BarberNV Issue 8

Inspiring UK & Ireland Barbering success

Issue 8. November/December 2016.

£5 | €6.50

@BarberNV_Mag

/BarberNVMagazine

BarberNVMagazine

News | Products | EVENTS | Features | EDUCATION BarberNV Magazine | 1

I NEED AN APPOINTMENT

Visit www.inaa.com Click Salon Registration ...It’s So Easy Take Bookings 24/7 No Upfront Fees Turn Your Website Into A Booking Engine Take Bookings From Facebook

No Monthly Fees No Registration Fee It’s Free TWITINAA INEEDANAPPOINTMENT 2 | BarberNV Magazine

Welcome Simon Ritchie

Editor

Rebellion is the theme of this month’s BarberNV as we fight back against the traditions of the past and start to shake things up.

W

hat better way to do that than to bring on board the king of Rebel Rebel, Alan Findlay, to teach us his ways! His introductory column will become a regular feature where he imparts his barbering wisdom and answers the burning questions that only a true Rebel could understand. Keep your eye out throughout the issue as Alan shares his knowledge through his ‘Findlay Facts’.

“That’s the way it’s always been done” is something I’ve heard too much and we’ve listened to your feedback so expect to see us make some changes to the magazine in coming issues. Some are instant and some will come more slowly, but as Bob Dylan said: “the times they are a-changin’”. We appreciate that barbering is a visual art so expect to see more great images and more step-by-step guides to educate and inspire you, but we’ll still be talking with all the top names in the industry to get the big interviews we know you love.

Starting as we mean to go on, Larry the Barber Man was quick on the draw to speak with Wahl British Barber of the Year Andrea Raymond moments after becoming the first female barber to earn the crown. He also caught up with this month’s big interview,

Instagram superstar Andrew Does Hair, while over in Dublin for Barber Cut – the biggest event in Irish barbering history.

Rebelling against a male dominated industry to become Wahl British Barber of the Year is no mean feat for Andrea, and Andrew admits he had to overcome the stigma of being a man doing women’s hair when his journey began. This issue of BarberNV celebrates those who overcame the odds and went against the grain to get to the top of their profession, providing inspiration to us all.

Nothing epitomises that more than the work of Justin Williams who is helping excons learn a trade and better themselves.

But while the focus is always on the top dogs, more than ever we want to reach out to the little guy – the barbers out there who don’t get the recognition they deserve. That’s why our new Instagram Showcase section is for those of you who do great work but don’t have the collection shots to show it off, just tag us in your best haircuts on Instagram and we’ll pick our favourites.

The best of BarberNV is yet to come but we need your help to make it a truly community based magazine for the whole world of barbers.

Simon Ritchie Founder Joanne Reid | Editor Simon Ritchie | Head Graphic Designer Ross Stewart | Sales & Marketing Support Connie Neil | Assistant Graphic Designer Fiona Gauld | Telesales Executive Ryan Dickson-Moore Design & Marketing PrintNV | Columnists Alan Findlay, Rob & Dan Rix, Larry the Barber Man, Sid Sottung | Thanks Alison Jameson Consultants, Essence PR, Seven Publicity, Vivid PR, LWPR, B TheAgency, Fellowship of British Hairdressing, National Hairdressers Federation, Barber Council, British Barbers’ Association, British Master Barbers, MHFed, City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board, Pickle PR, Larry the Barber Man, JAM Marketing, Josie Smith, Pall Mall Barbers, Jiggi the Barber, Jamin Sohrabi-Shiraz, Persepolis Photography, Tom Chapman, The Lions Barber Collective, El Patron, Cotswold Wildlife Park, James Williams, Autism Barbers Assemble, Andrew Does Hair, Andrea Raymond, Alan Findlay, Rebel Rebel, Barber Equipment Centre, Barberology, Matthew Curtis Hair Salon, Danny&Co, TipTip Barber Shop, Indola, BarberCut, The Bluebeards Revenge, Sid Sottung, Lock Stock and Barrel, Fudge, Joseph Lanzante, OSMO, Wahl UK, Marc Ross, Barberology, Danny&Co., Tip Top Barber Shop, Matthew Curtis Hair Salon, Indola, BarberCut, Reuzel, Schorem, Fudge Professional, Uppercut Deluxe, Daimon Barber, label.men, OSMO, | Cover Image Martin Fox, Alan Findlay, Stewart Anderston, Carol Fairfield, Dionne Brisland, Marc Ross Pictures Shutterstock, Mark Shirley, Krijn Van Noordwijk, Iain Crockart, Reuzel | Published by MediaNV Ltd, 132 West Regent Street, Glasgow G2 2RQ | Email contact@salonnv.co.uk | Tel +44 (0) 141 212 5525 Copyright All work in this publication is copyright BarberNV Magazine and MediaNV Ltd. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the permission of the publisher. © Information and product prices are correct at time of printing. Some products may not be available in all stores.

BarberNV Magazine | 3

HAIR BY MAZELLA & PALMER CREATIVE TEAM | FIND YOUR STOCKIST ON FUDGEPROFESSIONAL.COM

NEW CUrve RECOVERY SOFT TOUCH CONTOURING FOR CURLY HAIR.

Combi-styling balm designed to define, accentuate, and moisturise natural curls.

WITH ELASTO-CURVE TECHNOLOGY + ROYAL JELLY

Restructuring Protein Complex plus multi-active styling and conditioning agents create an elasticizing effect, regulating moisture and controlling frizz whilst retaining natural flexibility and bounce. Heat defence up to 235° plus 24 hour hold.

4 | BarberNV Magazine

News

Features

INDUSTRY NEWS

06

32

industry bodies

08

CHARITY NEWS

18

36 BARBER OF THE MONTH:

ANDREA RAYMOND

Andrew does hair

38 alan findlay

Events

46 new shops

apprentice of the year

10

54 showcase

PALL MALL BARBERS 120TH

12

60 instagram showcase

64 christmas gift guide

ANNIVERSARY Mobos

14

salon international

15

Beard & MOUSTACHE championships

16

barber cut dublin

50

Products

68 movember 74 diary of a 32 year old junior

Education 48 indola step-by-step 62 TOM CHAPMAN step-by-step

editor’s choice

22

66 robert rix

styling

24

words from the wise

electrical 26

69 educator of the month

SHAVING, BEARD, & 28 MOUSTACHE

justin williams

combs & brushes 29

72 sid sottung

scissors & thinners

30

step-by-step

furniture & equipment

31

76 training dates

70 barber workshops

Contents Issue 8 | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016

BarberNV Magazine | 5

WAHL SIGN UP HOOKER & YOUNG Amid great excitement and suspense at Salon International, Wahl UK announced luxury hairdressers Hooker & Young as Creative Style Directors for a top secret project to happen in 2017.

The famed northern power couple will lend their flair and creativity to the undisclosed collaboration - all we know so far is it’s to do with the launch of a new product range for professionals. Colour us intrigued!

BARBEROLOGY GOES ONLINE The team at Barberology are taking the skills that saw them crowned Barbershop of the Year at Barber Connect and providing them to a wider audience with their own YouTube channel – Barberology-Tube.

The video series provides handy DIY techniques allowing the viewer to learn from the pros, showcasing the charismatic and skilled team, new talent, special guests, and much more. All delivered in an easy to digest and entertaining format, the videos are another step to provide style heads with the tools they need for grooming greatness.

MEN ANSWER JESSICA

Men’s lifestyle website AskMen.com’s first ever Grooming Awards saw their readers and a panel of experts pick from their favourite brands in a variety of categories.

Label.men and Head & Shoulders took home the prize for Best Hair Products, with label.men’s Thickening Tonic the critic’s choice, while Head & Shoulders 2in1 classic was the reader’s choice. In the shaving category, Clarins Men Smooth Shave Foaming Gel was the editor’s choice, while the readers plumped for Gillette Fusion ProGlide Sensitive Gel.

JOINS ANDIS Jessica Zeinstra Rosen has been appointed to the position of Education Manager for Andis’ Barber and Beauty Division.

An expert in male grooming, Jessica has spent the last four years running her own salon while serving as an Andis Educator providing guidance to barbers, stylists, and students, the perfect apprenticeship for stepping into such a big role.

As Education Manager, Jessica’s role will be to develop and manage Andis’ global education strategy, including the United Kingdom.

6 | BarberNV Magazine

new academy launches in Sallys Co-Founder of the British Barbers’ Association Mike Taylor is leading up a team of expert educators launching a brand new high-end barbering academy with luxury male grooming brand The Bluebeards Revenge.

The Great British Barbering Academy (GBBA) was officially unveiled at Salon International and will offer one day courses up and down the country in selected Salon Services stores.

From an established traditional barber based in London, to an ambitious youngster desperate to break into the industry in Gateshead, the GBBA courses are ideal for everyone.

SEAN BRYAN JOINS the TEAM AT OSMO OSMO have appointed Sean Bryan, owner of former BarberNV Barbershop of the Month Cut & Sew, as their first ever Irish Brand Ambassador.

One of the most respected and in-demand barbers in Ireland, Sean’s hard-working approach to the barbering industry and his belief in the power of continuous education makes an exciting addition to the OSMO family and the brand are delighted to have him on board.

From starting out with a Saturday-only pop-up in friend’s record store, Sean now has three Cut & Sew shops across Dublin and his own range of Cut & Sew branded apparel.

Sean made his first appearance for the OSMO brand on stage at Salon International

Slam dunk for Pall Mall hit the tunes jack Pall Mall Barbers got some serious hang time when they teamed up with Foot Locker to support new lifestyle event NBA Crossover.

Set over three days, the free exhibition for basketball fans took place in hip Shoreditch and used interactive exhibits, video, and imagery to showcase the relationship between the league, its players, fashion, grooming, music, film, and entertainment through the years.

Offering complimentary cuts and shaves for all attendees, Pall Mall Barbers set up their stunning dark oak and metro tile pop-up at the event which was attended by two-time MVP and NBA Legend Steve Nash and footballer Thierry Henry.

Jacks of London are handing over control of their shops’ music systems to their clients by adopting the soundjack music app system.

It allows customers to simply download the app to their phone and then they can choose the tracks they want to hear from among 2,000 on the Jacks of London playlist.

MD Sue Whitehead said: “Soundjack is the perfect fit for Jacks of London; a young, vibrant company that is adding another bespoke element to our already personalised grooming service. It gives clients control of the music while our expert team see to their barbering needs.”

The soundjack link-up also ties in with Jacks of London’s policy of forming strategic partnerships with Jack-named companies, using the name as a complementary marketing tool. The barber group last year signed England and Stoke City goalkeeper Jack Butland as brand ambassador.

BarberNV Magazine | 7

The NHF is excited to announce the launch of its brand-new business and coaching advice service specifically designed to help businesses become more successful and profitable.

The NHF Business Academy draws on the experience of a vastly experienced team of trainers, business mentors and coaches, all whom have decades of knowhow running successful businesses.

For more information on the NHF Business Academy go to www.nhf.info/ business-academy An employment tribunal ruling meant that Uber lost the right to classify its UK drivers as self-employed, and so should pay them the National Living or National Minimum Wage as well as offer paid holiday leave and paid rest breaks.

It is expected that Uber will appeal against the ruling so the legal implications for barber shops remain unclear. We are advising businesses to make sure they have watertight chair renting agreements in place.

The NHF is getting a new look for 2017 with a new logo and new member-based imagery. The NHF’s new logo has been designed to be clean, simple and bold.

It recognises the heritage and history of the National Hairdressers Federation through the ongoing use of our wellrecognised initials, NHF. But, with its new strapline – ‘Supporting the hair, beauty and barbering industries’.

The new look will be appearing gradually across NHF materials and it will be great to see NHF members The Barber House featuring as part of the new look.

Keep up to date with all the latest news, views and business information from the NHF by becoming a member.

Get in touch and quote ‘BarberNV’ to receive £25 discount off your first year’s membership fee. Rates available for barbershop owners/managers.

To find out more visit www.nhf.info or call us on 01234 831965

NHF

8 | BarberNV Magazine

It’s been a big couple of months for both The MHFed and City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board with the culmination of a year’s worth of effort paying off to make 2016 one of the most successful years imaginable.

For City & Guilds the event saw the inception and eventual final of their inaugural Apprentice Barber of the Year competition, with four young barbers from each of the countries in the UK wowing the judges to claim victory.

The standard of quality on show at each of the four events was so high the judges found it difficult to pick a winner – highlighting how far the industry has grown and the strength of talent coming through – but all agree that no one was more deserving than the apprentices who eventually won.

Eamonn Magill won in Northern Ireland, Montel Campbell won in Scotland, Oliver Foster won in England, and Dominic Anthony Camargo-Grosso won in Wales.

All four winners took home a Denman goody bag worth thousands of pounds filled with everything they need to get their promising careers off to the best possible start. You can read our feature on the four events later in the issue.

The bright hopefuls got their first every taste of stage work when they linked up with The MHFed at Salon International to perform on their stand. Considering the age and experience level of the boys, they handled themselves impeccably, performing under the intense pressure of a watching crowd and garnering many compliments. Every on looking barber commented that they couldn’t have done as good as a job as the four boys did when they were at that stage in their career.

The Fellowship for British Hairdressing is continuing to celebrate their 70 years anniversary with incredible events filling their calendar.

October welcomed some brilliant dates, as well as three days at Salon International. The Fellowship Stage opened on the Saturday and boasted incredible industry talent. It was fantastic to see that male hairdressing and barbering is becoming more and more popular and enticing huge audiences.

Saturday certainly got off to a great start with the audience gathering for the opening day. Menspire Male Image and Grooming joined Joe Sloan for The Feds.

Day two was a chance to see more men’s hair in two sections dedicated to the male industry. First up was Dan Bryant from Marc Antoni, 5ive from Hype Coiffure, and Ben Brown from Ben Brown Hair. They demonstrated a model each and techniques included skin fading and afro styling. In the afternoon it was Medusa Hairdressing who had made their way down from Scotland for the show and took to The Fellowship Stage for the second Men’s Hair section. Ross, Colin and Erik from Medusa drew inspiration from “the mod” in their Modernist collection which showcases the 1960s right through until the present day.

The B.O.M.B. Squad, James Beattie, Alan Findlay, and FOXY also made up the incredible line up for the Sunday and they wowed the crowds with their collection Machine Head, which demonstrated how to push the boundaries in barbering.

It was certainly an action packed three days and a fantastic showcase of the increasing male market.

Future Opportunities

Also at Salon International, The Feds showcased their flair for stage work on the Fellowship stag, one of the biggest at the event, showing off structured looks that demonstrated tapered finishes before returning the next day to highlight asymmetrical and braided styles.

Opportunities to appear on stage and mentor at workshops with The Fellowship are brilliant way of sharing your skills with future talent. If you would like to be considered for future opportunities and want to talk about membership please contact tracey@fellowshiphair.com

C&G and the MHfed

The Fellowship

A live event and social media milestone were two of the highlights for British Master Barbers over the past couple of months!

Last month British Master Barbers’ MB Live returned to Crawley’s Arora Hotel.

Hair professionals from across the country travelled to the South for the second instalment of the annual show.

