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UK & Ireland News

WAHL Pro UK welcomes new barbers

Jake Lansley, Nathan Bradbury and Ben Morrison today announced that they have signed professional contracts with WAHL Pro UK.

Having all been ambassadors for the WAHL brand for the past year, all three barbers are excited about this next stage in their career. The three barbers will join a number of highly respected barbers already part of the WAHL Education Team, providing seminars, doing stage work and supporting the WAHL brand.

See Jake’s announcement here: https://www.instagram.com/p/BwEmOWjl95j/

See Nathan’s announcement here: https://www.instagram.com/p/BwEtcyTjlf9/

Mathew Guerin wins BBA British Barber of the Year

What a great year 2019 was for the entrants of the BBA British Barber of the year competition. The entrant numbers more than double from last year and the quality of the initial photographs round made it a tough decision for the judges. The finalists spent a lot of time preparing for the live finals and you could see that with the commitment showed to finding the right model and demonstrating creative skills on the day.

They executed a flattop challenge in the morning and then took part in the semi-finals in the afternoon; it was a close competition in some cases just one or two points in it. You could feel the tension and excitement build throughout the day both outside and inside the BBA Boxing Ring held at HJ Live London on 25 February. With Britain’s finest barbering talents battling it out with a flattop challenge and semi-finals. The final became a battle between Rachael Flynn and Mathew Guerin.

Gary Machin, a BBA Judge, said, “we knew this was going to be a very competitive and exciting final, all the finalists really wanted the title and you could feel the tension build throughout the day and, the adrenaline was certainly flowing in the boxing ring in the final!”

The Winner Mathew Guerin of Guerin Barbers, Ammanford, Wales impressed the judges on all ten areas of the criteria,

Mathew Guerin BBA British Barber of the Year 2019 said, “Winning the BBA British Barber of the Year award is a dream come true and it is the highest achieving moment of my career so far.”

Mathew not only wins the coveted BBA Belt and title of BBA British Barber of the Year 2019 but also takes away prize money of £2,000 and £500 worth of BBA Male Grooming Products, Wahl Clippers and Sensei scissors.

Captain Fawcett’s Marvellous Museum Launch

On Saturday 9th March Captain Fawcett hosted a splendid candle-lit soiree at his

mysterious HQ in Kings Lynn, Norfolk.

 

It had long been rumoured that during his adventures, Captain Fawcett was gathering a

most intriguing collection of barbering artefacts and ephemera. And indeed, the rumours

prove to be absolutely true for, ably assisted by his Right Hand Man, the Captain has

curated a most Marvellous Barbershop Museum within his own Gentleman’s Grooming

Emporium, a Personal Homage to Tonsorial Art. And Saturday’s extravaganza declared

the Museum well and truly open.

 

Esteemed guests travelled to Kings Lynn from Germany, France, Sweden, Spain, Italy,

Russia, the USA, India and Pakistan and arrived from all corners of Blighty to attend a

spectacular event where it is reported a superb time was had by all.

 

Making a personal appearance were several of Captain Fawcett’s excellent Ambassadors:

Carl-Johan Kellgren, Kim Johansen, Maxwell Newton, Russell Bristow, Pietro Grassilli,

Herr Feldman, Glynn Woods, Arron Raw, Johnny Appleby and Penelope Taylor-Newton.

And the Captain was delighted to welcome Ricki Hall, Sid Sottung and Viraj Singh of The

Jodhpur Company, the well-known characters behind some of Captain Fawcett’s beloved

Signature Series. Meanwhile Andreas of Germany, Fiona of Ireland, Juan of Spain and

Francesco of Italy represented some of the Captain’s global distributors.

 

The party was fed and watered by wood-fired pizza from Mangiamo’s and a Shef’s hog

roast while toasts were raised with tipples from AJ Bars. And new chums Rok Soba, the

brothers who inject rock ‘n’ roll into sobriety, pitched up with their excellent newly launched

alcohol free ‘Zero Fear’ stout.

 

Glitz and glamour a go-go was also on the menu with the delightful Miss Velma Von Bon

Bon and ravishing Miss Millie Dollar plus Mr Edd Muir whose dramatic aerial antics paid

homage to the world of Peaky Blinders and music filled the night thanks to On the Level,

featuring Captain Fawcett’s own Corey Doades on bass guitar.

 

Final mention must go to the exceptionally skilled Scapicchio Barber Family, barbers for 5

generations, who demonstrated their famed ‘Kamisori’ fixed blade shaving technique to

great wonder and amazement.

 

The Museum features items of interest to all with a passion for barbering, history and

objects with a story to tell. With a background in the film industry, Richie Finney has

curated Captain Fawcett’s Museum with the eye of a set designer, and as such it also

serves as unique photo and film location.

