KNOWN FOR HER EDGY, EDITORIAL CREATIONS, WHITNEY VERMEER HAS BECOME A HIGHLY RECOGNISED BARBER, PHOTOGRAPHER AND ANDIS PLATFORM ARTIST. BARBEREVO TALKED TO WHITNEY RECENTLY TO FIND OUT WHERE IT ALL STARTED AND WHAT SHE HOPES TO ACHIEVE IN THE FUTURE

“I’ve been doing hair for 10 years now,” says Whitney, who started out in cosmetology, covering everything from hair coloring to spa services. After two years of cosmetology, Whitney made the move to Minneapolis and began working under a barber who trained her in traditional barber methods.

Despite never going to barber college, Whitney took an unique approach to her own education. “I didn’t get to finish my training, so what I started doing was taking pictures of my work and then critiquing it, training myself to get better at cutting,” she explains.

What started as a self-teaching method quickly developed into a passion, and photography is something that now plays a huge role in Whitney’s life. Known for her unique portfolio of photography, she says she would do a shoot a week if she could! 

She certainly has her own style and anyone that follows her on Instagram or has seen her body of work, knows she loves to work in black and white. “I love those kinds of images. I’m always attracted to artwork in black and white too so it just felt right. When people want me to do a color shoot, I always think to myself ‘yeah that looks cool but it would look so much cooler in black and white’.”

At her studio in Minneapolis, Whitney splits her time between cutting clients and styling and shooting her editorial work. “My ultimate goal is to be focusing solely on visuals and spending less time behind the chair with clients,” says Whitney. For now, though, she still has a pretty long list of loyal clients. “I’ve been working with most of my clients for about three years now, but I only work behind the chair three days a week and I’ve gone down from around 300 clients to about 40-60.”

How then, did she go from a career in cosmetology to a client list of 300? “I guess what’s really funny is I still don’t really feel like a big success. I always put out what I want to put out when it comes to my work, I like to push boundaries. I always say my goal is not to be the best at something, it’s to change perceptions and that’s what’s most important to me.”

What certainly put Whitney on the map was her win at the North American Hairstyling Awards in 2017, where she was crowned Men’s Hairstylist of the Year. “Winning that award got me a lot of exposure, but I’m not going to enter that category again. My goal is to win Hairstylist of the year. Ideally, I’d like to try to win every category!” 

Whitney specializes in cutting short hair, whether that’s on men, women or non-binary individuals. “When I first started cutting men’s hair, a lot of people asked me if I was just doing it because it was easy, but it’s not and I really wanted to show them that it was an artform. I feel a responsibility to help push the industry further that way.”

In her quest to push the industry into the spotlight, Whitney has involved herself more and more in education over the years, and last October she became a platform artist for leading clipper brand, Andis.

“I’ve always only used Andis, it’s always been my go-to. I am longtime lover of their products and when I started meeting people from the company, I saw how passionate they were about family and I just fell in love with the brand.”

“I’ve been using them ever since I got out of cosmetology school. My favorite one is the Super ZR, but anything from their cordless range really. When I first started cutting with cordless, it changed the way that I cut hair because I just wasn’t restricted anymore.”

As well as her role as a Platform Artist, her proficiency in styling and shooting editorial has opened up even more opportunities with the clipper brand, creating editorial work for both herself and Andis. “It’s more or less coming up with unique haircuts using the Andis range, while also creating some more dynamic shots of the products themselves,” explains Whitney.

The project will allow her to organize shoots with other artists, as well as putting together two photo- and video-based shoots a year for Andis, creating the concept and assigning different roles to other members of the Andis team. “It’s really awesome, I’m so excited about it!”

It’s safe to say Whitney likes herself busy, as on top of her editorial and educational work with Andis and her 40+ client list, she is currently developing her own product line, from hair care to even clothing and lifestyle, giving part of any proceeds to a yet to be decided anti-bullying foundation.

