WAHL at SALON INTERNATIONAL

COPIED

4 mins

WAHL at SALON INTERNATIONAL

We caught up with Simon Shaw, Director of Education EMEA at Wahl, to discuss Wahl’s ambassador culture and why Salon International remains essential to the hair and barbering industry

ZANEAR ALI AT SALON INTERNATIONAL 2025

You’ve recently taken on a new role at Wahl. Can you tell us a little about it?

I’m now Director of Education for the EMEA region, which covers 62 countries, from the UK and Europe to South Africa and the Middle East. I’m responsible for the day-to-day education across those regions. When it comes to shows like Salon International, my job is to shape the concept and the ideas behind them, from choosing the team who will be on stage to deciding what themes and products we’re presenting.

With such a global role, do international trends influence the programme you create?

I’m lucky because I don’t try to do that myself. I’ve got a great team working alongside me, people like Dean Gleeson, Stacey Wright, James Parr, and internationally Pascal Spies and others. I trust their judgement and we work together on the ideas and concepts before bringing them together into the final show. Every show we do has a name and a theme, things like Rock Star, Pop Star or Frequency. For example, Frequency is all about hairstyles influenced by music. We build the visuals, the videos and the backdrop around that theme, and then the artist on stage might cut a style inspired by a favourite pop star from that era. It mixes culture, music and our profession together.

You mentioned your ambassadors. How important are they to the brand?

They’re the blood - I’m just the pump. They all bring different personalities and represent different areas of barbering. Some have a strong hairdressing background, some are very technical, some work in celebrity or session environments, and others are incredible educators behind the scenes. It’s a real mix, and I couldn’t do my job without them.

You’re known for choosing ambassadors very carefully. What do you look for?

It’s not an easy process. We’ll watch people for up to 12 months before they even get close. We’ll give them tests and little tasks, and sometimes we’ll go and watch them without them knowing. Even small things tell you a lot about someone’s character. I might take them out for food just to see how they are, how they behave, what they order. It sounds simple, but it gives you an insight into the person. For me it’s not about the money, it’s about character. I travel with these people. We’ll be on trains, in cars, on planes together. Next week for example there’s four of us heading to Chicago. You’re spending seven hours together on a flight, so you’ve got to know you can work well together.

Ambassadors are also very visible at shows. What do you expect from them in that environment?

They get swarmed at shows, and that’s part of the job. The day people stop asking you for a photograph is the day you’re in trouble. When we travel to places like India or Malaysia you can spend an hour or two after a show just taking photos and talking with barbers and hairdressers who’ve come to watch. That’s really important. Even if you’re tired, you talk to people politely. If you don’t have the answer there and then, you say, “I’m shattered, but can I take your email and come back to you?” That means a lot more than brushing someone off.

SIMON SHAW AND THE WAHL ARTISTIC TEAM UK AT SALON INTERNATIONAL 2025

This year Wahl will be the first sponsor of the Modern Barber stage at Salon International. What does that mean for the brand?

We always want to defend the number one position, and that gets harder every year. When I started 26 years ago there were only a couple of brands in the space, now there are loads and the competition is strong. So being the main sponsor of the Modern Barber stage is really important for us. Salon International is a big event and that partnership shows we’re leading that side of the industry there.

Wahl has been a staple at Salon International for many years. Why keep returning?

Two things really. First, it’s still the number one show. The statistics show it brings the biggest professional audience in the UK, so we need to be there. Secondly, while so much is moving digital, the industry still values print and face-to-face events. You deliver the audience and the venue, and we deliver the goods on stage.

How involved are the ambassadors in preparing for the show itself?

Massively involved. People like Stacey and Dean will help select who appears on stage. It’s not easy when you’ve got around 18 ambassadors and only five chairs on stage at a time – sometimes you have to tell people they’re not doing Salon that year. We’ll usually have eight or nine there across the weekend. They help organise schedules, plan the shows and handle everything from models and styling to make-up and production.

My job is to bring everyone together; the team talks, the preparation, getting everyone ready. One year we gave everyone personalised caps showing how many Salon International appearances they’d done. Another year we asked their families and friends to send messages about how proud they were of them. That one was emotional – there were a few tears in the room.

Finally, what’s the mission for Wahl this year?

We want everything we do to be world-class. When we exhibit, we bring our very best products and our very best ambassadors. The stand should look immaculate, the presentations should be fantastic and the audience should be entertained. Whether someone is already a customer or just walking past, I want them to leave thinking, “That Wahl show looked good.”