Throughout the day, an assortment of the UK and Ireland’s top barbering educators took to the stage. “We always wanted the show be based on diversity,” says Anthony Copeland. “Our aim was for guests to be able watch demonstrations in all disciplines for the price of one ticket.”

It’s certainly one of the many successes of the show. From traditional barbering to more progressive techniques, wet shaving to pattern work, a vast array of techniques were on display. The Main Stage line-up included Andis Educator Darren Jones, renowned hair artist MK, and UK Barber Battle winner Paul Mac. The event also saw the crowning of British Master Barbers’ Barber of the Year 2016. Micky Graham of Northern Ireland-based JFH Social was awarded the top accolade, taking over the title from inaugural winner Kieron Price. His perfectly executed textured crop on Nathan Bradbury, a finalist himself last year, was enough to edge it over fellow finalists Paul Mac Special, and Sam Wall.

“There’s been so much going on behind the scenes lately that I wasn’t going to be able to make it to London to compete,” explains Micky. “But boy am I glad I did. I’m over the moon. I need to give a massive shout-out to Sam and Paul; there was some serious talent on show.”

October also saw British Master Barbers already impressive Instagram following surpass the 100,000 mark. “As we all know, Britain has a vast wealth of barbering talent. Our intention was always to provide a platform for barbers to have their work seen by a larger

British Master Barbers

Another month seems to have flown by!

Lots happening at The Hair and Barber Council as momentum for our mission towards mandatory registration gains ever more traction!

The amount of positivity I have heard and am continuing to hear since I joined The Council back in June has been truly overwhelming, and together with new initiatives and support from so many members, colleagues, partners, and sponsors, our cause is becoming stronger and stronger! I had a great meeting with Anthony and Tony Copeland of The British Master Barbers during October.

After meeting them initially at the City & Guilds Barber Advisory Group meeting a couple of months ago, I had been keen to meet up with these two guys to further explore their great business and their future involvement in The Barber Council.

Their commitment and dedication to the barber industry is truly inspirational and with an extremely large social media following, we looked at ways we could work together to promote the cause of mandatory registration, whilst ensuring the needs of the barber industry through The Barber Council are always at the forefront. Tony has been a member of The Hair Council for many years and has always been a very strong supporter and advocate of what we do and what our cause is.

I am intending to visit some of our member’s salons over the next three to four months. Have a couple of visits already arranged and confirmed but am anxious to meet up with more of you. It will be a great opportunity to outline on a one to one basis what is happening at The Hair and Barber Council and to hear your views and suggestions for moving things forward. I am always open to all your ideas and if you ever want to call and discuss anything with me, please do not hesitate in doing so. In addition, if you would be interested in me visiting you and your salon in the future please do let me know via email at: keith@haircouncil.

The Barber Council

The British Barbers Association in partnership with Kreate, the BeautyCouncil of Western Canada/ British Columbia Barbers Association, London School, EvelineCharles Academy, Eikonic Barber Academy, and Intercoiffure North America with event support from collaborators including Wahl Professional, Feather Razors, Barbicide, Shortcuts, and Barber Supplies Co. recently conducted barbering events in North America.

The epic tour started off in Vancouver on Sunday, October 2nd at the Republic Night Club featuring “An Evening with Extraordinary Gentlemen” to over 250 stylists and barbers. The British Barbers presented a prestige night full of the latest styles and techniques from the UK’s finest barbers, Chris Foster and Erik Lander. The team showcased inspired men’s grooming hair styles and fashion trends from the UK, featuring their latest collection, the Kings Row. From Vancouver the BBA team were off to Edmonton where they were hosted

by EvelineCharles Academy for another full evening of talent with over 200 stylists from across northern Alberta.

The night started off with local talent, @ Nerissathebarber, and was followed up by the main event, featuring Chris and Erik.

The BBA team wrapped up the Canadian segment of the tour in Toronto with a final rollout of An Evening with Extraordinary Gentlemen with special local barbers, Martin Truong, Eikonic Barbering Academy, and Francis Cadmen, who warmed up the sold out audience of 150 stylists and barbers.

The final leg of the tour took the BBA to New York City with an action packed presentation for Intercoiffure members at the historic Waldorf Astoria. President Frank Gambuzza highlighted the presentation as one of the most rounded he has seen in a long time, and noted the timing for men’s barbering in North America was perfectly aligned for the British Barbers Association to make their mark on the Intercoiffure membership.

British Barbers’ Association

BarberNV Magazine | 9

Photography courtesy of East Durham College Creative Industry Students

City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board Apprentice of the Year

FINDLAY FACTS

Apprentice barbers in Copenhagen staged the longest strike in history from 1938-1961

Across the UK, four winners have been crowned their national champions by the City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board as part of the inaugural Apprentice of the Year competition.

F

rom each of the four countries that make up the UK, the best student barbers competed at regional heats organised by some of the top names in barbering education in collaboration with City & Guilds.

In Scotland, the event took place at The MHFed and Davie Walker’s Best of British Barbering Convention at the Surgeons’ Halls in Edinburgh, with MHFed founder and City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board Chairman Adam Sloan particularly delighted with the standard in his home country. Winner Montel Campbell from East Kilbride impressed the judges enough to claim victory and take home a £3,000 goodie bag from sponsors Denman.

Next up was Wales, where the team headed to the Parkway Hotel and Spa, Cwmbran on Sunday 2nd October with the talented Jac Ludlow organising. Again the standard was of the

10 | BarberNV Magazine

highest quality, and it was no easy task for the judges to pick a winner, but Dominic Camargo came out on top with his impressive cut.

The English competition took place at East Durham College the following day, where our former Educator of the Month Alison Scattergood helped to co-ordinate. With Lee Stafford among the judges it was another incredible event and Oliver Foster claimed top prize.

Last but by no means least it was off to Belfast with Tanya Heslip organising the venue and having the help of board members Garry Jackson and Charles Clarke. The Northern Irish event was the scene of one of the most amazing stories ever as winner Eamonn Magill almost missed his chance to compete because his girlfriend was in labour! Overall it was the best possible day for Eamonn with both his award and

a new baby daughter to celebrate.

It’s just the beginning for the four winners who were presented to the watching barbering world at Salon International with a spell cutting on The MHFed stage in front of a packed audience, all of whom were impressed at the skill levels shown by young men who had in some cases not even been cutting hair for a year. Up next they have already been invited to take part in a photo shoot by Denman, with one image being chosen for the cover of the City & Guilds Look Book, plus they will engage in more training from some of the top names in the industry including Sid Sottung, Sheriff Mehmet of Envy Barbers, and Dan Davies of Pall Mall Barbers.

These four youthful talents have a long way to go but with the support and expertise of City & Guilds and The MHFed behind them we expect them to rise to the top of the profession.

Alison Scattergood appointed the MHFed’s Technical Ambassador for Education Wales winner dominic camargo

northern ireland winner eamonn magill

england winner Oliver Foster

East Durham College educator Alison Scattergood is expanding her role with both City & Guilds and The MHFed by becoming their Technical Ambassador for Education.

Following on from her role in the Apprentice of the Year competition where she helped set up the English regional heat, Alison will travel around the UK visiting different colleges and setting out ways in which they can improve standards.

scotland winner montel campbell

Alison has been vocal in her praise of the City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board’s Apprentice of the Year competition, believing it helps to inspire many of her own students at East Durham College to try and achieve work of such a high standard. She’ll hope to take that level of interest in the competition and use it to bring standards up around the UK.

BarberNV Magazine | 11

PALL MALL BARBERS

By Josie Smith

As I read the invitation to the Pall Mall Barber’s 120th anniversary bash, and the usual cloud of mild wardrobe ennui descended upon me, I comforted myself with the fact that, unlike most men, at least I wouldn’t have to worry about shaving in some way, as part of constructing my all-important evening look. Shaving one’s legs et al, is a bit like mowing the lawn really – no-one can be bothered doing it, but after it’s done, it looks and feels so nice!

I

’m sure when I hit the menopause I’ll need to concern myself more with the issue of controlling unwelcome facial hair, but for the moment I’m more than happy not to be one of the average men who will shave upwards of ten thousand times during the course of his life. Such is the necessity and recurrence of this duty, the art of men’s wet shaving forms a fundamental, ritualistic part of the male grooming process.

In fact, once upon a time, not so very long ago around the early to mid-19th century, when Pall Mall Barber’s original barber’s shop was honing it’s now traditional male grooming service, a gentleman might visit his barber once a week, even daily, as part of a regular routine to look his neat and tidy best.

Back in ye olden days, shaving was also considered a symbolic rite of passage. Fathers would teach sons the art of using the cutthroat razor, straight razor, or blade, and the way to achieve best results using a shaving brush and soap. Where the traditional razor would have one blade and more time and care would be taken to complete the process, modern razors can have four or five blades and a man can achieve decent results in a mere five minutes.

Ideal for me, when I’m shaving my own pins, (or even admittedly, that tricky underarm area),

12 | BarberNV Magazine

using my long-suffering boyfriend’s manlydeluxe-super-duper razor. Whatever method you use and wherever you do it though, everyone knows that for a normal civilian, shaving and general grooming is a regular and tricky necessity.

And that’s where Pall Mall Barbers comes in.

Pall Mall Barbers are busy creating a successful and beguiling mix of old school service and razor sharp haircuts in their central London sites at Fitzrovia, Westminster, Bishopsgate, and Trafalgar Square. It’s actually the Pall Mall shop located at the historic site at 27 Whitcomb Street, near Trafalgar Square, that inspired the 120th anniversary party, as barbers have operated from this address for more than 100 years. This was neatly illustrated at the Pall Mall anniversary celebrations at the Hippodrome Casino in London, when a host of male models took to the stage dressed and coiffured in a kind of male grooming-fashion-throughthe-decades show. From straw boaters and handlebar moustaches, to Fred Perry polos and glam rock eyeliner, it was a far more interesting history lesson than any I ever sat through in school. To think all of these different looking men have passed through the doors of Whitcomb Street over the years, in search of decent manscaping.

Pall Mall Barbers are very much a company who like to work with other brands and businesses, and this was clear to see at their celebrations, as all the guests enjoyed the side shows of a host of pop-ups. From purchasing a book on ‘Becoming the Perfect Gentlemen’ (by Zach Falconer-Barfield and Nic Wing FYI, should you know someone who needs it..), to buying a bottle Cazcabel Tequila and eyeing up the Pistonhead lager, there was plenty to see and do in between watching the Pall Mall staff demonstrate their skills and product range, and it was these wares from the Pall Mall range which caught my eye actually. I think the packaging and quality of their products are really impressive, they look refined and cool, and smell delightful. Whether you have a male grooming product junkie in your life, or a clueless man with vague hygiene problems, they’re well worth perusing and purchasing.

In between inhaling delicious undertones of sandalwood and peppermint, I caught up with GM Dan Davies from Pall Mall Barbers. Dan is a man clearly passionate about the brand, and keen to expand Pall Mall’s barbering horizons.

“When you set out to celebrate tonight, as we have, it would have been easy to do a small drinks party, but we wanted to do something on a bigger scale. Primarily really to say thanks

to our fantastic team, to get them a drink, and to show how much proud of them we are. It was also great to invite along regular and long- standing customers to enjoy the atmosphere, and of course we wanted to invite all the brands and press we’ve worked with to be together in one room too, and it’s been great tonight to show everyone what we can do. I must say thanks to all of the pop-ups for being here too - we felt they fitted really well with the Pall Mall brand, and we looked at the demographics of each one and felt we matched them really. Most of the companies here tonight we’ve worked with for a long time.

It serves all of us really.”

When I questioned Dan on the products I liked so much from the Pall Mall Barbers range he explained, “We use the best distributers to represent our brand, which was created because we didn’t feel there was a full extensive shaving range in existence.

We wanted to encompass everything we do with shaving, so we made our own products, working with our own barbers which consisted of a team of about eight. It ended up taking about five years before we were all happy, but we’re very proud of the Pall Mall range we have developed in-house, and the response has been epic. Customers can buy online, and in high end salons. We’ll leave the high street chemists to sell painkillers. We want people that sell our products to believe in them, and

know how to use them. We’re coming soon to live shopping networks, which will be invaluable because we’ll be able to demonstrate our range properly with skilled barbers. All too often for example, people are using an exfoliating face wash before a shave, but these can dry the skin. At Pall Mall, our scrub properly prepares the face for a shave. I think this is where companies have gone wrong in the past. Consumers don’t just need a cleanser they need a prep product. We have a Pall Mall Barbers 5-step pro-system in the salon as part of our luxury shave treatments, and we have a 3-step system for clients to use at home. We also have wet shave courses starting at £150, which professionals can come along and do, which is a great addition to a barbering skill set.”

After chatting to Dan, I grabbed a sparkling water in an effort to remain professional, and cornered Rich Marshall, Pall Mall Barbers owner and founder, to get his thoughts on the evening, and of course the industry as a whole.

“I guess the main point of the party tonight is that we’re modern, but we have a real sense of heritage, which is rare. And that’s our anchor basically. In modern barbering there are lots of exciting developments and new companies popping up all the time, but I like our history, and it gives us a bit of a unique selling point.

We really want to encourage professionals to come and do our shaving training courses.

We’re also looking for people who want to be consistently at the top of their barbering game to come and join us. We have a development strategy in-house, with barbers coming through all the time after training with us who stay with us, and we’re always on the look-out for enthusiastic barbers who are self-motivated and driven to be the best that they can be. It’s those individuals in my experience, who will go the furthest. There’s lots of showmanship out there in the barbering world - but that doesn’t necessarily lead to a successful career. You need a good overall knowledge, and not just in London but beyond, we’re sourcing excellent candidates to join our team, which will in time of course lead us to open more shops. Our most popular services are haircuts, but we love the shaving traditions, and hope to really increase and expand with our Pall Mall Barbers product range too - that’s why we created it!”

If you’re interested in finding out more about the Pall Mall Barbers story, products and how you can join the team, go to www. pallmallbarbers.com. It’s safe to say, after an engaging evening with great hospitality, I know what I’ll be buying for the men in my life this Christmas. I also know next time I shave my legs, I’ll be taking that bit more care, inspired as I am, by the artistry and talents of the Pall Mall Barbers professionals I witnessed in action.

Happy anniversary to all the team!

BarberNV Magazine | 13

Gettin’ Jiggi with it – at the MOBO Awards The show might have been celebrating the unstoppable rise of grime music, but there was nothing grimey about the haircuts on show at the MOBO Awards thanks to Bolton barber Jiggi.

B

ackstage to keep all the acts looking their freshest before the show, Jiggi is the resident barber for the awards and a vital part in keeping everyone presentable and stylish. Up in Glasgow for the night, it’s the third time Jiggi has been given the responsibility for the MOBO acts, each time taking him to a different city around the UK, meeting new artists and reconnecting with regulars.

As a finalist for Wahl British Barber of the Year in 2015 and an Afro Barber of the Year finalist in 2014 and 2015, it’s clear why Jiggi has been asked to lend his expertise to the awards. But as well as being beneficial for the MOBOs, it has its benefits for Jiggi, he told us.