Outside of her professional goals, Whitney is also really passionate about supporting women in the barbering industry. “One of the things I’m really passionate about is taking gender away from everything, it’s not a men’s haircut, it’s a short haircut. I’m working on some new initiatives with Andis to support women in barbering culture and I’m really excited about that.”

Sterling, IL (April 27, 2020) – Wahl Professional plans to kick off its second leg later this year of Disruptour, (Disruptour.com) a nationwide barber education gathering designed to teach the latest barbering and business skills.  Disruptour successfully kicked off in March in San Diego and Las Vegas before taking a hiatus due to COVID-19. For more information on upcoming show dates and to receive a 25% discount when you purchase your tickets visit Disruptour.com/Tickets. With a VIP ticket purchase, attendees will receive a limited edition Disruptour-branded Cordless Magic Clip. 

Disruptour attendees will learn cutting-edge clipper skills to push their cuts and styles to the next level. However, unlike regular shows, the Disruptour will also teach barbers and stylists how to build their brand image through social media, photography, and key business skills. The tour will feature Wahl Education and Artistic Team (W.E.A.T.) members, Nieves Almaraz (@howtofadehair) and Kevin Nguyen (@yakuzabarber), Wahl Professional’s new creative consultant, Byrd Mena (@byrdmena), and other professionals in the industry who all share the same goal of bringing high-quality education to the industry.

 The idea of the tour stemmed from a conversation between Lisa Finucane, Wahl Professional’s US Director of Education, and W.E.A.T. member, Nieves Almaraz, who wanted to create an intimate event where people have a chance to learn close up, get their questions answered and meet the educators. This quickly turned to something more when Finucane met Byrd Mena, founder of SharpFade, and an international hair show promoter. Byrd officially joined the Wahl Professional team as a creative consultant with the first goal of helping to bring Disruptor into fruition. His partnership has brought additional industry leaders to the show stops across the country.

Attendees to the first two Disruptour shows were able to interact one on one with the educators without any pressure. “Everybody was so impressed with the barbers and stylists on stage,” said Mena. “Our goal was to bring great education in an intimate setting that was really user-friendly and non-intimidating to barbers and stylists. We were so happy with the feedback. People kept telling us how much they loved what they learned.”

“Wahl strives to be a company that brings the community together wherever they are. The energy from the first two shows was just amazing,” said Lisa Finucane. “We can’t wait to do more of it.” 

With COVID-19 currently putting everyone’s life on hold, the Disruptour team pushed back a few of its show dates and took a positive spin on everyone staying at home by offering complimentary online education and a discount on upcoming show tickets:

• Complimentary Education
• Wahl Professional is holding Facebook Lives every week with W.E.A.T. members teaching various cuts, allowing watchers to have a Q&A session, and the ability to re-watch each video.
• The clipper manufacturer is also holding Instagram Lives on their account with exclusive interviews with W.E.A.T. members and how are they are handling their business through COVID-19. Throughout the next few weeks, each educator on the Disruptour will be holding Instagram Lives on each of their social media accounts to stay connected with members of the community and provide free and quality education to everyone who wants to learn.
• To view videos and stay up to date when educators will be going live follow Wahl on Facebook and Instagram (@wahlpro).
• 25% discount on all Disruptour tickets
• To purchase a ticket visit Disruptour.com/Tickets. With a VIP ticket purchase, attendees will receive a limited edition Disruptour-branded Cordless Magic Clip.

Sterling, Illinois manufacturer quickly works to produce 100,000+ within days.

Sterling, IL (April 20, 2020) – With the world currently turned upside down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wahl Clipper Corporation has stepped up to help produce and provide face shields for healthcare workers. The clipper manufacturer is working with its trusted manufacturing partners to make the face shields and will produce 100,000 by mid-April with the ability to produce larger quantities within very short lead times. The 101-year-old Sterling, Illinois-based hair clipper company is best known for manufacturing products for the professional, consumer and pet grooming industries.

“We understand there is a great need for protective equipment among our healthcare workers right now and we want to be as helpful as we can to those who are doing so much for all of us,” says Lance Wahl, global vice president professional products. 

