpFQNY3Q1fN8

As of the 25^th of January, Health Officials have lifted the Regional Stay at Home Order in California and put the state into the ‘Purple Tier.’

This allows ‘personal care services’ such as barbershops, hair salons, and nail bars to operate indoors. However, Health Officials ask that businesses operate at 25% capacity, and continue to social distance and wear face masks where applicable.

Until the 25,^th California had been the only state in which barbershops and hair and beauty salons were under strict regulations to stay closed.

Thankfully, the ICU percentages and case rates have remained low enough over the last month for restrictions to be lifted enough for beauty industry professionals to get back at it.

For many men, a trip to the barbershop is much more than just a luxurious effort to alter their aesthetic appearance. For many, their barbershop has become a safe place to chat about their lives, and their barber, a friend and confidant. Many barbers may joke that they find them feeling more like a therapist than a barber ­– but what if you could provide barbers with the tools to do both?

Lorenzo Lewis did just that. After spotting a deficiency in mental health care for Black men and boys in the United States, Lorenzo Lewis founded Confess Project Barber Coalition in 2016. Their goal is to bridge the gaps in mental health care for Black men and boys, by providing barbers with the resources and skills to listen and talk to their clients about their mental health wellbeing in a judgement-free safe space.

Lewis noticed that African American communities in the United States were terribly under-resourced and underrepresented in terms of mental health care and support. However, he found that the importance of the barbershop’s role in improving and promoting mental health in men, specifically in African American communities, had been previously overlooked.

Through workshops hosted by the Confess Project Barber Coalition, barbers are given education, resources and training to talk to their clients about mental health, and to point them toward further help and solutions. Since 2016, the Barber Coalition has trained more than 200 barbers across the United States to be mental health advocates.

During the last year, throughout the pandemic, African Americans have been disproportionally affected and racial injustices and police brutality have only increased the Black community’s need for mental health resources. Meanwhile, many barbershops have been forced to close and the in-person workshops have had to be put on the back burner. However, that won’t stop the Coalition’s efforts to continue to support their communities. The group has started hosting online training courses, group support calls, and individual check-ins for member barbers.

Lewis’ goal for the Confess Project Barber Coalition to that the messages and lessons taught go ‘beyond the barbershop,’ showing men and boys that it is okay to talk about their emotions and to ensure that they know they are valued in society, and that there is a community behind them.

For more information and resources, visit www.theconfessproject.com