“The MOBOs always brings good connections and gives the barber a good reputation - my clients like to see things like this. You know, to stand out in this industry is to always stay true to yourself

14 | BarberNV Magazine

and your image. I’m a firm believer being original will always take you further.”

So what does the resident barber at the MOBO awards get asked for backstage?

Unsurprisingly, “the requests are always something clean and sharp.” And it certainly paid off with everyone looking slick and suave at the show.

Naturally it’s not just an opportunity to show your skills and enhance your reputation, there’s also the chance to

I’m a firm believer being original will always take you further

enjoy yourself and Jiggi said “we do get to see the show too, that’s always good fun.

“The highlight this year was cutting the music group WSTRN, they were down to earth.”

It’s not the first time Jiggi has been involved in the entertainment industry, with an appearance on the BBC show Celebrity Scissorhands as a guest expert in hair design, and he hopes to continue his streak at the MOBOs into a fourth year.

“Three times I’ve done the MOBOs and each year they change the venue, which is always nice to see a new city – Glasgow has been amazing. Hopefully this will be an ongoing thing for me.”

In the meantime it’s back to his unique barbershop set within Bolton Wanderers Football Club’s Stadium at Whites Hotel.

From rappers to footballers, what a life!

SALON INTERNATIONAL 2016

B

arbers took centre stage at Salon International 2016, with a near ubiquitous presence on all the main stages and stands, highlighting the ever-increasing popularity of male grooming in the industry. The show was an unqualified success with thousands of attendees streaming through the doors of London Excel over the three days to take in the expertise and inspiration on show throughout the giant arena and on every stage, big or small.

Wahl UK had the pick of the bunch with a fantastic stage that they made full use of throughout the weekend. The announcement on the Saturday that famed northern hairstylists Hooker & Young will be joining Wahl as Creative Style Directors for a 2017 project brought in a massive and enthusiastic crowd. While their shows throughout the weekend always had a large audience, none more so than for the crowning of the Wahl British Barber of the Year, where they watched Andrea Raymond become the first woman to win the coveted prize. You can read Larry the Barber Man’s exclusive interview with Andrea later in the issue.

The HJ men’s stage was also the scene of some great moments over the weekend, with Jamie Stevens’ protégé Matthew Cahill winning the Hairdressers Journal Rising Star 2016, a great

achievement for an upcoming stylist who is clearly learning from the best in Jamie. Other winners from the HJ Awards included Young Fed Tariq Howes for Men’s Afro Stylist of the Year, and of course Ky Wilson who added to his flourishing career by taking home Barber of the Year. Much is expected of Ky in the future and he’s already making a name for himself by winning prestigious awards such as this.

Pall Mall Barbers also made their way to the HJ men’s stage with Master Barber and General Manager Daniel Davies heading up the team and giving an overview of the brand’s rich 120year heritage. The rest of the Pall Mall Barbers at the show, Liborio Pipia, Nikki Salygiene, Erin Wentworth, and Clemence Tallard demonstrated their signature 5-step shave system and luxury wet shave.

Men’s hair had a big influence on the Fellowship for British Hairdressing stage where a host of top names from the industry made an appearance including The Feds showing off structured looks that demonstrated tapered finishes before returning the next day to highlight asymmetrical and braided styles. Our former Educator of the Month Chris Foster showed off his Afro expertise on the Saturday by wowing the crowd with his Street Squadron collection that he’s been touring

around North America.

While The Feds were showing their skills on the Fellowship stage, their own MHFed stand was abuzz with activity throughout the show. A string of BarberNV alumni were strutting their stuff over the weekend but without a doubt the highlight was the four winners of the MHFed and City & Guilds Barbering Industry Board’s Apprentice of the Year competition from around the UK being given their first opportunity to show the watching public the promise they possess. Despite their relative inexperience they showed class and poise in front of a large crowd and many barbers with decades of experience commented on their talent.

Away from the bigger stages there were nuggets of barbering wisdom to be found around the expo arena, with the OSMO stage hosting Slicks Barbershop from Glasgow, and their recently appointed ambassadors Eric Begg and Greg Forrest educating incessantly. The Fudge Professional stand was as busy as ever, with queues of barbers and stylists keen to get their hands on the latest products.

It’s hard to quantify just how far barbering has come in recent years but seeing the breadth of success the industry is achieving at large-scale events like Salon International brings it home.

BarberNV Magazine | 15

bbmc 2016 The third British Beard and Moustache Championships took place in Liverpool in October and saw an array of wonderful facial fuzz on show.

H

osted by Liverbeards Beard and Moustache Club, hirsute gentlemen from across the world descended upon St George’s Hall in Liverpool City Centre to compete in a host of categories celebrating their hairy lifestyle.

With 20 awards up for grabs there were beards and moustaches to suit every taste, with categories including Musketeer, Amish, Freestyle, and Over 12 Inches all up for grabs.

Among the big winners on the day were

16 | BarberNV Magazine

the world’s oldest facial hair collective, The Handlebar Club, who took home first place in all of the moustache categories, while the Essex Beardsmen won three titles for their beards with another three runners-up for good measure.

More than just a competition, BBMC 2016 was a chance for men (and women, thanks to the Fake category) to come together and share their love for beards and moustaches with one another, bringing the community closer and increasing the passion among contestants.

Photography: Jamin Sohrabi-Shiraz (Persepolis Photography)

Full list of winners Partial Beards Musketeer

1. Frazer Coppin 2. Ben Waddington 3. Gary Taylor

Sideburns

1. Michael Wallage 2. Steve Casper 3. Craig Andrews

Goatee

1. Andy Teague 2. Stephen Sparshott 3. Simon Sheffie

Amish

1. Richard Lacy-Evans

Fake Creative

1. Siri Neslin 2. Meg Casper 3. Kat Sparshott

Natural

1. Peta Knott 2. Mandy Roberts

Moustaches Natural

1. Paul Lewis 2. Jonny Smith 3. Rod Littlewood

Handlebar

1. Allan Robinson 2. Russell Bristow 3. Mark East

English

1. Johnny King 2. Jackie Lynn-Ellison 3. Carl Porter

Freestyle

1. Andrew Wakefield 2. Chris Wall 3. Alan Spencer

Styled Beards Under 1 Inch

1. Harry Best 2. David Hayhurst 3. Anthony Mansfield

Verdi

1. Steve Ridgewell 2. Dale Marshall 3. Granville Unsworth

Freestyle

1. Charlie Saville 2. Damian Knight 3. Brendan Johnson

Under Six Inches with Styled Moustache 1. Steve Fox 2. Jason Daines 3. Drew Steiner

Under 12 Inches with Styled Moustache 1. Lee BMG Andrews 2. Daniel Arnold 3. Maxwell

Over 12 Inches with Styled Moustache 1. Roger Widowson 2. Rupinder Sohil

Natural Beards Under Six Inches 1. Paul Hartley 2. Glynn Woods 3. Mycroft Milverton

Under 12 Inches 1. Brian Eva 2. Ronnie Fox 3. Lewis Aylmer

Over 12 Inches 1. Michael Legge 2. Colin McArdle 3. Nick Snell

Best in Show Johnny King, English Moustache champion (world champion Dali moustache)

BarberNV Magazine | 17

the Lions head west Following their successful venture across the Atlantic in July, The Lions Barber Collective returned stateside as Tom Chapman and Lawrence Fo embarked on a West Coast tour with men’s grooming brand El Patron.

A

6,000 mile flight was well worth it as the Lions met up with the rest of the team they’d be touring with in Chicago, before heading on to Reno, Nevada where they stayed in a picturesque log cabin high in the mountains.

While some of the trip was taken up by working with fellow top stylists Angela Cruz and Luis Vale doing promo work for El Patron – including stunning shots under the Golden Gate Bridge! – the tour was a chance for Tom and Lawrence to engage with more American audiences about the work of the Lions and spread the word about what barbers can do to help clients with depression and other mental illnesses.

The Lions were taking part in three days of education at SalonCentric, wholesale salon and beauty industry distributors, starting in gambler’s paradise Reno where the boys did two models in front of an eager crowd who also received stickers and leaflets highlighting the Lions’ cause.

From Reno they headed over to Folsom, known worldwide for Johnny Cash’s classic jailhouse anthem Folsom Prison Blues, where they set up camp in a classic silver campervan kitted out like a barbershop. Floridian barber Onyx joined the team as college students came by to learn new techniques and talk with the team about their tour. Interaction was massive with up-and-coming barbers keen to discuss everything about barbering, including the Lions concept.

18 | BarberNV Magazine

There was little time for rest on this trip with a two-hour drive daily to each new destination, with fresh highlights awaiting around every corner. Up next it was the city of Roseville with another educational class for Tom and Lawrence to preach the word of the Lions.

After starting in the mountains of Nevada, going through desert and forest, passing ski resorts and watching pine trees turn into palm trees, the Lions landed in their final destination, the City by the Bay, San Francisco.

On a beach opposite the Golden Gate Bridge the team recorded some final how-to videos and got product shots for sponsors El Patron, a memorable experience and a fitting end to a wonderful journey. With everyone happy with how the trip worked out, it’s unlikely to be the last link-up between the two groups as Tom and the Lions may play a part in bringing El Patron to a UK audience.

Just as important it was a great chance for the Lions to grow closer as a group with Tom and Lawrence getting the opportunity to learn from one another and bond further.

Back in the UK, it’s time for the Lions to enjoy some family time with Christmas on the horizon but there’s plenty more to come from them in 2017, and the launch of Tom’s clothing line Abel Apparel which will be working closely with the Lions. You can check that out at abelapparel.co.uk See you in 2017!

FINDLAY FACTS

The oldest barber artefact ever found was an Egyptian flint razor dated at around 4,000BC

Great British Shave Off From Lions to penguins, Chris Green, penguin keeper at Cotswold Wildlife Park, raised over £1,000 for Make-AWish Foundation by shaving off half his beard for his favourite charity.

Famous at the park for his beard, Chris has even gained a following on social media praising his impressive facial hair but he didn’t hesitate to pledge to shave off half of it to raise money for a good cause. Barber Michael Anderson volunteered his services and gave Chris his first ever professional shave by his

Thanks to: Cotswold Wildlife Park

beloved Penguin Pool. The penguins themselves were curious to see their keeper’s new look but were too shy to give us a quote on their thoughts on it!

Chris said: “You never know, I may even have started a new trend for hipsters!

I’m now half the hair man I used to be but am thrilled that by shaving off half my beard for Make-A-Wish Foundation we’ve hopefully helped to make a few dreams come true for some incredibly brave children.”

BarberNV Magazine | 19

AUTISM BARBERS ASSEMBLE one year on

I

t’s just past a year to the day that James “Jim the Trim” Williams was the subject of a photo that made waves around the world.

Lying prone on his barber shop floor, James patiently cuts the hair of a young child with autism, allowing the child to feel relaxed and comfortable, completely at ease and willing to let James work. November 3rd 2015, the day James’ life changed forever.

Within days the image had been seen by millions of people, shared hundreds of thousands of times, and given hope to the parents of children with autism who had been unable to take their children for a haircut, for years in some cases. But what really made the difference was that James didn’t sit back, take the adulation and praise for his actions, and then move on. Instead he realised he had been given an opportunity to help a group of people who are usually overlooked and not considered.

20 | BarberNV Magazine

Thus begun the Autism Barbers Assemble.

In the year since, James has teamed up with barbers from around the UK to put on events and welcome children with autism into their barbershops. For James, every Sunday is set aside for them to come into his store and receive the attention they need, while across the country he has ventured to events like Barber Connect and put on a special autism day at Davie Walker’s barbershop in Paisley where eight barbers came together to cut over 30 children. It was the biggest single day for the charity so far but James expects 2017 to be the year they really take off.

James was also invited to cut on behalf of Autism Barbers Assemble at Salon International, the biggest event of the year, where James was also a finalist in the Wahl Barber of the Year competition. So it was not only a chance to spread the word of ABA but also for James to learn and grow as a barber,

something that will only benefit the charity.

The last event of 2016 was British Master Barbers Live in Crawley, another chance for James to spread the word and raise awareness about why barbers should be happy to work with children with autism rather than avoid them and the fantastic Autism Barbers Assemble chair designed by Custom Belmont was unveiled. The ABA window stickers that signify a shop is autism-friendly were flying out, the door, with well over 50 so far sold to shops around the country.

With so many barbers signing up to take part across the UK, James hopes to put on events in Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, and Wales in 2017 and continue to spread the word of #autismawareness. Support has come in from across the barbering industry including The MHFed’s Adam Sloan and top educator Chris Foster, so all the signs suggest the Autism Barbers will be Assembling for years to come.

DONT ENVY US Join us...

SALONNV IS BARBERNV’S SISTER MAGAZINE GUARANTEE YOUR COPY FOR £30 A YEAR WITH FREE P&P www.salonnv.co.uk/shop I nspi ri ng Scottish salon success

Issue 2. June /July 2015.

£2.95

Issue 3. August/September 2015.

£2.95

PHILIP BELL

Neil Barton

Charlie Miller

Summer Skin @SalonNVMagazine

Richard Morrison

/SalonNVMagazine

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS

Aesthetics | Beauty | Hairdressing | Nails | Tanning

/SalonNVMagazine

Sam McKnight

Aesthetics | Beauty | Hairdressing | Nails | Tanning

DYLAN JACK McCONNACHIE /SalonNVMagazine

@SalonNVMagazine

SalonNVMag

Christmas Gift Guide

Adam Sloan

Aesthetics | Beauty | Hairdressing | Nails | Tanning

Caroline Sanderson @SalonNVMagazine

/SalonNVMagazine

SalonNVMag

CHRISTOPHE GAILLET

Aesthetics | Beauty | Hairdressing | Nails | Tanning

I N S P I R I NG U K & I R E L A N D S A L O N S UC C E S S

ISSUE 6. FEBRUA RY/M A RCH 2016.

ISSUE 9. AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2016.

£3.95 | €5

I N S P I R I NG U K & I R E L A N D S A L O N S UC C E S S

@SalonNVMagazine

£2.95

William Howarth

Myra Crawford Beauty Salon

Summer Aftercare

Issue 5. November/December 2015.

SARA HILL

David Murray

Alison Jameson

Dorota Palicka

Salon Selfie

I nspi ri ng Scottish salon success

£2.95

SHABA 2015

Salon 7

Jennifer Cheyne

Issue 4. September/October 2015.

CHARLIE TAYLOR

Alison Stewart

Festival Fever

I nspi ri ng Scottish salon success

AKIN KONIZI

HOW TO MARKET YOUR SALON NEW YEAR, NEW HEALTHY SKIN

MAZELLA & PALMER

MAXIMISING SPACE IN THE SALON

BE THE ENVY OF EVERY SALON WITH HOOKER & YOUNG @SalonNVMagazine

/SalonNVMagazine

£5 | €6.50

I nspi ri ng Scottish salon success

SalonNVMag

SCOTTISH HAIR AND BEAUTY AWARDS 2016 DAVINES SESSION STYLING

ANTHONY MASCOLO

AESTHETICS | BEAUTY | HAIRDRESSING | NAILS | TANNING

WESTROW ACADEMY

@SalonNVMagazine

/SalonNVMagazine

SalonNVMag

AESTHETICS | BEAUTY | HAIRDRESSING | NAILS | TANNING

BarberNV Magazine | 21

PRODUC T

ADH Dry Andrew Does Hair says “good hair doesn’t come from a jar” but we believe that ADH Dry certainly helps. More matte than a typical wax, yet more soft and pliable than a typical clay, you get best results when applied to damp hair pre-blow-dry. €14.99 - truebarberproducts.com

Uppercut Deluxe Matt Pomade The latest offering from Uppercut Deluxe and they’ve come up with another winner.