The face shields have been redesigned by Wahl’s top engineers, who have also made the design available for makers and creators to use and expand upon in good faith. Wahl will distribute these products to local and regional hospitals as a public service. The face shields are not FDA certified and cannot be sold to any reseller.  

To learn more about the construction of these masks and how healthcare organizations can place orders, visit c19protect.com. To learn more about Wahl Professional, visit wahlpro.com.

While this remains a difficult time for us all, we truly hope that Issue 13 of BarberEVO North American brings you some inspiration and a little bit of light in the dark.

In these uncertain times, when barbershops across North America have been forced to close, it is important that we continue to inspire each other, knowing that this will come to an end.

To provide some hope, we spoke to Anna Elliott, owner of Doc’s Barbershop in Shanghai, China, who has finally been able to reopen her shop doors and is getting back to business. We also asked our columnist and social media guru Tyrik Jackson to share his top tips on how to make the best of a bad situation and use your down time to grow and develop.

Inside this issue, we’re taking a closer look at barbershop interiors, exploring the unique style and décor of some of North America’s most awe-inspiring aesthetics, from the vintage style of Ludlow Blunt to the modern minimalism of Juice Toronto.  

Now, we know most barbershops these days offer a nip of whiskey or a cold beer with their service, but what about a full-blown café or even a Caribbean street food restaurant? Yes, they exist and we’re finding out what makes the worlds of food and fading collide.  

Elsewhere, we’re talking to our columnists about the world of cosmetology and how the line between it and barbering is becoming more and more blurred – a development that most would agree can only be a positive thing. 

If that wasn’t enough, we have a whole host of exclusive interviews with the likes of WAHL Barber Battle winner Andy Rosario, the original barber doll herself Brandi Lashay, Andis Global Educator Lici Lady Barber, the team behind Rum Barber in Scotland, and of course, our cover star, SCurl Brand Ambassador and all-around star, Sipp the Surgeon. 

We hope, above all, that you stay safe, stay healthy, and we will see you all soon. 

Order your copy here: https://bit.ly/3462HGT

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Byrd Mena and Lisa Finucane have successfully executed the first dates of DISRUPTOUR, powered by Wahl Professional, in San Diego California and Las Vegas, Nevada, kicking off a year-long US tour of high end barbering, hairdressing, social media and photography techniques.

The tour encompasses the best in barber and hairdressing education and is hosted by internationally recognized Byrd Mena. The troupe of highly regarded barbers are embarking on a 17 city tour in 2020 to bring an intimate ‘rock show’ of hair to those hungry for the latest in all things barbering.

“The goal is to bring solid education, relevant techniques, and an unprecedented elevation of the barbering educational experience,” says Lisa Finucane, National Director of Education with Wahl Professional. The DISRUPTOUR will be a global merry go round of the best talent in the industry – no two events are the same!

General admission tickets are $150, while the VIP DISTRUPTOUR Experience ticket is $250, which includes a souvenir lanyard, preferred seating and a LIMITED EDITION DISRUPTOUR MAGIC CLIP.

To find out about upcoming dates, get tickets and see artist line ups, visit www.disruptour.com.

Following the release of the emergency decrees to limit the spread of Novel Coronavirus in Italy, as well as the latest restrictions confirmed by other countries in Europe, Asia and the American continent to limit international travels, BolognaFiere Cosmoprof SpA, the organizer of the event, has announced a further postponement of Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna 2020 to the 3-7th September 2020.

“Since the beginning of the emergency linked to the outbreak of Coronavirus in Italy on 23 February, we have been constantly monitoring the situation, with the aim of identifying the best solutions to support the cosmetic industry – says Gianpiero Calzolari, President of BolognaFiere.

“The restrictions affecting our country and the limitations on international travels announced by other nations do not currently create the necessary preconditions for the business and networking activities at the basis of a global event such as Cosmoprof. The decision to further postpone the show in September, also based on evident prudential reasons related to the health emergency, is the result of a responsible dialogue with associations and institutions, with the common goal of creating the best scenario for the relaunch of the sector. “

“Cosmoprof in an international event, which every year attracts over 265,000 operators from 150 countries to Bologna. The actual restrictions are limiting the presence in Italy of buyers, distributors and retailers from the main markets in Europe, Asia and America for the next few months, thus draining the lifeblood of our event as well -, says Enrico Zannini, General Manager of BolognaFiere Cosmoprof SpA.

