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Staying educated helps hairdressers maintain a high standard of service, ensuring client trust and career success. It's important to know why you should keep educated in your field, where you can find these education materials and what things you as a professional should be learning to get the most from your business and so your clients get the best version of you.
Why Education is Essential for Hairdressers:
What to Learn and Where to Find It
Why Is It Important to Stay Educated?
It’s important for hairdressers to stay up to date with their education for several reasons:
New Techniques and Tools: Hairdressing tools and technologies continuously evolve. Keeping up with training ensures hairdressers can efficiently use new tools (like advanced shears, clippers, or hair colour technology) and techniques.
Client Satisfaction: Clients are often informed and expect their stylists to provide up-to-date services. Staying educated allows hairdressers to meet client expectations and maintain a competitive edge.
Product Knowledge: Haircare products constantly evolve with new ingredients and formulations. Staying current helps hairdressers recommend the best products for clients’ needs, whether it’s for healthy hair, colouring, or styling.
Health and Safety: Ongoing education ensures that hairdressers are aware of the latest safety standards, hygiene practices, and regulations, which is critical for preventing infections, allergic reactions, and other health concerns.
Professional Growth: Continued education enables hairdressers to expand their skill set, improving job opportunities, attracting more clients, and allowing for career advancement or specialisation.
Licensing and Certification: In many regions, hairstylists need to maintain their licenses through continued education. This ensures they are legally compliant and able to continue working.
Trends and Styles: Fashion trends in hair change frequently. Clients expect hairdressers to know the latest techniques, styles, and products, whether it's balayage, textured cuts, or modern blowouts.
New Techniques and Tools: Hairdressing tools and technologies continuously evolve. Keeping up with training ensures hairdressers can efficiently use new tools (like advanced shears, clippers, or hair colour technology) and techniques.
Client Satisfaction: Clients are often informed and expect their stylists to provide up-to-date services. Staying educated allows hairdressers to meet client expectations and maintain a competitive edge.
Product Knowledge: Haircare products constantly evolve with new ingredients and formulations. Staying current helps hairdressers recommend the best products for clients’ needs, whether it’s for healthy hair, colouring, or styling.
Health and Safety: Ongoing education ensures that hairdressers are aware of the latest safety standards, hygiene practices, and regulations, which is critical for preventing infections, allergic reactions, and other health concerns.
Professional Growth: Continued education enables hairdressers to expand their skill set, improving job opportunities, attracting more clients, and allowing for career advancement or specialisation.
Licensing and Certification: In many regions, hairstylists need to maintain their licenses through continued education. This ensures they are legally compliant and able to continue working.
What Should You Be Learning?
Hairdressers should continuously learn a wide range of skills and knowledge to stay competitive and provide excellent service. By continuing to learn in these areas, hairdressers can stay ahead of trends and offer better, more tailored services to their clients. Some key areas include:
Cutting Techniques: New haircutting trends and precision techniques, including advanced layering, texturising, and razor cutting methods.
Colouring Techniques: Staying updated on hair colouring trends like balayage, ombré, root smudging, and colour corrections, as well as the latest colour formulations and application methods.
Styling and Finishing: Mastering up-to-date styling trends for events or everyday wear, such as braiding, blowouts, and creative styling for various hair types and textures.
Texture Services: Techniques for managing curly, wavy, or textured hair, including perming, relaxing, and smoothing treatments like keratin or Brazilian blowouts.
Product Knowledge: Staying informed about new hair care products, ingredients, and tools to recommend the best options for hair health and styling.
Hair Health and Scalp Care: Understanding treatments for common scalp issues, hair loss prevention, and maintaining healthy hair through conditioning treatments or scalp therapies.
Client Communication and Consultation Skills: Improving consultation techniques to understand clients' needs, build trust, and deliver the best possible results.
Health and Safety Protocols: Keeping up with hygiene practices, chemical handling, and any regulatory changes related to safety in salons.
Business and Marketing Skills: Learning how to attract new clients, build a personal brand, manage a salon business, and utilise social media for marketing.
Diversity in Haircare: Training in culturally diverse hair types, techniques for working with natural or textured hair, and services for all hair types and ethnicities.
Where Can You Find Education?
Hairdressers have various resources for finding education material to stay updated and enhance their skills. By leveraging these resources, hairdressers can continually improve their skills and stay at the forefront of the industry. You can find education material in places such as:
Professional Organisations: Organisations like the National Hairdressers’ and Beauty Federation (NHBF), The Freelance Hairdressers Association (The FHA) and The Hair and Barber Council often offer workshops, webinars, and certification programs. Or their websites are very useful for ongoing support.
Industry Conferences and Trade Shows: Industry and Trade events are an opportunity to learn from top professionals, discover new products, and attend hands-on workshops.
Online Courses and Webinars: Websites like NHBF, or specific beauty industry platforms like Salon Success or L’Oréal Education offer online courses on various hairdressing topics.
Salon and Product Brand Training: Many professional product lines, such as Matrix, Wella, or Osmo, offer training sessions, workshops, and online resources for their products and techniques.
YouTube and Social Media: There are numerous hairdressers and industry experts who share tutorials, tips, and trends on platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.
Local Beauty Schools and Colleges: Many beauty schools offer continuing education classes and workshops for licensed professionals.
Mentorship and Networking: Connecting with experienced mentors or joining professional networks and forums can provide valuable insights and opportunities for learning.
Salons and Workshops: Local salons often host guest educators and workshops to teach new techniques or trends.
YouTube and Social Media: There are numerous hairdressers and industry experts who share tutorials, tips, and trends on platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.
Local Beauty Schools and Colleges: Many beauty schools offer continuing education classes and workshops for licensed professionals.
Mentorship and Networking: Connecting with experienced mentors or joining professional networks and forums can provide valuable insights and opportunities for learning.
Salons and Workshops: Local salons often host guest educators and workshops to teach new techniques or trends.
This might seem overwhelming, especially if you're new to the industry. However, ongoing education is key for maintaining your professionalism and keeping your business thriving. While much of your learning will come from hands-on experience and on-the-job training, it's also important to revisit the basics and fill in any gaps you might have missed along the way.