For a no-shine, natural matt look that gives outstanding performance across a diverse range of styles, whether classic or modern. No matter if you’re dealing with long or short locks, a small amount added to dry hair will get you what you need.

£16 – uppercutdeluxe.com

OneBlade Razor A mission to replicate a flawless straight-razor shave with the safety and convenience of a cartridge razor has led to the creation of the OneBlade. A streamlined, precise comibination of elements comes together with a Feather blade to produce the cleanest, closest shave of your life.

$299 – onebladeshave.com

Percy Nobleman Pomade For those classic, slick back looks, side parts, and pompadours, Percy Nobleman offers a water based pomade that won’t let your fringe go limp after a day in the sun or a night out. Apply to damp hair and comb through for pomp perfection. £12.99 – percynobleman.com

Hawkins & Brimble Post Shave Balm This brand new British grooming brand epitomises cool Britannia with their effortlessly traditional style. This nourishing blend of olive oil, almond oil, and cocoa reduces redness for a smooth complexion.

£8.95 – hawkinsandbrimble.co.uk

Reuzel Fiber Pomade Fresh from our favourite scumbags, you can create hours of textured definition with a firm but pliable hold and a low shine finish. It works best on shorter hair and is particularly effective on medium to thicker hair types.

Texturises and increases fullness for a straight out of bed, dishevelled look.

£15.99 – reuzel.co.uk

Editor’s ChoiceENVY 22 | BarberNV Magazine

HOLD: Medium FINISH: No shine natural matt look

BarberNV Magazine | 23

PRODUC T

Reuzel Clay Matte Pomade Create touchable, flexible hold with a matte finish that allows you to manipulate the hair into almost any style. Best used to emphasise texture and separation with the mouldable, flexible hold of natural clay. Perfect for short hairstyles. £15.99 – reuzel.co.uk

Hawkins & Brimble Molding Wax

Kevin Murphy Night Rider Provides a tough hold and rough matt texture for short or choppy looks. It has the advantage of being easy to get from the jar and sets almost on contact, giving you a little time to work before the strong hold kicks in.

Reviving traditional barber grooming rituals using simple, natural ingredients, Hawkins & Brimble’s Molding Wax gives shine and hold to complement the modern man’s lifestyle. £8.95 – hawkinsandbrimble.co.uk

£20 – kevinmurphystore.com

Uppercut Deluxe Barbers Collection Deluxe Pomade You pleaded and you pleaded, and Uppercut Deluxe have listened to your woes – their classic Deluxe Pomade now comes in a significantly larger tin as part of their Barber’s Collection, meaning you can spend more time styling your clients and less time purchasing new stock. £22 – uppercutdeluxe.com

Pall Mall Barbers Sea Salt Spray The hottest product of 2016 is without a doubt sea salt spray, and this offering from Pall Mall Barbers is perfect for a raw and naturally messy look. Achieve the added bulk and thickness of surfer hair, without hitting the waves. £15 – pallmallbarbers.com

StylingENVY 24 | BarberNV Magazine

Begin or further your career in barbering at the academy of international educator Sid Sottung.

ONLINE

PHONE

FB & INSTA

sidsottungacademy.com

0115 837 2401

/sidsottungacademy

265 Mansfield Road | Nottingham |NG1 3FT

Agents Wanted We are looking for agents to sell the exciting new Johnny’s Chop Shop grooming range to independent barber’s shops.

Please call Steven on 07540-835904 BarberNV Magazine | 25

PRODUC T

Collexia Hairdryer The dryer of choice for the team at Stafford Hair, the Collexia hairdryer dries hair up to 70% faster than most other products on the market.

Lightweight but powerful with precision performance, it’s a favourite of many professional hairstylists.

£79.99 – denmanbrush.com

Zhorn Ergo The all solution dryer, this is a true workhorse of the field. A patented noise reducer keeps it blowing along quietly, while the ergonomic grip will keep your hand feeling fine through long hours in the salon. At 2100W it’s a powerful top performer. £120 + VAT – zhornhair.com

Oster C200 Feast your eyes on the ravishing red styling of this Americandesigned cordless clipper and then be awed by its incredible performance. The powerful rotary motor, as used in the toughest top-end professional clippers, will make short work of both wet and dry hair, while the adjustable blade length makes it good for more than just bulk hair removal. £180 – barberblades.co.uk

Electric Head Jog Titanium Pro-Air Clipper Strong and durable titanium blades stay sharp and rust-free for longer so that every cut will be smooth and precise, while the high-capacity lithium-ion battery can last up to three times longer than traditional batteries and features quick-start technology giving you four hours of use on a three hour charge.

£54.95 – hairtools.co.uk

Andis Ionica Trimmer A heavy-duty cordless clipper with a rotary motor capable of 5,500 strokes per minute. It’ll cut through wet or dry hair and is suitable for all kinds of clipper work. The chrome-plated stainless steel blades are detachable for easy cleaning, and the striking red housing has an ergonomic, comfortable curved shape and an anti-slip, soft-grip feel. £178.80 – coolblades.co.uk

Wahl Academy Collection Hero Trimmer Designed for maximum comfort, the compact design provides support and flexibility and weighing in in at 190 grams it is lightweight, reducing the chances of wrist fatigue. The T-blade allows complex styles to be created with precision, ideal for outlining and detailing work. £62.39 – salonsdirect.com

ElectricalENVY 26 | BarberNV Magazine

Titanium Pro-Air Clippers And Mini Trimmer

BarberNV Magazine | 27

PRODUC T

Beard of Liverpool Citrus Beard Balm Freshen up your day with this zingy and cool balm that keeps your beard soft and conditioned. The shea butter and beeswax base conditions and adds hold, with no greasy after feel, leaving the beard feeling luxurious.

£14 – beardofliverpool.com

Sweyn Forkbeard Luxury Shaving Cream Offering a refreshing and exhilarating shaving experience by creating a rich and luxurious lather scented with mango and papaya. A nourishing, soothing cream formula that softens the beard to ensure a close shave and protect skin from razor burn and irritation. £12.95 – sweynforkbeard.co.uk

Sweyn Forkbeard Beard Balm The first Viking King of England naturally had to have a top notch beard and we’re pretty confident that in between ruling and pillaging, he would have conditioned it with his namesake beard balm. Relieving itchy and flaky skin around your facial hair, if you don’t use it you’re a right Cnut. £12.95 – sweynforkbeard.co.uk

Mariner Jack Anchor Moustache Wax The frankincense base is smooth and powerful, while notes of black pepper raise the scent out of the base notes before mellowing out with floral undertones of ylang. Medium hold, it’s easy to apply and wash out at the end of the day.

Uppercut Deluxe Shave Cream Designed to complement the Uppercut Deluxe Aftershave Moisturiser as part of a daily routine for the kinda guy that just wants a good shave. With low fragrance, these cream based products will simply leave your skin smelling clean and feeling fresh. £10 – uppercutdeluxe.com

£9.95 – marinerjackcouk

Brooklyn Grooming Commando Beard Oil Make beardruff a thing of the past and re-introduce moisture to the hidden skin underneath, eliminating the flake we all despise – important if you plan on keeping your beard for a long time. The Commando is purely functional and so fragrance free.

$29 – brooklyngrooming.com

Shaving, Beard, & MoustacheENVY 28 | BarberNV Magazine

P RO DU C T

Percy Nobleman Beard Brush If you’re serious about growing and maintain your beard then you’ll need to give it the care and attention it deserves to achieve the best results. Made from 100% wild boar bristles and oiled Austrian pear wood, its handy size makes it the perfect travelling companion.

£14.99 – percynobleman.com

Brooklyn Grooming Pocket Comb This limited edition beauty is an iconic offering from Brooklyn Grooming, with the golden logo glimmering tantalisingly through the leather sleeve.

Stick it in your pocket and let loose to both groom yourself and impress your friends. $40 – brooklyngrooming.com

Mr Bear Family Beard Brush The brush handle is made from 100% olive wood and the brush is made from boar bristles, for the finest possible grooming experience. Boar bristles help to distribute the natural oils/product evenly through the beard and regular brushing vitalises the skin and prevents a dry beard.

£32 – mrbearfamily.com

Denman Berry Martini Brush From their Cocktail range of scented hairbrushes, Denman have taken their classic 5-row styling brush and infused it with the fruity scent of alcohol. Also available in Pina Colada and Strawberry Daiquiri flavours, it adds a touch of fun to your shop. £4.50 + VAT – denman brush.com

Urban Tonic Streaker Beard Comb From Northern Irish brand Urban Tonic comes this distinctive beard comb. Designed by local artist and illustrator Andy Hamilton (Mytarpit), it’s also laser cut in Northern Ireland making it a completely locally sourced product.

Contact adam@urbantonic.co.uk for wholesale opportunities. £12 – urbantonic.co.uk

Combs & BrushesENVY BarberNV Magazine | 29

PRODUC T

Yoi Chopper Swivel Scissor Kamisori Rosa Hand crafted by traditional Japanese bladesmiths who believe in nothing but shear perfection, the Rosa is true luxury. The handle is burnished from genuine Japanese sterling silver and the blade is stainless cobalt super steel for the highest level of sharpness, durability, and agility.

Made from a long-lasting high performance alloy, the slice cutting edges are perfect for scissor over comb and all other modern barber work. The swivel thumbs reduce the symptoms of repetitive strain and carpal tunnel syndrome. £109 + VAT – yoiscissors.co.uk

£550 – kamisoriuk.com

Kobe Thinning Scissors The matching thinner for the Tondeo Primer is, like its sibling, an ideal scissor for any stylist looking to upgrade from their college scissors or just looking for a good quality, no-nonsense thinner. For the price it’s hard to beat. £49.99 – coolblades.co.uk

Matakki Black Ninja Improved, perfected, and made to a higher specification, the Black Ninja is designed to suit everyone’s taste. Smooth, comfortable, and perfectly balanced, you’ll fall in love with this beautifully handcrafted scissor.

£120 – matakki.om

Beard of Liverpool Beard Scissors If you want to keep your clients’ beards in tip top shape then you need the right tools for the job, The handle and shape is designed to give you the best possible cut, being ergonomically shaped and designed to give you more control when trimming. £10.99 – beardofliverpool.com

Sid Sottung Academy Black Nottingham’s education maestro has returned from Russian Barber Week with a new collection of scissors. These black beauties are our favourites, and will help you stand out from the crowd.

£200 – sidsottungacademy.com

Scissors & ThinnersENVY 30 | BarberNV Magazine

Clean, disinfect, and lubricate your clipper blades and teeth in one step without removing them from the clipper. Prevents rust and acts as coolant to cool the clipper, extending the life of the blade, and the special SureGrip sculpted can is easy to hold.

P RO DU C T

Andis Cool Care Plus

£8 – barberblades.co.uk

REM Aviator With its fully upholstered arms and modern ‘square-jawed’ style, the REM Aviator instantly sets a strongly masculine tone. It’s comfortable for your customers and comes with all the features you’d expect, making it a great choice for any barber wanting a modern look.

£1,015 + VAT– rem.co.uk

Jack Dean Tool Bag A high quality, stylish, and practical way to store and transport all your essential barbering tools. With a large main storage for holding your clippers, trimmers, and hairbrushes, there’s also two removable sleeves which are designed to house scissor and combs.

£23.99 – coolblades.co.uk

Vintage Chalkboard Advertise your barbershop with a touch of old school class. Sit it kerbside and let clients know your prices and display promotional offers, or for the more creative, come up with something witty and become an internet sensation.

£25 + VAT – salonequipmentcentre.co.uk

Takara Belmont Apollo 2 Icon The original Apollo 2 has been an international symbol of barbering since its launch in 1961 and now Takara Belmont are extending the Apollo 2 dynasty with the Icon. Elegantly restyled, it retains the timeless design, robust structure, and unmistakeable style that made the original a hit.

£2,200 + VAT – takarahairdressing.co.uk

Furniture & EquipmentENVY BarberNV Magazine | 31

ANDREW DOES HAIR A

ndrew Does Hair is his name, a statement of fact, and one of the biggest understatements in hairstyling. Because Andrew doesn’t just do hair, he does it to the highest standard imaginable, leading to him becoming a top educator, sorry, now international educator, and he has his own product line - ADH. He’s over in Ireland for Barber Cut Dublin, the biggest event in Irish barbering history to date, where I meet up with him to chat about his career in California and becoming one of the most popular men’s hairstylists on Instagram with over 100,000 followers. Perhaps surprisingly for a man headlining a country’s largest ever celebration of barbering, Andrew has a confession.

“This is horrible,” he laughs. “I’m doing Barber Cut Dublin tomorrow and I absolutely do not consider myself a barber! Not that I think there’s anything wrong with that, it’s just not what I was trained to be.”

Not through a lack of trying though he tells me.

After spending years cutting his own hair in his bathroom and with no real prospects of gaining a high school diploma, Andrew realised that hair

32 | BarberNV Magazine

styling was his passion and set about making it his profession.

“I wanted to be a barber because to be totally honest I was worried as a 17-year old that it was feminine to be a hairdresser and when you’re 17 that matters. So I wanted to be a barber but I couldn’t find a barber school anywhere near me so I ended up at a cosmetology school – and I was less than thrilled about that for the longest time. But now, all these years later, I’ve learned being forced to do women’s hair taught me things about hair that I wouldn’t have learned in most barber schools.”

It’s this unique style and merging of traditional barbering techniques with the skills learned from years of styling women’s hair that brought him to a wider audience via social media – Andrew was one of the first stylists to take advantage of the Instagram boom.

He says: “I got on there and started posting haircut pictures and at that time I had never gone to any events, I’d never mingled with any other barbers – I didn’t know what the rest of the scene was doing. I just worked away in my quiet little crab hole by myself and when I started posting I

An Interview with Larry The Barber Man

got my first 9,000 followers kind of by accident. I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that at the time barbers weren’t styling hair very well; they were wet-styling everybody where I was blowdrying everybody so my styles looked a little more finished.”

While this brought Andrew instant success and a level of fame he hadn’t previously experienced, it also brought a downside.

“I think most people don’t realise this but you should realise it: Instagram’s my highlight reel.

It’s like my best picture of my best haircut on my best day on my best looking clients. Every head you see on Instagram is usually a regular client, one I’ve cut a hundred times.

“So somebody would come to me and say ‘I found you on Instagram, you did this amazing thing. It took you an hour and a half on a head you’re very familiar with [but I want it] in 25 minutes because I showed up five minutes late and by the way I drove here from three hours away’ and I’m like ‘oh my god!’ So when I was doing that five to ten times a day it became really, really, stressful.

