Andis® Company, a global leader in professional barbering tools and education, has teamed up with The Conscious Kid to support barbershops across the U.S. to supply two award-winning children’s books that affirm healthy racial representations of Blackness and Black identity to barbershops free-of-charge.

Andis® Company, through the Andis Foundation, sees the importance of barbershops in supporting communities by building relationships, fostering communication and educating today’s youth. Through the powerful reach of barbershops, the #AndisBooksToBarbershops program is designed to counter anti-Blackness, support social equity and promote long-term change.

The first book in the set, Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut, written by Derrick Barnes and illustrated by Gordon C. James, serves as a high-spirited, engaging salute to the beautiful, raw, assured humanity of Black boys and their self-perception when they approve of their reflections in the mirror. 

The second book, Hair Love, is tender and empowering. Written by Matthew A. Cherry and illustrated by Vashti Harrison, Hair Love is an ode to loving your natural hair — and a celebration of fathers and daughters everywhere.

Barbers can sign up to secure copies of these books for their business at https://www.theconsciouskid.org/andis. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, some barbershops may not be permitted to have books in their facilities. Please follow the recommended safety guidelines and protocols and use these books when it is safe to do so.  

To learn more about the #AndisBooksToBarbershops program or Andis® Company, please visit their website, Instagram or Facebook. 

To learn more about The Conscious Kid, please visit their website, Facebook, Instagram or Patreon 

Our friends from City Image Barbers in New Jersey, teamed up with online scheduling and booking software company Schedulicity to bring the debut episode of ‘Barber Biz Talk’ to life, this past Friday.

The hosts: Joe, Jeff and Izak from City Image Barbers, will be dropping advice on managing, marketing, building teams and generating profit within the barbershop setting.

The main theme throughout is that, “it’s not JUST a haircut.”

You can watch the first episode right here! It featured an exclusive giveaway from BarbershopConnect owner Lee Resnick!

The first thing you do when you open a pomade is wave it under your nose, take in the smell, look at the consistency and then you might read what it claims to do.

The founders of Ace High Co have lived and breathed every ingredient that is inside their hair care range for years. Nate Hamood and Christian Kettenbeil, based in Michigan, are experts in tweaking ingredients to get the correct consistency and results for all of their products, all of which are brewed by hand, even now.

Everything in the range is pure and natural, brewed in small batches to ensure consistency and precision in every jar. There are wonderful natural waxes like beeswax and candelilla wax, shea butter for a soft nourishing touch, a range of natural oils chosen to keep hair healthy and shining. Essential oils are added for their distinctive scent and scalp health. Every ingredient is chosen to aid performance and to enhance the health of your hair, to keep your client looking swell. 

This story starts back in 2016 when Nate and Christian couldn’t find the pomade they craved for their own hair and decided to give it a go at making one themselves. Kitchen-based concoctions in their coffee shop took lots of trial and error until they came up with the perfect pomade. Since launching they have moved out of the kitchen and into their own production space.

Their product is shipped in glass jars because it offers a unique design; the strength of the jars has been intensively tested, throwing them at the ground hasn’t managed to crack these jars, they’ve tried. 

The branding is a clean, classic American branding, a style the guys love, with a nod to the 40s and 60s design, and it creates a striking display in any barbershop.

The Ace High collection has now extended to shampoo, conditioner, the Original Pomade, Blue Suede Clay, Black Cat Pomade, and High Noon Pomade, as well as their beard balm, hair tonic and hand sanitizer. The company has put together a range of value packs, combining pomade and clay, or pomade and beard balm, all excellent gift options for your clients to take away for the holiday season.  Also check out their Ace high merchandise range for t-shirts, bandana, and branded combs. 

Customers love how easy the products are to use and how well they keep a ‘do looking swell, and the price point is easy on the pocket.

Barbershops are welcome to enquire about becoming a wholesale partner to stock this cool, all-natural, line of hair products that actually work. Orders of small batches are welcome.

For more information go to www.acehighco.com

There’s a new place to get a haircut in downtown Quincy, MA, and the owners said they want to give you the traditional barbershop experience your grandfather might’ve had when he was just a boy.