 

Visitors to the Museum, located on the mezzanine of Captain Fawcett’s Emporium, will

also be able to sample and purchase the full range of Simply First Class Gentleman’s

Grooming Requisites.

The Hairdressers’ Charity Fundraising Ball Raises over £5,000

The Hairdressers’ Charity hosted its annual fundraising ball recently with over 200 guests from sponsors, manufacturers, trade editors, industry bodies and influencers, alongside hairdressers from across the country.

The glamorous evening held at the Grange St Paul’s Hotel involved networking, a catwalk hair show, awards and fundraising and was hosted by co-presidents Samantha Grocutt from Essence PR and Philip Sharp from ASP.

The evening also saw the launch of the new charity campaign #InTheirWords; a series of short films involving recognised faces from the industry giving case studies of the beneficiaries the charity helps in their own words. The ball raised over £5,000 on the night through pledges and an interactive Heads & Tails game.

“The night was a great success and the buzz in the room was exactly what we needed to keep the charity at the front of everyone’s minds,” explains Philip Sharp. “A lot goes into organising these events but it’s worth it. There was a great balance of sharing our key messages, networking and fundraising.”

New Haircare Documentary Coming to Amazon Prime

Some say that hairdressers are amongst the happiest people in their profession. The job always tops the list of the happiest industries to work within. Joth Davies thinks that barbers are even more so. However, not many people understand just what it takes to get there using their innate talents. From Friday the 22ndof on Amazon Prime, you can find out why in a unique documentary ‘The Journey to my Destination’.

The documentary premiered in London on the 5thof February and has been commissioned by British Hairdresser of the Year Sally Brooks and involves big names in the barbering industry. Joth Davies, Simon Shaw and Frank Rimer to name but a few. These guys will tell their own story and unique insights into what it takes to get to the top in our fantastic industry. Don’t miss it!

 

The Bluebeard’s Revenge launches new vegan-friendly beard brush

As the demand for more ethically sourced grooming products reaches an all-time high, The Bluebeards Revenge has made another of its best-selling products animal-free.

Until now, The Bluebeard’s Revenge Travel Beard Brush experience has been unavailable to those that follow a vegan/animal-free lifestyle. Thankfully that’s about to change…

“We’re committed to making our award-winning products as accessible as possible,” says Bluebeard-in-Chief David Hildrew. “With this in mind, we’re very proud to announce that our Travel Beard Brush is now available with 100% vegan-friendly bristles.”

The modernized version of this beard-conquering brush has replaced boar hair bristles with a specially synthesised material that’s made from innovative filaments; the new synthetic bristles are created using cellulose during a sophisticated production process. In the interest of sustainability, these modern bristles also make the most of renewable resources and are biodegradable. “Most importantly, our new brush functions just as effectively as the original,” added Hildrew.

Just like the original, this new Synthetic Travel Beard Brush features a beech wood body and a laser-etched version of the brand’s distinctive skull and crossbones logo – all of this striking detail in a brush so small it can be slipped neatly into any pocket.

OSMO BALLERS BARBER JUSTIN CARR STRIKES BLUE

‘Ballers Barber and OSMO Ambassador Justin Carr took his barbering skills to a new level when AFC Wimbledon player, Scott Wagstaff, asked to have his impressive beard dyed in his club colours.

Scott stuck to a promise he made before the last round of the FA Cup, to have his trademark beard dyed, if AFC Wimbledon beat West Ham United – and they did!

OSMO’s Justin Carr, who is called upon by many famous sports players and footballers, did the honours in the home changing room for a BBC Football Focus TV feature. Following two hours of Justin’s magic, Scott’s beard was blue and yellow!

“This was just wicked.  Scott was so up for it!  I had to bleach his beard first to lighten it, then I applied OSMO Color Psycho Semi-Permanent Hair Colour in Wild Blue to reflect to colour of AFC Wimbledon. He was really cool with the finished look and all the national papers came down to cover it – it’s been everywhere in the papers and online. He’s now got to go on and score, to do the beard some real celebrations!  Maybe I’ve just created a new trend too…the day/night beard,” said Justin.

Barber Pro up for Guild Awards of Excellence

For the third year running, BarberPRO have been shortlisted in the Guild of Beauty Therapists Guild Award for Excellence for ‘Best Male Grooming Supplier’.

The prestigious annual awards are voted for by members and other professionals working within the hair and beauty industry.

Voting takes place here: https://www.beautyguild.com/Guild-Awards/

The vote closes on Wednesday 20th March, so make sure you get your say!