“I couldn’t charge enough money to make it worth the stress it was bringing on.” To get round this, and maintain some level of sanity, Andrew now doesn’t advertise where his current salon is on Instagram or any social media. Not that it’s decreased his popularity, with a six-week wait to get an appointment even after he raised his prices to three-times the average for his area, but what Andrew loves is that he now gets to focus on the regular clients that have been with him for years.

“I don’t want to sound like I have an ego but I’ve been cutting hair long enough, and I have enough people that think I do what I do well, that I never want to impress anyone again. It’s exhausting to get a stranger in the chair and find out where their expectations are and try to meet them in some way. I’m like ‘this is what I can do, I hope it works out for you and if it doesn’t I’m sorry.’ It’s really weird and bittersweet to have a guy come in for a haircut and afterward want to take a selfie with me. I feel like I need to wear the Andrew Does Hair persona pants.

“I’d say about a third of my clientele has never heard the name Andrew Does Hair. They see the ADH product on my station but they don’t know that I own it, they just know that I use it and I like it that way.”

Here at Barber Cut Dublin, Andrew’s ADH line

is flying off the shelves as hundreds of barbers get the chance to pick up a brand not easily available outside of the United States and also get to talk with Andrew about it – something that Andrew believes is vital to his entire raison d’etre.

“Currently 97% of the products we sell go through a professional. We do offer it on the website but that’s a temporary means to an end as the brand is growing and we need the revenue of retail to keep it a brand for the time being. Eventually we want it all to be through professionals.

“I don’t want to be another internet brand who says ‘Hey I taught you about your hair, buy something from me’. I don’t want to teach your clients to do their hair, I want you to teach your clients to do theirs because I don’t want them to have to YouTube it or come to me. I don’t want to be an expert for anybody else’s clients but my own and so that’s sort of where I want to take my career.

“I want ADH to represent more than a haircut.

I want someone to see it in a barbershop and get excited that ‘Oh my gosh, I’m finally going to know how to use a blow-dryer and I didn’t have to google it.’”

In fact, ADH may be the only product in existence that plays down its own importance with its branding!

Andrew explains: “I would take somebody’s hair and I would style it and it would take me 10 minutes to blow-dry, a few minutes to tease it, and then I would go like this…” He mimes taking the teensiest amount of product from a jar, “and the first question every time was ‘What product is that?’ And to top it off product companies would be using that picture and saying ‘Buy our fibre clay putty’ and there was guys like ‘here take my money’.

“So that really irritated me and I was like ‘Good hair doesn’t come from a jar’. I wrote it on a post-it note actually! I had my graphic designer sketch it up and I posted it on Instagram and it got twice as many likes as my usual posts get.

The next day I went and got it trademarked and had it put on my jar.”

If it doesn’t come from a jar, then where does good hair come from? It’s the entire philosophy behind the Andrew Does Hair brand and comprises everything from his styling range to his educational talks, and it comes down to barbers adding value to the service they provide their clients.

BarberNV Magazine | 33

“Good hair comes from having a barber or hairdresser who know what they’re doing, has a relationship with you, and knows what you want and like. Good hair comes from knowing how to style your own hair. Keep it out of the sun and you’ll have better hair, keep it out of chlorine and you’ll have better hair. There’s a million different things that go into it but consumers have been programmed to look at the jar first; it’s always ‘What jar? What jar?’

“Everything that you deal with your client: the way you talk to them, what you tell them, what you ask of them, it plays into your expertise and what you know about hair and this is valuable – if you think to offer it! It’s so funny, all these barbers don’t want to look like they have an ego, I don’t want to look like I have an ego, but if someone is paying you to be their expert then you better know how to act like an expert.”

For more advice from Andrew Does Hair you can watch our full interview on my YouTube channel, Larry the Barber Man, or buy Andrew’s book, Typical Cosmetology Stuff, or if you get the chance to attend one of Andrew’s educational programmes you won’t regret it.

‘Good hair doesn’t come from a jar’ - adh

34 34 || BarberNV BarberNV Magazine Magazine

BarberNV Magazine | 35

british Barber of the Year 2016 Andrea Raymond E

very year, Wahl award a coveted title to the barber that they see as the British Barber of the Year, and for 2016 the prize – awarded at Salon International in October – went to Andrea Raymond. Andrea is a 22-year-old Irish barber, and she’s also the first female barber to have received the title. After working for years in a number of barbershops and salons throughout Cork, this hard-earned award is well-deserved recognition of her enthusiasm and skill.

Shortly after her win, I interview Andrea to get a better sense of how this relatively unknown barber had not only ended up on stage alongside popular professionals such as Paul Mac Special, but also managed to beat them to the title. I also wanted to find out more about working as a female barber in an industry that is still male-dominated, and get advice for other women in the profession.

One of the first things that I always try to find out from the barbers that I interview is exactly how they got started in the trade. The variety of different stories is amazing, and for Andrea it was a case of looking for a creative and practical career.

She says: “I wanted to do something to do with art, but I didn’t want to do anything to do with art college because I felt like you were told what to do. So I thought, okay, I’ll go into hairdressing.”

This led to Andrea first starting at a hairdressing college, however once she started she found that “there was just so much theory, so much sit

36 | BarberNV Magazine

An Interview with Larry The Barber Man

down, that it wasn’t for me. So I left and started an apprenticeship at a hairdressers, and while I was there I thought I’d do something a bit more.

So, I started a barber course. [I] never thought I’d be a barber, but when I did I just realised this is for me.”

It’s becoming increasingly common for hairdressers to decide to move over into barbering, and for Andrea this is because it is both more creative and more challenging. Her work took her first to Bladez Barbers and then to Lancaster Barbers, where she still works today, both of which are found in her home town of Cork.

With this experience under her belt, Andrea was able to submit an application to the Wahl British Barber of the Year competition that clearly wowed the judges. Before competing on stage at Salon International, this process meant sending off photos and information about her work.

While chatting, she was kind enough to describe what’s involved, a simple process which any barber can easily complete if they have their own sights set on a similar award.

“For the Wahl British Barber of the Year it was posted on their Facebook page. So you pick 4-6 images of your work, it has to be a nice shoot, it has to be a high resolution camera – there’s a bit of fine print – but you send 4-6 pictures in by email with a small little bio of yourself; how you started off, how long you’ve been barbering.

“It was actually very easy to apply for it, and I think that was turning me

off as well because you hear competition work and you think I’ve got to get a model, I’ve got to get a photoshoot going. But it was so straightforward, I definitely recommend everyone to go for it for next year.”

Of course, while the entry process may have been easy, the competition isn’t – and Andrea did well to cut through hundreds of other entries to reach the live final. We talked a little about the style that she brought to the stage with her; refreshingly straightforward techniques and a focus on classic styles.

Andrea explains that rather than trying to emulate another popular barber, or deciding to stray outside the box for her competition work, she thought it was important to stay with what she does best.

“I went with a skin fade, just a regular skin fade, didn’t do anything fancy. Cropped on top, textured. His hair was bleached on top but he had naturally dark hair. So with the texture on top I wanted it to look quite broken up so you get the contrast of dark and light, same as the contrast of the skin fade on the light skin.

“I like clean, sharp lines, I like to put as much effort into every aspect of the haircut as the next. So I just went plain, easy structure – and it worked.”

Showing off your own speciality is the advice that Andrea picked up from other barbers who supported her, such as Reece and Alan Beak, and now it’s the message that she’s passing onto other barbers who may want to follow in her footsteps. In particular, the core advice she offers to young female barbers, who are wondering how to cut through all the noise is “don’t try to be anybody else.”

These wise words show that Andrea doesn’t just deserve her position as Wahl British Barber of the Year 2016 for her skills, but also for the positive influence that she will be able to have on the up-and-coming stars of the trade.

There’s one final piece of information that I simply have to share with every barber reading this – and that’s what’s inside Andrea’s toolkit. I’m sure many of you, like me, are very enthusiastic about the huge range of clippers and other barbering gadgets that are out there, so never miss a chance to see which trusty tools are being favoured by the professionals.

Unlike a lot of barbers I’ve spoken to, Andrea is all about corded models, preferring choices such as the Taper 2000 – which she’s always sure to have

two of – to their cordless equivalents. She also uses the Wahl Beret Mini Clipper, the classic Wahl Shaver which remains a firm favourite with barbers across the country, and the Wahl Icon. Aside from the Wahl Beret, all her tools are corded; this has even led her to make her own crunch head Magic Shaver, by swapping out the flat head that comes with the corded version.

She also uses the Finale Foil Shaver, which is an “exception” to the rule since Andrea has found that although it’s cordless, it gives excellent results: “sharp, clean, easier on your hand”. Finally, she is adding some custommade scissors from Dan ‘Quartered Steels’ Wild, as they will last longer and be tailored precisely to her cut.

It was a real pleasure to meet Andrea – a modest and grateful barber who was a delight for me to interview. As she talked to me about her work, the drive and determination certainly shone through! We finished the interview by talking about her advice for female barbers who may be looking to follow her example and make a bigger name for themselves in the barbering industry. I’ll leave you with her parting words, which can also apply to any early career barber: “stick to what you’re good at. Perfect your own techniques, your own skills. So just don’t try to be anyone else and that will get you far.”

BarberNV Magazine | 37

Welcome to Barbe

38 | BarberNV Magazine

erNV, Alan Findlay Alan Findlay

Model: Stewart Anderston Make-up: Carol Fairfield Hair assistant: Dionne Brisland Concept and styling: Marc Ross

BarberNV Magazine | 39

ALANFINDLAY rebelrebel

FINDLAY FACTS

Lotium was a word used for stale urine used by barbers as a kind of shampoo

40 | BarberNV Magazine

Hello and welcome readers to my little corner of BarberNV. I feel honoured and privileged to have this opportunity to write from my perspective on all things barbering.

I

’ve been a barber approaching 30 years now and our craft has come a long, long way in this period.

Cutting my teeth through the early 90s when barbers were being nasal gazed by most other professions and viewed as the poor man’s hairdresser.

Working from poky back street barbershops where education and customer service was mostly absent.

The mantra of those days was ‘bums on seats’ and ‘get them in and get them out’. Also it was an era where men couldn’t be seen making any sort of fuss about their appearance as such acts were deemed un-manly and a sign of weakness. It was certainly a different breed of men in those days - once I remember playing football when I was around 21 and having long hair I took ‘shampoo & conditioner’ to the after game shower where I became the butt of all the jokes from my team mates. I often wonder how the modern grooming antics of today’s footballers would have been viewed by those burly macho men of those days gone by.

It used to puzzle me why barbering, being one the oldest professions next to prostitution, was in such a poor condition with no leadership, infrastructure, or real organisation until I realized that the 60s and 70s brought real cultural and fashion changes resulting in men’s hairstyles becoming long and staying long for over 20 years. So you can imagine how this must have affected clipper dependent barbers during this time with next to no clipper work coming through their doors, causing barber shops to close or be pushed back into the dark ages of barbering. A lot of barbers in this period had to either retrain into hairdressing or have a complete change of career.

In stark contrast, the world of

hairdressing went from strength to strength. Massive hair product companies were forming and with their revenues were investing money into hairdressing education, competitions, infrastructure, and generally helping to raise the profile and standards of the hairdressing industry. The momentum was really flying for hairdressing and the fashion industry in this period. Professionalism was growing with magazines, training academies, and organisations forming all over the UK and beyond.

I suppose the irony of these times was that men were much more fashion conscience with trendy subcultures like 60s mods and the 70s glam rockers and many more emerging but, unfortunately for the barbering fraternity, long hair fashions ruled the British streets and we didn’t adapt to the popular fashion trends of the times.

Hairdressing is a relatively new profession with the first historical appearance of the word ‘hairdresser’ in 17th century Europe but in modern times the industry has flourished getting its act together during its industrialisation in the 60s/70s and now has a multi-billion pounds worldwide industry. So then came the 80s where we saw a slow rise in the re-opening of barbers due to the male hairstyles getting shorter but still not really to clipper lengths as of yet. This would start to come more in the late 80s with maybe the exception of military and punk hairstyles, with the latter being DIY jobs rather than visits to the barbers. So now arriving at the 90s where my own personal barbering journey began. Short back and sides were back and men were getting their hair cut more and more often due to the low cost barbering on offer. In 1991 I was working in a

conveyer belt barbers - it was £3.75 for a gent’s cut with no wash or any specific attention to customer service or hairstyling; which was just a big dollop of industrial blue gel to finish the service. I’ve spent the last 20 years finding out what was so wrong about our then recovering industry and slowly learning to become more professional, developing my skills and techniques whilst improving my customers experience.

About eight years ago I teamed up with my business partner Colin and we created Rebel Rebel. I put all my barbering ideas and practices into place which has coincided with the general pattern of men around the world putting more attention to their appearance and consequently spending more money and time on it.

I’ve also been lucky enough to have been involved with the formation of The B.O.M.B. Squad (aka Barbers Of Modern Britain) along with Foxy and a special mention to James Beattie who came up with the idea and was the catalyst that brought us together.

When you throw in the arrival of the internet and specifically apps like Instagram where people have shared styling ideas and techniques so readily over the last 5/6 years and BAM! We are now in the middle of a barbering revolution and being part of this renaissance has been an absolute joy considering where it all started for me… I think as times move on it’s easy to forget but you should never stop appreciating.

So that’s it for this issue but I’d like to encourage you guys to get in touch.

Email me your own barbering stories, barbering problems or just general points of interest at contact@salonnv.co.uk and we will publish the best ones. Be the best you can be…

af

BarberNV Magazine | 41

1143 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8NE

Rebel Rebel is a Glasgow icon.

T

he original store on Union Street has seen everything there is to see in the hair game – and that’s just Alan’s beard – not to mention being a staple in the life of thousands of ordinary Glaswegians. Now though it’s time for another chapter in the brand’s life, as a second shop opens in the west end of the city, in the trendy, up and coming Finnieston.

It’s a move that makes sense for Rebel Rebel: the west end has a bustling student population and students bring disposable income and a desire to look good, while being close enough to the original shop to still trade on its reputation - although it’s not hard to believe the Rebel Rebel name could do that anywhere.

While Mr Findlay is the driving force behind it, renowned throughout the barbering world for his work with The B.O.M.B. Squad and regular appearance on stage at shows including Barber Connect, 42 | BarberNV Magazine

Salon International, and anywhere else who can get him, the new shop in Finnieston is a chance for some of the promising talent he has nurtured to take the next step in their development and become top barbers in their own right.

Some of the staff at Rebel Rebel Finnieston won’t be strangers to regular readers of BarberNV, but we’ve highlighted some of their work opposite and in our Showcase section so you can see their quality. Gemma Willock-Smith is the lead barber of the new shop and was our Rising Star back in issue 3 – clearly she is fulfilling her potential now (don’t say we didn’t tell you!) Meanwhile Graeme Milne is a regular contributor to Showcase and recently won Apprentice Barber of the Year at the Scottish Hair and Beauty Awards; who knows how far he’ll go? Of course that’s just the tip of the iceberg, with Rebel Rebel giving us an almost never ending supply of talented barbers.

