2020 has been a year like no other… but one thing that we can rely on is the excitement and anticipation that is brought about from the annual Wahl Barber Battle!

Now in its fourth year, the barber battle provides entrants with a unique, career-changing opportunity to win a place of the esteemed Wahl Education and Artistic Team for a full year.

Entrants this year must submit a video of three specific cuts, an afro cut, a taper cut, and a cut of their choosing – providing they have used Wahl clippers to perform the cut!

We exclusively sat down with 2018 winner Kevin Nguyen on EVOLive – you can view this here.

Visit the new Wahl Barber Battle website HERE for full details!

Check out this cool video from Wahl on how to enter…

It’s a new series of free online training classes to provide Shortcuts software users with an in-depth review of Shortcut’s features.

Key topic areas include: Essential reporting, advanced appointments, client management, and employee management.

Attendance is unlimited, and viewers can engage with Shortcut’s representatives to ask questions and interact.

Details on registration can be found here.

As we wave goodbye to one of the strangest and bleakest summers we’ve ever seen, at BarberEVO we’re hoping to brighten up your fall with some colorful content.

Issue No. 15 is bold, make no mistake about that!

Our October cover star is none-other than the incredible and inspiring Pati Plymire, aka Queen of the South – she drops details on her famous braiding techniques, working with brands like Schedulicity and Style Factor, and her Barbercon 2020 win.

We also look at how some incredible barbershops from across North America, like thom. and Garrett Michael Barbershop, are offering close – contact services in these strange, PPE-laden times.

Plus, Toronto barber Tyler Lumb tells us about his inclusive virtual barbering service with Gillette. Kenny Duncan is back with a thought provoking piece on beard care and the effects of COVID-19 on African American barbershops, and we hear from John Carmona on why tattoo culture is intwined with barbershops.

Megastars Arod and Byrd join us to chat all things education, Wahl and social media, and Booksy ambassador Tom Baxter tells us about his new educational video series, Raw and Uncut. Plus, we chat to Candage Curran of Blackdoor Tattoo & Barber Co. to find out how things have been post-lockdown.

As always, it’s a fascinating issue – we hope it brings a bit of light and inspiration to you in these strange times!

Following months of campaigning and warnings to government regarding the need for additional education, training and skills funding for the hair and beauty sector, the NHBF has welcomed today’s announcement by the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, for the major expansion of education and training for those aged 18 and above. 

The key points are:

• Lifetime Skills Guarantee to give adults the chance to take free college courses valued by employers
• New entitlement to flexible loans to allow courses to be taken in segments, boosting opportunities to retrain and enhancing the nation’s technical skills
• The opportunity to study at a time and location that suits them. 
• Apprenticeship opportunities will also be increased, with more funding for small and medium sized businesses, such as salons, taking on apprentices. This includes greater flexibility in how their training is structured – especially in sectors such as construction and creative industries (which includes hair and beauty) where there are more varied employment patterns.

This offer will be available from April 2021 in England and will be paid for through the National Skills Fund. A full list of available courses will be available shortly. 

Hilary Hall, chief executive for the NHBF says, ‘We welcome the increased investment in apprenticeships for small and medium companies, although we will need to see more details.  We feel the funding should be focussed on older learners looking to switch careers by moving into hairdressing or beauty therapy.  

Many salons currently have no plans to take on apprentices but may change their minds if the increased investment in apprentices is focussed on older learners.  Employers are put off taking on such students as apprentices because they are only paid at the apprenticeship rate for one year of their apprenticeship course, which typically lasts two years.  As employers in our sector have a strong preference for apprenticeships and salons who are recruiting apprentices are reporting a shortage of suitable applicants, this is a great opportunity.’

The NHBF is still calling for a dedicated training and reskilling fund for those businesses such as those in the hair and beauty sector who have been the most severely hit by the current restrictions and guidelines required in order to be compliant and operate safely.

In addition to the main points the Prime Minister also announced that higher education loans will be made more flexible, allowing adults and young people to space out their study across their lifetimes, take more high quality vocational courses in further education colleges and universities, and to support people to retrain for jobs of the future.  

For more information and FAQs, please visit www.nhbf.co.uk/coronavirus and follow the National Hair & Beauty Federation on social at @nhbfsocial.

Iconic UK barbering figures Captain Fawcett, has re-opened his ‘simply marvellous’ barbershop museum in King’s Lynn, Norfolk.

Originally opened back in March 2019, the museum was forced to close earlier this year due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.

However that only served to close the museum temporarily, as the ever-extravagant Captain has now endeavoured to re-open the museum VIRTUALLY, thanks to some very clever 3-D mapping technology.

In the Captain’s own words… “it is a veritable tonsorial treasure trove celebrating literally centuries of craftsmanship. Along with sharing the origination of now invariably, mass produced everyday items, this extensive archive includes truly exceptional antique pieces dating as far back as the seventeenth century. It is a magnificent tribute to the ancient, most noble profession of the Barber Surgeon and is believed to be the world’s largest collection of its kind.”

So what are you waiting for… go visit the museum virtually here!

A barber can often be interrupted mid-fade by a colleague shouting over, or by a phone ringing, or by a pesky hair getting stuck in a face mask etc… but how often can you say you’ve been interrupted by a BOMB SQUAD?!

This is exactly what happened to Charlie Scrivens… who had only recently opened Front Row Barbers from a garden shed at his parents house.

His Dad, David, found anti-tank shells in the garden… which led to the road being closed-off for safety as the World War 2 weapons were taken away for a safe detonation.

Let’s hope this young aspiring barber and his business continue to grow and succeed, avoiding any unnecessary explosions on the way!