“Today more than ever we are therefore called to act with responsibility, to protect the investments and production activities of our 3,000 exhibitors and to support the sector. In September, we will work together with beauty companies and operators in the relaunch and development of the industry on a global level.”

In the next months, BolognaFiere Cosmoprof will devote its attention to the reorganization of the scheduled business activities and initiatives, to guarantee companies and operators a high-quality edition of Cosmoprof, in the name of the prestige that the brand has been able to conquer worldwide in more than 50 years.

For further information, www.cosmoprof.com

Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced recently a £500 million boost for self-employed workers hit by coronavirus, but stopped short of meeting demands to extend statutory sick pay to all. So, how will this affect barbers and shop owners?

According to reports, the budget would make sick pay available for all those advised to self isolate during the outbreak, even if they do not have symptoms. Unfortunately though, this will not extend to zero hours workers or those who are self employed.

Instead, self employed workers will be given help through a £500m boost to the benefits system, including a temporary halt to the minimum floor in universal credit and quicker payments for employment and support allowance (ESA) claimants.

Local authorities will also be given a £500m hardship fund, also scrapping the need for claimants to attend job centre appointments in person and small businesses will be given government help to meet the cost of statutory sick pay.

We asked some of our columnists for their thoughts on the coronavirus and some advice on how to keep your staff safe and protect your business.

Dan Davies: “The main thing is that both staff and barbers are safe. If you are feeling under the weather, spot a colleague is not right or indeed if a customer is showing systems it’s best to act on the side of caution. Hygiene is always of paramount importance, even more now wash your hands after every client and ensure they are dry. Fresh alcohol wipes and Salonside for all equipment.”

“Salonside is my favourite disinfectant. It comes in refillable sprays and is water based so it acts 10x quicker than oil based brands. I always wipe the chair, combs and brushes after every client with this. It gives people a sense of protection and needs to be taken into consideration in these uncertain times. The main thing everyone needs to do is take the advice of professionals seriously. There are a lot of really crazy things on social media about the virus. Keep calm and follow the professional advice given by the government.”

Luke Dolan: “COVID-19 has now been updated to a pandemic virus and it’s a very real threat to everything, but it’s not the illness that is the threat, it’s the hysteria and breakdown in the system because of it that will bring the real chaos. Yes, be vigilant, stay clean and sanitised, clean your hands before and after cuts, maintain the highest level of bacterial cleanliness you can.

“That said, what we have no control over is hospitals being over run, people won’t come out of their homes, business’ will plummet and appointments will fall off the radar. We may have areas of the country that will be told to stay home and be on lock down, so be prepared. Plan for the worst case scenario.

“Events are being cancelled in October. That’s no joke and means that a six months stretch of bad business could be coming our way. Speak to your landlords, clarify with your utility companies of allowances and if any can be given. Making calls and emails now will keep anxiety levels at a minimum when the virus actually goes widespread and if you get the virus you’ll be quarantined for two weeks minimum, and the last thing you want to think about are bills.”

“Make plans now. The virus is a real threat, but the chaos that it might bring is the unknown entity. As a boss, your responsibility lies with keeping your workforce safe and your client base, and making sure you’re ready for anything.”

Vikki Harrison-Smith: “We are encouraging those who feel unwell to stay at home and cancel appointments. We have put more hand sanitisers dotted around the academy for clients, students and staff. Gloves are readily available for those wanting to use them for work.

“Friendly reminders are up in the toilets to wash hands and there is a hand washing guide up too. Disposable paper towels to dry hands or the air dryer. As always, reinforcing sanitisation on all stations and equipment.”

We’ll continue to provide updates as and when we have them, but make sure you pay attention to local guidelines and safety procedures.