Stripped back and raw, the new shop highlights the incredible architecture of the building it’s housed within. Hidden by the previous tenants, it’s been restored and allowed to breathe new life into the surroundings, with the vintage furniture set off perfectly by the blazing fireplace.

Of course, the rustic look can’t hide the fact that this is a truly modern barbers, at the cutting edge of style and design. Like its older sibling, it’s stocked with Kevin Murphy for your locks and Oak for your facial fuzz, so whether you’re looking for a skinfade or a beard trim, you’re sure to be looked after. Their training scheme is also second to none, so whether you’re non-barber who wants to pick up the shears for the first time or an experienced pro looking to enhance his skillset, Rebel Rebel have options for you. We’re delighted to have welcomed Alan on-board with BarberNV in this issue and Rebel Rebel Finnieston is waiting to welcome you.

Gemma Willock-Smith GRAEME MILNE GRANT CARR Barbershop: Rebel Rebel Clothing: illfortune Photography: foxozamedia Make-up: Katy Fraser

BarberNV Magazine | 43

Show us your ID

I Empire Barber Unit

Legion Barber Chair 44 | BarberNV Magazine

t doesn’t seem two minutes since we had a catch up with Tracy Fuller – Sales and Marketing Manager for BEC/SEC, the last 12 months have flown by. As Tracy points out this time last year the BEC name and logo were still on the artist pad, yet 12 months later, complete with its own identity, BEC (Barber Equipment Centre) has well and truly established itself within the industry.

When I ask Tracy to describe her views on the past last 12 months she smiles as she recalls some of the challenges her team have faced. One of the biggest challenges was the positioning of BEC within the barbering industry - we wanted to ensure we used our 20 years of experience in both the design and supply of barber chairs and furniture to best meet the needs of barbers. Whilst recognising that there are some obvious similarities between the hairdressing and barbering business models there are lots of differences and we were always mindful to respect the differences and the expectations of the two sectors.

One of the first things we acknowledged was that despite the massive explosion of new barber shops opening in the UK, barbers have put a great deal of time and effort into establishing their own identity. This has brought some fun as well as serious business aspects to their business plans.

This year we have spent time at various barber functions and shows, it doesn’t take many minutes from the start of these events to become totally absorbed by the enthusiasm and energy of everyone there. There is a buzz around the industry; whilst barbers naturally compete for recognition to be the best, amongst their peers there is also a genuine friendly and willing eagerness within the industry to share ideas,

skills, thoughts, and experiences. Barbers have taken social media by storm, every day someone is talking about their achievements and sharing their experiences, promoting and supporting the industry sector at every available possibility.

It makes you realise just how important your ID is - people buy from people first and foremost, we all like to do business with the people we trust, that’s why we have worked hard to build a reputation for providing the best all round service level possible, whether that’s when people visit our massive showroom, which is still, I am proud to say, the largest in the UK, or when they do business with us online or over the phone. Attending the events has helped strengthen our position in the industry as barbers not only recognise our faces but they also recognise our ID, our BEC logo, and they link it to our commitment to the industry. We have been supplying the barber industry for over 20 years and we have every intention of continuing to contribute in every way we can, let’s hope that we all see the industry go from strength to strength over the next 20 years.

When asked what advice Tracy would give to the next generation of up and coming barbers she is quick to reply - keep it simple, concentrate on what you are good at, remember you are in this for the long haul. Focus on the overall experience you are offering - people want to feel comfortable yet important. Behaviour breeds behaviour - friendly enthusiastic people make for a relaxed friendly environment which in turn should bring you repeat business. Well it works for us, but it wasn’t easy as it sounds, you have to work hard at being consistent, but the hard work pays off in the end, when friendly faces come back time and time again.

Brand

New e to Availabl ur o in view m o o r w sho

THE TORNADO RED The ultimate rugged barber chair for today’s man.

Quote: BARBERNV07 for your special discounted price.

BEC Call 01455 660 120 or visit www.salonequipmentcentre.co.uk We buy and part exchange barber furniture. Nationwide delivery available.

Visit our showroom at Leicester Road, Lutterworth, LE17 4HF. All products subject to VAT, Terms & Condition’s Apply.

BarberNV Magazine | 45

BA R BEROLOGY

H

aving been crowned the UK’s Barbershop of the Year at Barber Connect, it was time for Barberology to move into phase two with the launch of a second location in their home town Birmingham.

Following the success of the popular Jewellery Quarter shop, the trailblazing barbers made the decision to open a 700 square feet, four chair shop in Harborne in the south west of the city, after identifying a big demand for their grooming expertise from an area in Birmingham popular known for its top notch beards and barnets.

With innovation at the heart of all that Barberology do, they stand apart from conventional barbers, offering a customer needs to nail any grooming goal, in a relaxed and social environment – and with cold beers or fine quality coffee always on offer! The Harborne shop offers a range of services including haircuts, shaves, moustache trims, and beard tidies; no luxury will be spared – use of hot towels and premium products are just the icing on the cake. Their reputation has been increasing

exponentially as word spread of their top quality service and winning Barbershop of the Year has been the icing on the cake – the only surprise is that it has taken this long for a second Barberology to open.

The Harborne shop is run by four team members and managed

by Barberology founder and chief groomer, Adam Gore. The charming features including a curved brick entrance and bay windows have been retained and Barberology has of course also made their own distinctive mark.

On the move into Harborne, Adam Gore said: “It’s a very exciting time for Barberology, demand is high so we’re delighted to open in an area which is a great fit for the brand (and I personally love), and offer our services to another great community of people. We look forward to welcoming old and new facesnd getting our groom on!”

Their opening four days saw over 250 clients visit the shop – it looks like another Barberology success.

Open Tuesday to Saturday.

Phone: 0121 439 8778

2 Gordon Road, H a rbor ne, Bi r m i ngh a m, B17 9H B 46 | BarberNV Magazine

M At t hew curt is h a ir sa lon

H

ighly ambitious hairstylist Matthew Curtis has made his next move in the world of luxury hair salons by opening within the prestigious hotel, Rosewood London on High Holborn just moments away from Covent Garden in London.

After the success of his standalone award-winning flasgship hair salon in Stratford Upon Avon and awardnominated hair retreat in Hoar Cross Hall Spa in Staffordshire, Matthew has upped his game with the new boutique salon that offers a range of male grooming treatments and will soon include wet shaves.

Taking inspiration from the Orient Express and the decadence of high living, guests will be able to experience five-star treatments within Rosewood London’s renowned Sense spa. The salon will offer expert stylists and professional colourists skilled in all aspects of hairdressing; from cutting and colouring to waving, straightening, and blow-drying.

Each treatment will start with a thorough consultation, ensuring clients are confident that they will leave looking their best and feeling transformed.

For the ultimate in privacy and luxury hairstyling, the indulgent Matthew Curtis in-room styling experience is a must. With a uniquely adapted vintage leather trunk, all the modern eements of a hair salon are incorporated into a portable styling station so guests can request personal appointments without leaving their room.

As well as featuring heavenly hair spa treatments, the new Matthew Curtis hair salon will also feature a luxury blow-dry menu where guests can have their hair styled in the latest trends from the catwalks.

Matthew said: “The new boutique hair salon Rosewood London is about unifying hair with the spa experience. From our standout salon design, experienced stylists with a wealth of catwalk, editorial, and technical abilities to the unique in-room styling experience concept, clients will receive the ultimate hair treatment when they visit us. This is truly a luxurious salon partnership for both brands involved.”

Opening hours: Monday to Sunday – 9am to 9pm Bookings: 0203 747 8830

252 H igh Holbor n, London, WC1V 7 E N

Danny&Co. Barbers Uppermill

S

uch was demand for the team at Danny&Co.’s Shaw branch, they’ve had to bite the bullet and undergo an expansion, opening a second location in Uppermill.

But it’s more than just an overflow shop for when the original is too busy to cater for the slick and stylish of Oldham, the guys on hand are just as talented and full of expert knowledge at the Shaw shop.

Founder Danny Robinson splits his time between the two stores meaning you avail yourself of his talents at whichever is easier for you. As one of the top young barbering talents in the United Kingdom, Danny is a regular on stage at shows like Barber Connect and Salon International – these are the standards you can expect at Danny&Co. Uppermill.

For his second barbershop, Danny has gone for a strippedback aesthetic. The exposed wood and steel showcase a rough and ready, industrial feel, perfect for the client who wants to feel at ease and comfortable in their environment, no airs and graces.

The unique setting makes this barbering boutique stand out from its rivals.

Danny&Co.’s reputation means the biggest names in the industry are keen to be affiliated with them and so they have Kevin Murphy, Denman, Uppercut Deluxe, and Oster (Danny is their European Ambassador) products in use in the shop to make sure your fade is fresh and your quiff as coiffured as can be.

Whether it’s a contemporary style or classic look, the team at Danny&Co. cater for all needs, leaving clients looking like distinguished gentlemen, and with late opening hours you can fit your haircut around your schedule.

As with more and more barbershops these days, Danny&Co. have embraced the world of online booking, with Resurva ensuring you can pick and choose your ideal appointment and not have to waste time sitting about waiting to be seen. The future is here and Danny and his team are definitely a part of it.

You can book online at dannyandco.co.uk

3 New St reet Uppe r m ill, Old h a m

Tip Top BARBERSHOP

O

ne of Leicestershire’s top hair salons with over 12 years’ experience in styling, has finally taken the move to branch out into barbering by opening a barber specific area in the grounds of the stately room they call home.

Amidst the luxurious grounds of Staunton House Estate, just outside Ashby de la Zouch, Tip Top Barber Shop offers a truly relaxing experience where customers can be pampered and treat themselves to a full range of male grooming treatments.

Tip Top is a traditional barber shop with a modern twist, with resident barber Ruth offering wet shaves, contemporary cuts, facials, and beard shaping. A graduate of the Sid Sottung Academy, and having spent 12 years as a hairdresser, she is as passionate about barbering as she ever has been for women’s hair.

There is no lack of quality at Tip Top when it comes to products used on clients, with brands such as Reuzel, Barba Italiana, and The Bluebeards Revenge, among their

stock, so you know you’ll only be getting the best for your visit.

While the service and products might be top of the range, fortunately the pricing isn’t.

Gents haircuts including wash and style start at only £17, going up to £25 for a Tip Top deluxe traditional wet shave lasting one hour. A facial comes in at just £15 and includes a facial scrub, facial mask, and facial massage with moisturiser. Meanwhile with Christmas on the horizon you can also avail yourself of gift sets, including Reuzel, or gift vouchers to give that special someone the perfect festive season, or to treat yourself to some well deserved pampering.

You can keep up to date with everything they do including charity events via their social media accounts, Facebook: Tip Top Barber Shop, Twitter: @TipTopBarbers, or website: tiptophairdesign.co.uk/tip-topbarber-shop, where you can also make a booking.

Or there’s always the old fashioned method of phoning up to 01332 862740.

Ferrers Centre, Staunton Harold Estate, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire BarberNV Magazine | 47

Step-bystep guide From Indola

FINDLAY FACTS

In Ancient Rome, barbers dressed cuts with spiders webs soaked in vinegar

48 | BarberNV Magazine

Step 1 Divide the hair into sections as shown: create a horseshoe section from temple to temple and below the crown. Create a half-moon section between the temples, at the front hairline

Step 2

Step 3

Start at the middle of the back area. Take a 1cm wide section at a 90-degree projection, increasing the length towards the nape of the neck.

Continue towards the side.

Repeat on the other side.

Step 4

Step 5

Release the horseshoe section and use the length of the back section as a cutting guide. Over-project the top section to your cutting guide to maintain the length and weight, working up to the front hairline.

Refine and crosscheck with a point cut technique in horizontal sections.

Step 6

Step 7

Release the half-moon section, refine the length and leave it disconnected with the rest of the hair.

Refine the outline with a point cut technique.

BarberNV Magazine | 49

BARBER CUT DUBLIN

BARBER CUT DUBLIN SUNDAY 2ND OF OCTOBER 2016

irish barbering T

he Irish barbering scene will never be the same again as Barber Cut made an indelible impression on the industry in Dublin at the weekend, as hundreds of barbers joined forces for a day of education and networking at the Opium Rooms, brought together by barber Sam Donnelly and event organiser Keiron Black.

A pre-show party was held the night before at Farrier & Draper which was a chance for all the performers and exhibitors to mingle before the main event, with some, like Andrew Does Hair and the Layrite team, Donnie Hawley and Mitchel Wilson, travelling all the way from the west coast of America especially to be there.

With Bulleit and Hop House providing the alcohol it was certainly a lively affair!

The main event kicked off at midday on Sunday and the international feel of the day was clear right from the off as the LSF barber group from Italy were first on stage to showcase their skills. The audience was packed right from the start of the day for everyone on the main stage, and also for the other events

50 | BarberNV Magazine

filtered throughout the amazing venue. Opium Rooms has a maze-like feel with dark corridors winding between rooms and another lesson in barbering excellence awaiting around every corner - it was a never ending feast for the senses.

Among the many highlights of the day was the presentation of a lifetime achievement award to Liam Finnegan of the Waldorf Barbershop and Shaving Saloon. An absolute stalwart of the industry, Liam was unfortunately unable to pick up the prize in person due to illness, but his daughter Linda, also a top barber, was on hand to collect it and give an emotional speech. As the inaugural winner of what is sure to become the most prestigious award in Irish barbering, Liam’s place in the barbering hall of fame is secured.

As always, the Schorem guys received a rousing reception as Leen performed on stage with Bertus commentating, filling in the crowd on the history of the scumbag barbers from Rotterdam and explaining how they came to be so highly regarded with their set number of

BARBER CUT DUBLIN

history haircuts and reputation for crazy antics.

For many, the chance to see influential Americans in the flesh for the first time was their main reason for coming and they weren’t disappointed as first they Layrite pair of Mitchel and Donnie showcased their stuff in the early afternoon before Andrew Does Hair took to the stage just prior to Menspire.

These guys are doing things on a completely different level to many in the UK and Ireland so it was inspiring for local Irish barbers (and even the top ones) to see it first-hand.

More than the vast array of world class barbers from around the globe educating and performing to a packed and willing crowd, what most guests will take away from Barber Cut Dublin will be the friendly and jovial atmosphere that extended throughout the whole event. Everyone was willing to offer a helping hand or bit of wisdom to their fellow barber and it made for an incredibly welcoming day. We can’t wait for Barber Cut 2017 – it’s sure to be some craic!

BarberNV Magazine | 51

Barber cut dublin 2016

52 | BarberNV Magazine

BarberNV Magazine | 53

REUZEL

54 | BarberNV Magazine

Graeme Milne

Barbershop: Rebel Rebel Clothing: illfortune Photography: foxozamedia

S h o w c a se

Por tfol io

BarberNV Magazine | 55

Bons Barbershop

Hair: Bons Photo: Gerardo Rainone

Marco Tassisto

Barbershop: Barberia BAICIN dal 1959

56 | BarberNV Magazine

BarberNV Magazine | 57

Stefano de Leonardis

Barbershop: Hype Traditional Barber Shop

58 | BarberNV Magazine

REUZEL

BarberNV Magazine | 59

Tag @Barbe rNVmag to featur azine e your wo rk!