We LOVE good news at BarberEVO…

Back in January of this, Kolby’s Place, a barbershop in Bloomfield, NJ was unfortunately destroyed in a fire.

Thankfully, no one was hurt, but the barbershop business owned by Qorrell Wright – with 11 barbers on hand, had to cease trade as the building was no longer safe.

The GOOD news is that the shop has reopened – thanks to a GoFundMe appeal and the kind donations of many clients and locals.

We wish the entire team the very best of luck – and hope they can close out 2020 with every success!

The TPS Barber Academy has recently reopened after being hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic this year. 30 students are currently enrolled, training hard to become the next generation of barbers.

But as demand is down due to the pandemic and social distancing restrictions, the Academy is seeing fewer customers coming in and the students are struggling to meet their requirements. Director of adult education Larry Warniment, explained:

“It’s a little over a year program to get through. It’s 1800-hours in the shop and in the classroom combined. We do haircuts, scalp manipulation, and shampoos. Currently, we are not doing facial shaves because of COVID-19.”

At the moment, the Barber Academy is offering free services until further notice in order to pick up more custom and give students more chance of getting jobs in shops and salons. Although the instructors at the academy acknowledge the stigma behind letting a student barber cut hair, they’re hopeful that customers will have an open mind. Intructor Zonta Moore said:

“You know, we want people to come in and to allow the students to get that experience, so that way when they get into the shop, they’ve already bumped their head in school, and they don’t have to worry about bumping their head out in the shop.”

The Barber Academy is taking appointments Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 4 PM. To make an appointment for a free haircut, call (419) 671-8700.

A cutting-edge first phase of Digbeth’s new lifestyle complex is to open mid-October, powered by barber appointment booking software, Booksy.

BOOKSY UK is excited to announce the partnership with art.barbers – the first element of an innovative lifestyle complex, art.quarter, to launch – on the 16th of October 2020 in Digbeth, Birmingham. art.barbers will offer the highest quality barbering to men in Birmingham, whilst utilising Booksy’s health and beauty appointment booking system, with a plethora of COVID-conscious features to provide the ultimate barber shop experience.

“Booksy UK is proud to partner with art.quarter for the innovative launch of their first phase opening, art.barbers. Going to the barbers is no longer just popping in for a quick trim – it’s an important, imperative part of the modern man’s lifestyle. The overall client experience from seamless multi-channel booking, right through to post-appointment engagement has to be carefully considered to set a business apart from the rest – every step of the client’s experience counts.

Now when a visit out of the house is a much more considered trip, our end
users are looking for every opportunity to enjoy themselves in the safest
possible way – which is exactly what art.barber will offer. Clients want to immerse themselves in a stylish, unique environment that reflects the high level of skill sets from the team members, as well as being confident that the venue has their safety in mind with plenty of COVID-19 precautions in place, so both clients and barbers will have true peace of mind knowing they have taken every precaution to make safety a priority”, say Megan Mackie, UK Marketing Manager, Booksy UK.

art.quarter’s founder, Jordan Patel, expressed his excitement about the
opening, saying, “It’s great to be able to offer a beacon of hope in these
extremely trying times for the city. Coronavirus has had such a massive impact on the high-street, so to be in a position to open a business in this time and provide both employment and training to this number of people in the process, is a real blessing”.

art.barbers will form just the first part of art.quarter’s wider retail and lifestyle complex; comprising also of a women’s beauty salon, café, bakery, events space and food court. The next stages of the development are due to open later in 2020.

Left to Right: Mentor Terrance Henigan, His & Hers Barber School Owner, José Gardea, Sebastian Moore, Andre Whittington, His & Hers Barber School Instructor, Irene Youngblood, and Mentor Brenda Potts gathered to support the two graduates as they received their certificates last December in 2019.

Wahl Clipper Corporation’s Professional division, Chicago social service organization UCAN, and local business Larry’s Barber College are pleased to announce the awarding of scholarships to four new students as part of the Wahl Professional Fade it ForwardTM scholarship program. The event will take place on Tuesday, September 22, at 10 a.m. at UCAN, 3605 W. Fillmore St., Chicago, IL 60624.

In December 2019, Wahl Professional welcomed its first graduates of the philanthropic program, Andre Whittington, and Sebastian Moore, of Chicago, IL as they completed their barber college program at His & Hers Barber School. Both Whittington and Moore went through a challenging 13-month program that prepared them for their future careers as barbers and entrepreneurs.

For Chicago, this is the second group of Fade It Forward ^TM students to go through the program and will be furthering their education at Larry’s Barber College, 701 E. 79th Street in Chicago. The students going through this second installation of the program are Amari Brown, Brandon Williams, Dakota Newton-Powell, and Colby Taylor. Each of these students will be supported throughout the program by UCAN as well as a mentor – a professional barber in the Chicago area – who will help guide the students and give them their first experience working in the industry.

“The Fade It Forward^TM program is as much about supporting our at-risk youth as it is about helping them become professional barbers,” says Garland Fox, barber and Wahl Education and Artistic Team (W.E.A.T.) member. “We’re fortunate to partner with UCAN, which provides the ongoing support the students need as they progress through their barber education.”

For Fox, the creation of this philanthropic program is about giving back to the next generation, as he once was homeless, and credits becoming a barber as something that changed his life for the better. Fox’s inspiration and determination to help youth gain better lives is not only taking root in the Chicago area, but Wahl Professional has started the program in St. Louis, MO, and plans to expand to Cleveland, OH in 2021.

Visit wahlpro.com/education/fadeitforward for more information on the program and event.