Master barber Matthew Thomas, at Gold Line Barbershop, at 830 Maine Street, said their company started out in 2015 in California with a mission to re-create the classic American barbershop with vintage cash registers, traditional barber equipment like antique chairs and more.

He said some of the services they offer are also vintage.

“Straight shaves, skin fades, traditional classic men’s hairstyles. We specialize in all classic men’s hairstyles we do the greaser 50’s haircuts. We do the classic 1920’s haircuts; and we also do a lot of modern cuts as well,” said Thomas.

Thomas said they plan to renovate the storefront with a new gold flake design. They said they signed a long term lease and hope to be in the community long term.

Good luck to Matthew and the team from all at BarberEVO!

North York Community Council, Toronto, has passed a motion to rename a street after a local barber and musician.

The new Jimmy Wisdom Way, which will replace Locksley Avenue from Eglinton West to Hopewell, is named after a renowned member of Toronto’s Jamaican Community.

Wisdom was a talented musician, active community member and leader who helped many newcomers ‘from his barber’s chair’ for more than 35 years.

The street is located right by Wisdom’s barbershop to honour his life and legacy. 

“We are grateful to Councillor Colle for his recognition and leadership to honour our father, affectionately known as Jimmy Wisdom,” said his daughter Ninfa Wisdom.

Wisdom passed away in 2019, but his shop attracted a wide range of clients.

“In renaming this street ‘Jimmy Wisdom Way’ next to where he worked, mentored, and inspired in his barbershop for over 35 years, we honour a man who devoted his whole life to celebrating and respecting his Jamaican roots and culture and weaving this into Toronto’s fabric,” said Mike Colle, Ward 8 councillor who presented the motion.

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.

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.

The annual event will no longer take place this year, and instead will reconvene next year. Premier Show Group released a statement yesterday, Tuesday 8th September:

“Premiere Orlando is not just an event that happens over a handful of days, it’s a community. It is OUR beauty community. The COVID-19 outbreak has had an unprecedented impact on the beauty industry, and as a result we have come to the decision to reschedule Premiere Orlando to 2021 and take the next steps to ensure a safe and productive return to Orlando. We look forward to seeing you next year on June 5-7, 2021! Those who have purchased a show pass will be eligible for a ticket exchange or a full refund.”

Visit the event website for more details on the event, including show information and travel details.

Squire Technologies has launched its latest feature which will allow barbers and barbershops to order their supplies and products from Squire Supply.

The new feature offers barbers prices 15% lower than market value, the option of monthly recurring orders and free shipping, as well as 50% off with their first order throughout September.

On their Instagram page, the brand released a statement explaining the new feature and how it will continue to support the industry:

“We are excited to share that SQUIRE has taken another huge step in advancing the barber industry. […] We are with you and we will always continue to innovate the industry. SQUIRE has also committed to waive subscription fees through December 31 2020, to assist customers in offsetting the financial burden of operating through a crisis.”

To find out more, visit www.supply.getsquire.com or call 1 (800) 600 9302 to order now.

Barbershops and salons in certain areas of California have been able to reopen and operate indoors as officials announced an update on Wednesday 2nd September.

Those in Los Angeles County have been allowed to reopen with limited indoor services and will be in line with the state recommended reopening guidelines. Los Angeles County Supervisor announced the update on Wednesday 2nd September:

“LA County’s Health Officer Order will be updated to allow hair salons and barber shops to resume indoor operations at 25% capacity. Options for increasing capacity will be re-evaluated three weeks after Labor Day.” (@SupJaniceHahn, Twitter)

At a COVID-19 briefing, Los Angeles County Health Officer Dr. Muntu Davis added that barbershops and salons would be able to open and operate at limited capacity as of the 3rd September if they were in line with all of the Health Officer Orders.

Counties in the San Francisco area have also begun to reopen, but only outdoors at the moment, with barbershops and salons not expected to resume service indoors until late September.

Keep up to date with the latest government guidelines on reopening here.