Colour Forecast Autumn/Winter 2017

“EVERYONE IN OUR industry will recognise the colour
pandemic we are in. Hundreds of overly retouched Instagram
images flood our clients’ social media, leaving us with a queue
of potential business with hopelessly unrealistic expectations.
Colourists have become ‘famous’ on Instagram for all-day
transformations, leading thousands of regular hairdressers
across the world to experience a confidence crisis, because they
all work on commercial timings and cannot possibly compete.
Colours are no longer created for the client and there is no
thought for maintenance or hair condition, but simply to create
an image with maximum ‘likes’. The very reason we have an
industry is our clients, but they are being forgotten.
“Scrolling down Instagram, it might feel that the colouring
industry is rising, but it’s far from true. Underneath each
of these ‘perfect’ images are millions of colourists across
the world who are losing confidence in their own abilities.
They represent how the gap between high paid and regular
colourists is widening to a dangerous degree, and how clients
are losing faith in hairdressers’ abilities. But saddest of all –
hairdressers are losing faith in themselves.
“So how has this happened? When a colourist is especially
talented (and these guys are, there is no doubt about that),
they can often raise their prices again and again (who
wouldn’t, right?). The higher they charge, the more time they
can give a client. This means that before long, what they
can achieve in ‘one appointment’ will now will far outweigh
what is achievable on the average hairdresser’s commercial
timings. These images appear online without information of
time or cost, generating even more clients with even more
money, meaning they can give (you’ve guessed it) more time.
“Clients bring these videos and images to their local salon
and get confused and even angry when they discover their
hairdresser can’t create the same look in their 45-minute
Saturday appointment. And who can blame them? How are
they to know any different? I can tell you honestly that during
the opening of Not Another Salon, I also felt this pressure to
compete with extreme content to prove my worth. But let me
be transparent; almost a year on, the hair condition of those
clients is questionable. I know colour additives make us feel
invincible but I assure you, we are not. Bleach is a damaging
chemical that deteriorates hair over time. It rots it from the
inside. No, you won’t hear any product company saying that,
but I’m not a product company – I’m a fellow hairdresser
struggling with what is happening, just like you.
“Now let’s talk about the images. We all know a huge
percentage of these images are retouched and I’m not here
to judge those that do. In this ‘filtered Instagram’ era, hiding
our flaws is well and truly part of our culture. But what I
need to bring to the front of these people’s minds is while
that action might elevate their career, it is severely damaging
the industry in the long term. It leads to more hairdressers
needing to compete by putting up more extreme images
without explanations, which in turn makes it harder and
harder for the industry… the cycle continues.
“So, what should we do? I have set up Not Another
Academy to deal with unrealistic expectations and give
colourists confidence again. As an educator, I am lucky to
be one of those leading the industry, so I believe I have a
responsibility to help it and not hold it back for the sake of my
ego. My courses and images are NOT an opportunity to show
off, but to help you feel safe in the knowledge you are not
alone and that we can fight this together.
“Now what can you do? First, you need to stop accepting
this is out of your control and realise that it is you who decides
who is leading our industry. I refuse to contribute to the mess
that we are in and I urge you to do the same. AVOID posting
or reposting an extreme image if you can, but if you do, make
sure you give a full explanation and hashtag #honestcolourist.
Most importantly of all, at every opportunity educate your
clients online about ‘the truth’ of modern colouring.
“Let’s help each other; think about the collective and not
just ourselves. As hairdressers, we make up one per cent of
the working population – together we are an army. We can
saturate social media with the truth that will make every day
of our lives easier. We CAN change this, one image at a time.”
SEE MORE Watch Sophia’s video
on creativeheadmag.com/education
Colour Forecast 37