@barber_ste @artemfrolove

@barber.josh.o.p

@rumbarber

@conthebarber_14 @deneka_brook

60 | BarberNV Magazine

@fraser_hardgrind

Showcase @tommypoppet @lovefacebarber

@kieronmarkey

@vincent_hardgrind

@lukebradleyhair @ryancullenhair @justmikethatsme BarberNV Magazine | 61

TOM CHAPMAN

FOR THE BLUEBEARDS REVENGE - SCISSOR-CUT CONTOUR

62 | BarberNV Magazine

Create It

•

Wash your client’s hair then while it’s wet establish a natural parting and section it using an asymmetric horseshoe.

•

Starting at the temples cut the hair with scissors graduated from long to short and meet both sides at the nape.

•

Connect the top into the graduated back and sides using the guide created.

• Through the top point cut at a 30 degree angle leaving the side closest to the parting longest and blend the opposite side into the existing guide.

•

Blast dry and create some movement using a pomp brush.

•

Finish off cut using scissor-over-comb and detailer trimmers.

•

Finally, style with some matt paste.

Maintain it To maintain this look at home be sure to wash you hair to give you the best final result.

Dry your hair with a pomp brush or just scrunch it with your fingers to create more texture. Finish with matt paste. Use a thumbnail sized amount and run it through your hands until it’s almost transparent, then evenly distribute it to cover all of your hair from the root up.

BarberNV Magazine | 63

christmas gift guide If you haven’t upped your retail game before now, then Christmas is the perfect time to get started. Don’t let your customers’ relatives be stuck with yet another Lynx Africa gift set, offer them something a bit more upmarket, something that won’t offend the nostrils of everyone who needs to get public transport with them.

As well as providing a valuable customer service, it’s a great money-maker for your shop, bringing in some additional revenue just when you need it most – let’s face it, from the toys to the turkeys, Christmas is an expensive time for everyone and then you have the yearly lull in January, so maximising profit in December is a must.

Most of the big brands in our industry have recognised the value of a Christmas gift set so we investigated and have come up with a few must-haves for your shop to earn yourself a little present this festive season.

Daimon Barber Luxury Shaving Gift Set

label.men Grooming Kit After debuting to booming success last year, label.men have heard your cries and are filling stockings once again with their Grooming Kit. The 3-step styling regime embodies their prescriptive ethos, providing the key products needed to achieve grooming precision – Scalp Purifying Shampoo, Grooming Cream, and their famous, award winning Deconstructor.

Contains the full range of products from Daimon Barber’s fresh and sophisticated shaving range including a gentle Face Wash to cleanse, deeply moisturise, and protect the skin, whilst the Exfoliating Cleanser prepares the skin for the closest of shaves.

The Honeybee Complex and Propolis Shave Cream is a rich shave cream that softens facial hair to achieve the perfect close shave leaving the skin feeling deeply moisturised and smooth.

The Cooling Post-Shave Balm is a lightweight moisturising lotion that helps to rejuvenate and comfort freshly shaven skin.

£75 – daimonbarber.co.uk

£23.75 – toniandguy.com

OSMO Style Laid Bare Gift Pack The well-groomed leading men don’t need to just be on your TV screen this Christmas. This versatile Style Laid Bare gift pack features three full-sized products including the ever popular Matte Clay Extreme alongside newcomers Pomade Hold and Fibre Sculpt. Perfect for delivering an ‘on point’ stylish performance from Christmas Day right through the New Year. £19.99 – osmo.uk.com

64 | BarberNV Magazine

Fudge Clean Blonde Violet Shampoo & Conditioner duo If your clients have taken advantage of the current trend for lightened locks, as worn by Aaron Ramsey and Lionel Messi over the past few months, they can keep them brighter and more vibrant for longer with this shampoo and conditioner set from Fudge. With a saving of 30% off the RRP, it’s a great chance to make a significant saving. £17.95 – fudgeprofessional.co.uk

Uppercut Gift Sets Our favourite Australian barbering brand is giving Santa a run for his money this Christmas with more gift sets than you can shake a candy cane at! We’ve picked a few of our favourites but check their website for the full range – there’s so much choice you’ll be able to Uppercut everyone you know.

Tin & Coaster Kit We adore these limited edition drinks coasters embossed with a quiffed skull and crossbones, you get four in the pack as well as the flagship Uppercut Deluxe Pomade to keep you looking sharp. £20 - uppercutdeluxe.com

Travel Kit For the jet-setter, globetrotter, or just the barber hitting convention after convention every week, you can now carry all your favourite styling products in your back pocket with mini tins of their four signature haircuts. On top of that, Uppercut has included a handy fold-out flick comb, a PU keychain, and a card wallet for your change and cards. Travel in style!

Pomade Combo Kit A must-have combo kit that contains everything you need to rock a slick-back or pomp, and keep it looking good. The shampoo and conditioner are designed to work in tandem, nourishing your scalp and leave it feeling fresh and invigorated. £35 - uppercutdeluxe.com

£50 - uppercutdeluxe.com BarberNV Magazine | 65

Robert Rix Words f rom the Wise

Having made it through to the finals of last year’s Retail Salon of the Year competition, and come away with a second place, we knew that we must be at least basically going in the right direction. We reasoned that with a bit more thought and improved planning, a tweak here and there to our procedures, we may be able to overcome the opposition and be better placed to take the title.

Robert Rix, SHR SRSB MCH MCB

FINDLAY FACTS

In the Middle Ages barbers also treated wounds and performed surgery

66 | BarberNV Magazine

O

ur plans worked and this year we were victorious. But, what about the ways in which we improved our chance of winning? These are the fundamental differences that sort out the winners from the other finalists.

We knew we were a good retailer – our customers told us so; we knew we had a good turnover with great GP percentages – our bank statements told us so. So how could we boost our sales further? Was the difference between winning and losing based purely on turnover? Was the fact that a good deal of our sales were dry goods – hardware etc rather that wet products a negative point? Was it the fact that we’re from the men’s side of the industry, where the big colour houses have little impact, presence or representation, working against us? More questions than answers!

After much soul searching we came to the conclusion that no, we were not doing it wrong, and that we were just not presenting ourselves as well as we could.

The level at which a salon participates in retailing can be dictated by many factors:• Eagerness or compulsion to earn • Available capital • Client’s demands and requests • Elevation of overall salon profile • Available space For us at The Company of Master Barbers the overarching reason for entering into retail at the level we did was quite a simple one, that of location.

The location occupied by our new shop, is without doubt, in the most prime of premiere positions in our town. We will be the first to admit that. We have a pretty unique advantage over most salons who may try to be Retail Salon of the Year, and that advantage is a truly superb trading location.

The Master Barber’s Shop is situated on the best street in town, located in a glorious and elegant Victorian arcade, resplendent with cast iron tracery, carved mahogany, marble, and glass.

From a civic perspective it would have been a disservice to our town and the wider shopping public; but from a commercial perspective it would have been a huge detriment to the potential overall success of our business not to have capitalised on our superb trading position by creating the best retail environment that we could.

We have had to plough tens upon tens of thousands of pounds into our retail stock-holding and everyone involved has had to go through a colossal learning curve to acquire the necessary technical product knowledge to deliver sound and informative sales advice to our enquiring clients.

In the past year we have moved heaven and earth to improve our retail business; not just in terms of turnover but just to be a better more professional retailer. Previously having worked from a cold start any sales are regarded as great steps forward, but working from a position of success to one of even greater success has a very strange dynamic. Not becoming complacent

with our initial success is the essence of The Master Barber’s Shop story. Week by week we have continued to track our performance, seeing the graph continuing to climb. The growth rate has not been exponential, but has steadily risen in marked steps often relating to key selling dates throughout the year. Targets were set, met, revised, and met again. Throughout the whole of the year we have pushed and pushed and pushed again.

As professional, proficient retailers we aim to focus on creating a special feeling for the client and giving them an enjoyable and memorable purchasing interlude; we want to give the client a reason for buying from our shop. The object is not just a case of shifting gear and getting the cash in the till; it’s about developing a lasting and trusting relationship. With that type of relationship in place sales will follow and loyalty will flourish.

The fundamentals of our retail business ethos are:• To achieve engagement by being polite, genuinely caring about our client’s needs, by being interested in helping and discovering those needs.

• To educate and work with the client in the capacity of a consultant.

• Tailoring the shopping experience to place the client at ease and instil confidence in the overall business. This is achieved via exciting store design and atmosphere, consistently providing great product quality, making customers feel they’re special and that they always get a great deal.

Finally realising that, things can go wrong and despite having checks and balances in place to minimise such occurrences, having adequate expertise in problem recovery.

Always helping to resolve and compensate for problems, upgrading quality and ensuring complete client satisfaction.

As a good retailer we know that a diverse product range can provided a unique shopping experience. Quality retailers add value for the customer enabling them

to make informed choice comparisons between the complimentary or alternative products that are available. Thanks to the Hair Council, for us as Registered Barbers, there is a huge inference of trust for the client to rely upon.

We have always tried to offer a degree of exclusivity thus ensuring that our competitors cannot match us.

In our trusted role we provide an honest appraisal on different items within a specific product group thereby hopefully enhancing client loyalty and as a by-product elevating our overall profile in the client’s eyes, after all we are Retail Salon of the Year and are rightly proud of the title.

Until next time, keep snipping and clipping Robert Rix SHR SRSB MCH MCB. BarberNV Magazine | 67

Remember, remember, November’s now Movember!

FINDLAY FACTS

The word barber comes from the Latin word “Barba” meaning beard

W

hat started as 30 guys in Australia deciding to bring moustaches back into fashion over a beer is now a global sensation, with over five million ‘Mo Bros’ raising over £443m for men’s health issues since 2003.

More than anyone, the barbering community has embraced it with both hands, and many moustaches! Free shaves have become an established part of many barbershops as participants clear their face before the start of the month – and some even shave them off free of charge at the end of Movember, although hopefully a good percentage embrace the hirsute life.

Spreading the word is just as important as raising money and plenty of top brands have jumped on the bandwagon, raising awareness and getting more people involved than ever.

Here’s a roundup of some of the best.

CAPTAIN FAWCETT KENT BRUSHES The Captain is doing his part for the cause, supporting it in two ways: one by making a fantastic moustache wax that keeps your Movember facial hair in peak condition, and secondly, by giving £1 from every jar of that moustache wax sold during November to the Movember Foundation. A true Captain and leader of men! Visit captainfawcett.com to get yours.

Keep your hairy hero as tidy as can be with the official Movember moustache comb from Kent Brushes. So whether you’ve gone handlebar, walrus, or Fu Manchu, there’s no reason to not look your absolute best, and with £2 from each sale going to the Movember Foundation you’ll be doing your bit for a worthy cause.

Pall Mall Barbers Now celebrating its 120th year of helping men look fantastic, no one knows more about what guys need than Pall Mall Barbers. They’re offering free moustache trims to any Mo Bros visiting their stores for a haircut throughout November so if you’re in London and taking part in Movember it’s a great way to stay dapper.

COMPETITIONS WAHL

Now you’ve got your moustache in tip-top shape, it’s time to snap a selfie and win yourself some fine barbering equipment! Clipper giants Wahl are giving away one of their 5 Star Detailer Trimmers and a Lithium Pro Trimmer to two lucky winners that show off their best Movember facial hair! Simply send a snap to Wahl through either the @ artofwahl Instagram page, the Wahl UK Facebook page, or the @WahlNationUK Twitter page to be in a with a chance of this fantastic prize.

68 | BarberNV Magazine

Reuzel

#MoMadness: Our favourite Dutch scumbags are encouraging their followers to post funny or interesting selfies with their fresh facial fuzz and they’re rewarding them with signed Schorem and Reuzel goodies! They have a weird and wacky following so as you can imagine the result is some interesting selfies to say the least!

Just tag @ReuzelUK and mention #MoMadness and #Reuzel to take part, or just follow the hashtag to check out the splendiferous entries so far.

STOP MEN DYING TOO YOUNG MOVEMBER.COM

FREEDOM barberS Justin Williams has spent years in prison… and he’s loved every minute of it. educator

Justin Williams

B

arberNV regularly highlights barbering educators but rarely, if ever, have they experienced the prospect of teaching people locked away from society, something Justin does every day. As one of London’s foremost prison barbers, he has experience in Pentonville, Wandsworth, Holloway, Feltham, and currently Thameside, helping to craft the current system of education for wannabe barbers and was even part of the team that designed the flagship London prison barbershop at Wormwood Scrubs.

It was a big departure from Justin’s previous life that saw him jet around the world, including spells in Paris and Sydney, as a session stylist for both men and women for almost three decades. With years of experience in salon as well as doing make-up, Justin excelled at everything he put his mind to… but this was something else.

The challenges of educating prisoners go far beyond that of a normal barbershop, but they’re also what makes it so rewarding, Justin tells us.

“We’re on the back foot right from the start as we don’t have the same resources, we don’t have computers, they can’t take books to their cells to read and learn from, they’re not allowed to shave in prisons – it’s another thing that they have to learn themselves outside so that’s where they fall down.

“The guys have poor literacy skills, no education, and they’re in there trying to help themselves while learning to cut hair but they

also have to learn all the soft skills that come with it: learning to work in a group, learning to wait to speak, learning to work together and help each other. These are things these guys have never done.

“They can see their own talent developing and that’s what hooks them in, and watching that happen is amazing.”

While Justin speaks of educating prisoners with a talent for barbering and who are keen to make it their career when they are released, they face even more problems once they’re on the outside.

“The missing link is a realistic working situation for guys that come out. In prison I give a Level 2 City & Guilds qualification, then when you come out you need to do a six month period in a barbershop working with real clients, dealing with real money in a real commercial salon, that’s what I tell these guys.

But for them to approach someone and say can I get a job – because on their certificate it says where they got it – if they don’t want to tell people they’ve come out of prison or they learnt it in prison it immediately puts them on the back foot.”

That’s what prompted Justin to come up with his idea for a halfway house for released prisoners.

He explains: “I want to open a shop on the outside like what Jamie Oliver did [with his restaurant FIFTEEN], employing ex-offenders so they can come from prison with whatever qualifications they have, let them finish it

properly, get their NVQ, get their six months experience and get them ready to do it on their own.

“We’re also looking at getting NEET [Not in Education, Employment, or Training] kids from the area who are heading towards prison and try and steer them away from it. Have the ex-prisoners there as mentors to act in a positive way and put them off going to prison so that will remove the element of cool. I definitely want it to be about those with the experience mentoring those who haven’t, engaging them from a peer level. I will be there to guide everyone but it’s about getting them to work with one another and learn from each other.”

It’s become a passion project for Justin who continues to teach in prisons while he undertakes the grant-applications and meetings necessary to try and find funding to support his idea but it’s now at the stage of becoming a reality.

If you’d like to help Justin give released prisoners a chance at making a real start in a worthwhile career and reduce reoffending rates for those involved, he’s keen to speak to anyone that can help with supplying the kit needed to get the barbershop off the ground.

Justin is a truly inspirational figure who wants to make a difference in his local community of Hackney through barbering and if you think you can play a part then please email him at justinpwilliams7@icloud.com. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

BarberNV Magazine | 69

Education. Education. Education.

Tony Blair’s famous campaign speech helped him become Prime Minister and every barber could do a lot worse than heed his words. No matter how good you are, or how good you think you are, you never stop learning. Whether you’ve just been crowned Barber of the Year or if you’ve just taken your first steps in the barbershop, there’s options out there to help you become the best barber you can be.

Let us run you through a few of your options: The Foss Academy: The cream of the crop. An elite finishing school for barbers who want to maximise their income and go to the next level of barbering. A course at The Foss Academy in London can be the difference between a barber being well renowned in his local area as the best of the best to being booked internationally as an educator. The brainchild of Chris Foster, Creative Director at The Refinery in Mayfair and The Harrods Barbershop, what you learn at The Foss Academy goes well beyond how to cut hair, it’s a valuable lesson in how to market yourself, how to draw attention to what you can do, and how to position yourself as an expert in your industry. Take the leap. fossacademy.co.uk

Sid Sottung Academy: As an educator for almost two decades for leading brands like Vidal Sassoon, Fudge, and many more, not many people have a CV like Sid Sottung. Launching his own academy was always Sid’s dream and now it’s regarded as one of the finest in wet shaving and barber training. Focusing on fast track courses that cover everything from Introduction to Barbering to Advanced Barbering, Sid’s courses are short but sweet, cramming in a wealth of knowledge and leaving you with the confidence to take on new challenges. sidsottungacademy.com

Westrow Academy: With their state of the art academy in Yorkshire, Westrow have set the standard for education in northern England. For beginners their NVQ in barbering is one of the most sought after in the industry while they also offer private barbering courses at the academy. For those of you looking to expand your skillset, Westrow’s contemporary and advanced barbering courses on behalf of L’Oreal Professionnel at its London, Manchester, Leeds, Belfast, and Scottish academies, are the perfect opportunity to gain knowledge in men’s hairdressing wherever you’re from in the UK. A oneday course can completely change your barbering outlook. westrowhair.com

Great British Barber Bash: As well as hosting the most popular and vibrant barbering social events, the Great British Barber Bash team are making a name for themselves with their education workshops up and down the UK. Featuring the likes of the Alan and Reece Beak of Ruger, Neal Toner and Micky Graham of JFH, travelling to salons and barbers from Aberdeen to London, it’s a one of a kind chance to get top barbers in your shop teaching your staff and other keen students the skills that took them to the top. greatbritishbarberbash.co.uk

70 | BarberNV Magazine

Soften, hydrate and nourish facial hair and skin A suite of all natural beard products designed to support the skin’s native function.

• • • •

Replenishes essential skin nutrients and boosts defences Intensely hydrates facial hair and the skin beneath Available in a variety of glorious scents and scent free Natural UVF protection

As Retail Salon of the year 2�16 we are continually presented with new product offerings. The range of FineFettle products is the best we have seen for some time. In particular, the beard conditioner is an absolutely superb product, which sells very well"

Try our barber intro pack for £99.99 Which includes: 8 x 50ml Hydrating Beard Conditioners A modest natural hold, helping to keep skin moisturised and facial hair soft.

8 x 30ml Beard Oil Helps replenish nutrients & oils needed for healthy facial hair.

8 x 20ml Moustache Wax Conditions as well as it holds.

Includes a FineFettle display unit www.finefettlegrooming.com /tradewholesale or call 020 3608 6178

- Robert Rix. The Company of Master Barbers

www.finefettlegrooming.com Standard trade price for the intro pack is £199.99. Some exclusions may apply; see website for details. Offer expires 31st January 2017.

HAND-MADE ARTISAN LEATHER APRONS FOR BARBERS YOUR APRON FOR A LIFETIME! Are you looking to give your business an edge over your competitors?

Our range of hand-crafted multi-purpose Leather aprons unlike any others you will have seen. Personalisation service available!

SAKURA NO1 BEST SELLER AT THE BARBERBASH

Stylish, comfortable and ready for action!

MODEL SHOWN DaMASCUS SUPER SLICE 6”

CALL US: 08000467430 / 07792419101 www.artisan-aprons.co.uk BarberNV Magazine | 71

Step-by-step guide

Step 1

Step 2

The beginning...

Spray LSB Preptonic to prepare the hair before the haircut.

Step 6 Take vertical sections on the back and sides maintaining the round shape.

Making sure you cut over your fingers.

Step 10 Use your 1 1/2 guard.

Ideal for men with thinning hair, this cut from Sid Sottung and Lock, Stock and Barrel gives volume and texture to a professional yet casual look.

72 | BarberNV Magazine

Step 14 Use point cutting technique for the top section.

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Cut a rounded profile section.

Take sections across the head using your profile section as a guide. Maintain the round shape.

Maintain a shorter fringe to balance the receding areas.

Step 7

Step 8

Step 9

Apply LSB thickening lotion then dry the hair.

Using Andis ProAlloy clippers, use your number 4 guard and cut your guide on the sides first.

Use your 2 1/2 guard below the guide.

Step 11

Step 12

Step 13

Then proceed to use the clipper over comb to blend.

Use your Andis trimmers to refine the outline.

Use scissor over comb method to refine the shape.

Step 15

Step 16

Step 17

Refine the fringe.

Apply LSB Volume powder.

The finished look is simple but fashionsble, whether st work or out on the town.

BarberNV Magazine | 73

DIARY OF A 32 YEAR OLD JUNIOR Words By Marc Ross

I

f someone was to ask the question a year ago if I would consider training to become a barber, the answer would have been straight up no! Well to their face, however, secretly inside I had been wanting to do it for quite some time. I will almost go as far as to say it was when I attended Salon International 2015. I spent the entire weekend in awe watching some of the most talented guys and gals do what they do best and that is to create art.

To many people, a haircut is what you get done when you want to change your appearance or update your look or feel a bit better about yourself. Do you ever stop and think about the journey that person cutting your hair has been on to get to a point where they are standing behind you in a position of trust? They are the person that is going to make you walk out that door feeling like you could give David Beckham a run for his money. They are the person that is going to give you the confidence to ask any girl or guy out or give you the ‘likes’ on Facebook when you upload that updated pic straight from the barbers with fifteen hashtags.

Years of commitment, combined with hard work, disappointments, and more than likely living in an overdraft has gone into their journey of becoming the best and for many that’s only the beginning.

Watching the skills and the passion that some of these barbers had at Salon International made me stand up and respect them. They had passion, they had skill combined with pure talent but they

Before Cut

74 | BarberNV Magazine

could create works of art. Everything from the hair, the make-up, styling and staging meticulously thought through to create an overall look to capture the audience’s attention in itself is a skill. It was at that moment, I turned to my mate and said, “I want to do that.”

There were however a few things that stood against me doing it initially. Firstly my age. I’m in my 30s, I thought shit… I will be picking up my bus pass by the time I can do this properly. I will also have to give up my job, but most importantly the thing that stood against me the most was my pride. I am not going to sit and say that at times, my ego didn’t take over and that my mind raced with the thoughts of what will people think about me sweeping up hair and making cups of tea at 32-years old. Will I need to wash hair? Standing behind the wash basin asking the question “Going any holidays this year?” Knowing that we are already into November or asking “Up to much this weekend?”

It is about so much more than that for me.

It’s about doing something that I have been talking about, pestering people about, and wanting to do for some time .It is about learning a new skill that pushes me out of my comfort zone, yet at the same time being creative. Most importantly, it’s about having an end goal, ironically where the journey into barbering started for me; a stage that weekend at Salon International.

That same weekend at Salon International, I met a lot of barbers and influencers within the barbering industry. Guys like Adam

Sloan, Larry the Barber Man, Simon Shaw to name a few, but one man that impressed me the most was the guy on this month’s front cover (not the Jesus lookalike) but Alan Findlay from Rebel Rebel. I spent that weekend pestering him, trying to get as much information about his life story and why he got into barbering to see if it was in some way similar to why I wanted to get into it. I found out so much about his career, his passion and his plans for the future, including collaborations.

A weekend you ask? To be fair, the guy has been cutting hair for 30 years so we only really scratched the surface, however I did leave London with an insight into some of the many achievements that he has under his trilby, I mean belt!

Fast forward a year and a lot of discussions in between, Alan has agreed to train me at his new barbers recently opened in Finnieston, Glasgow. Needless to say, I did not need to think about it and that same day I handed in my notice to my work and I guess the new chapter in my life began from there. The real question is: Will I be any good at it?

With this in mind, I have decided to keep a diary over the next year of what I am doing and how I am getting on which will include some images of my haircuts, events I’m attending and people that I meet along the way. Each edition of BarberNV, I will give you a bit of an insight into my training and my experience whilst at Rebel Rebel. If the first month is anything to go bye, I am sure it will be an exciting year ahead!

Month #1 - basics When I asked Alan about training and practicing on Sally heads, his response to me was: “Marc, were not using Sally heads, so make sure you have models each week” What? I am going to be training on real people, real clients? What if I mess it up, what if I chops someone’s ear off or accidentally shave one of their eyebrows?

These are all the things that were going through my mind at the beginning.

Thankfully none of this has happened and as each week has gone by I am starting to pick up a lot from Alan, but also all of the other barbers and staff at Rebel Rebel.

What a helpful lot they are. The place is like a production line, one in one out, every chair is filled all day, which can only mean two things: a lot of hair to be washed and swept up and a lot of cups of tea to be made? The complete opposite in fact. Of course there is a part of my day where I am having to wash hair and sweep the floors , but this has been so much more hands on, to the point that over the last month I have had a lot of sleepless nights thinking how shit I am. I am never going to be able to do this.

Each week, I have to bring in models for

a short back and sides. I need to do 30 of these bad boys before I can even consider a fade. I literally stand there and think of the amount of work that goes into even a short back and sides. The positioning of my body, my hand, the sectioning of the hair, the movement and flow when using the clippers, the concentration, and always having a comb in one hand.

It has to be perfect starting from one side before moving around the head, then when you’re happy, change your guard and the process starts again and again, constantly checking that it’s even, balanced and not patchy. There has been times that I thought maybe I don’t have the patience for this: “Marc don’t move round until you have finished and are happy with the bit you’re at.” This is what I heard when training for my first few cuts. My problem was I was trigger happy with that clipper trying to get it done in 30 minutes. Now I realise it’s about being slow, getting the skills and perfecting those skills, and the speed will come.

Then there is the scissors and I am not going to lie, I nearly took my mate’s eye out, trying to hold them whilst sectioning

his hair. The last thing I want is anyone leaving in an ambulance! I do get carried away thinking I am in a scene from Edward Scissorhands at times. A bit more confident than I actually am. I have literally been watching everyone that works at Rebel Rebel. They will be sick listening to me asking questions by the end of this!

What are you doing there? Why is it done that way? Can you show me this? Can you show me that?

It really has been a busy month with theopening of the new Rebel Rebel Finnieston and the launch night. They sure know how to put on a party and there was not an empty glass the entire night. At one point I thought I was in a nightclub the DJ was so good.

I have also worked with Alan on the front cover and editorial for this month’s edition of BarberNV, putting the concept together and styling the shoot. I am sure you will agree, the end result is pretty amazing!

I am going to leave you with a cheeky wee picture of a cut with one of my models. No it’s not James Arthur, but our very own Ross from BarberNV.

After Cut

BarberNV Magazine | 75

TrainingNV.

nov/december 2016 Training Dates Date

Duration Course

Company/School

Location

7th Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Fade

Wahl Academy

Newton Abbot £200.00

01626 354 386

7th Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Shave

Wahl Academy

Northampton

£200.00

01604 721 472

7th Nov

2 Days

Solid Foundation Classic

Wahl Academy

Hayes

£300.00

020 8573 3941

8th Nov

2 Days

Solid Foundation Classic

Wahl Academy

Birmingham

£300.00

0121 331 2000

14th Nov

2 Days

Solid Foundation Classic

Wahl Academy

Limerick

£300.00

353 61 294 580

14th Nov

1 Day

One Day Shaving Course

Joseph Lanzante Training

Acctington

£195.00

01254 427 575

14th Nov

2 Days

Creative Advanced Gents

Wahl Academy

Cork

£300.00

353 21 427 6199

14th Nov

4 Days

Four Day Refresher Course

Joseph Lanzante Training

Acctington

£795.00

01254 427 575

14th Nov

2 Days

Specialist: The Fade

Wahl Academy

Leeds

£200.00

0113 245 7439

15th Nov

5 Days

Advanced Barbering

Sid Sottung Academy

Nottingham

£1,499.00

0115 837 3401

20th Nov

1 Day

Hot Towel Shaving

Paul Meeking Hair Academy

Belfast

£150.00

028 9020 0505

21st Nov

1 Day

An Evening with Simon Shaw

Wahl Academy

Hull

POA

01482 32679

21nd Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Shave

Wahl Academy

Brighton

£200.00

01273 900111

22nd Nov

2 Days

Creative Advanced Gents

Wahl Academy

Birmingham

£300.00

0121 331 2000

24th Nov

2 Days

Creative Advanced Gents

Wahl Academy

Bristol

£300.00

0117 9517344

24th Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Fade

Wahl Academy

Bournemouth

£200.00

01202 763 442

24th Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Shave

Wahl Academy

Warwick

£200.00

01926 332121

28th Nov

2 Days

Creative Advanced Gents

Wahl Academy

Exeter

£300.00

01392 361 800

28th Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Shave

Wahl Academy

Glasgow

£100.00

01415 524 505

29th Nov

2 Days

Creative Advanced Gents

Wahl Academy

Plymouth

£300.00

01752 696248

29th Nov

2 Days

Wet Shaving

Sid Sottung Academy

Nottingham

£499.00

0115 837 3501

29th Nov

1 Day

Specialist: The Shave

Wahl Academy

Exeter

£200.00

01392 361 800

5th Dec

1 Day

Specialist: The Shave

Wahl Academy

Leeds

£200.00

0113 245 7439

11th Dec

2 Days

Wet Shaving

Sid Sottung Academy

Nottingham

£499.00

0115 837 3401

12th Dec

2 Days

Solid Foundation

Wahl Academy

Norwich

£300.00

01603 630747

13th Dec

5 Days

Intensive Barbering

Sid Sottung Academy

Nottingham

£1,199.00

0115 837 2401

19th Dec

5 Days

Intensive Barbering

Sid Sottung Academy

Nottingham

£1,199.00

0115 837 2401

76 | BarberNV Magazine

Cost

Contact

®

Barber Aprons CHOCOLATE BROWN

DENIM BLUE

DARK CHARCOAL

DESERT SAND

WWW.BARBERPRO.COM

01273 878 111

BARBERPROUK

AVAILABLE THROUGH BARBER PRO AND ALL LEADING WHOLESALERS IMAGE CREDIT: DINO, THE BARBERS MILL HILL

BarberNV Magazine | 77

working with

ENVY COVENT GARDEN “We teamed up with RemMen who provided all the advice and product knowledge we needed. The atmosphere we have created for Envy is perfectly complemented by the Emperor Select Barbers Chairs offering a luxury feel, style and comfort.” – Sheriff Mehmet Director

sales@rem.co.uk 78 | BarberNV Magazine

www.rem.co.uk

01282 619977