Fashion / Bloggs Salons
Innovative ideas at Bloggs Salons
Bloggs Salons owner Joe Hemmings is one of the most positive and forward-thinking people you could meet. After a succession of nominations in high-brow events including the L’Oreal Colour Trophy and becoming a finalist for Hairdressers of the Year at the Bristol Life Awards, Joe remains extremely chipper about being nominated, even if he didn’t come home with the winning golden ticket.
“If you don’t win it makes you re-evaluate and use it as a learning curve and push things to the next level,” he grins. “I don’t like to get down about not winning – I enter because I love it and enjoy the competition. It’s quite exciting. It inspires you to be more creative on the shop floor and push the boundaries a little, to encourage the team at Bloggs and make it more fun and a fresh way to work.”
Bloggs have two salons in Bristol – one on Gloucester Road and one on the Harbourside
With this positive outlook on life, Joe, who runs two busy salons on Gloucester Road and on the Harbourside, is all about supporting his team and young people in the industry. “I want to involve the people I work with and create a brand and a movement,” he says. “I want them to look forward to coming to work, to inspire each other and help each other out. I want everyone to have their own career path. There are some great young hairdressers out there, and I want to help them head in the right direction and give them opportunities.”
is needed now More than ever
With apprenticeship schemes making a comeback over the past few years, young people are again being encouraged to learn a trade, which is great if they are supported but there is still a stigma attached to apprenticeship schemes. As a subject of the questionable 1990’s Youth Training Scheme myself, I wonder is there still a risk of young people becoming exploited?
“It’s shocking when people treat their apprentices badly,” replies Joe, “paying them minimum wage and making them scrub the floor and clean the toilets. They are there to learn and the best way for an apprentice to learn is on the salon floor, where they can interact with clients and learn to cut, colour and blow dry hair.”
“We are always looking for the next batch of stylists to come through,” continues Joe. “I have a great team who are loyal and hardworking and the younger stylists coming in keep things fresh and challenge us to move on to the next level. If you have no new or younger people coming in, you remain stagnant. When I was younger, I was given a great training opportunity and was set up for life. I want to see that happening from the other side and give others the same opportunity.”
A haircut created by Hannah Tovey for Bloggs Salons in the finals of the L’Oreal Colour Trophy for the Mens Image Award
Recognising the importance of staying ahead of the curve and keeping things fresh within the Bristol hair industry, the team at Bloggs constantly upping their skills when training opportunities arise. The Harbourside shop is the only hairdressers in Bristol to be named a L’Oreal Portfolio Salon, and is also home to the South West Education Centre, where hairstylists can attend monthly courses to update their skill set.
As part of Bristol’s flowing creative industry, how do the Bloggs team incorporate the latest hair trends into the Bristol style? “Bristol is unique,” says Joe, “it’s much more independent and understated, in a relaxed way. People in Bristol carry off styles that you can wear all day, every day and it still looks great! Easy to manage hairstyles are common here, and styles that you can change up for a night out.
“Things are changing in our industry,” he continues. “Hairstyles reflect our lifestyles: people haven’t got time to spend hours doing their hair and it needs to be low maintenance. Bristol is so busy, people want hairstyles that need minimal styling, so they can add some texture and change the look up a bit, and then they go out again!”
So, what are the next big hair trends for 2018? “This is the year of the bowl haircut,” Joe says confidently. “There is a boom again of pastel colours with lilac being the colour of the year, alongside pink. I think we are going to see a lot more shorter hairstyles coming through this year for women and men, either really short crops or really long hair with waves and pastel colours. We’ll also see a lot of copper bobs and short blonde haircuts with a bit of pink, lilac or blue mixed in, moving away from the icy white and silver blonde looks from the past few years.
“We are seeing a lot more older women embracing their natural hair colour too – they are not hiding their greys as much anymore. It’s a great thing! Women like Helen Mirren and Judy Dench look amazing. They are stunning style icons to a generation of women”
Hair by cut/colour duo Sarah Roeseli and Ellie Kirby finalists for the L’Oreal Ladies Colour Trophy
Whilst chatting, Joe had been styling a new look for my hair. I had been previously working an overgrown, faded pink crop with grown out tramlines, and was in desperate need of a restyle. “We’ve gone for a very short haircut with some extra length in the top section, you can wear it flat or put some product through it and dress it up,” explains Joe. “We’ve taken the sides super short and the biggest change is in the fringe, which is practically a buzz cut. There is a bit of length in the middle that has allowed us to add a two-stage toner with a darker pink colour on the sides and the back, bleeding out to a lighter candy pink colour on top, with added movement”.
Fashion Editor Emma Gorton-Ellicott’s new pink crop. Hair by Joe Hemmings from Bloggs Salons
“It’s a versatile cut and even if you get caught in the wind it still looks cool,” says Joe, as he grins and delicately snips at my hair without a set of clippers in sight, like a vintage barber might do. You can tell Joe loves what he does and really takes care of his clients, using perfected cutting skills to create innovative cuts and styles.
The back view of the crop with contrasting pink colours
The Bloggs Team are determined to move with the times and create a salon experience that suits Bristolians’ busy lifestyles. With this in mind, Joe has taken the controversial steps to change his salons to take payments based on hourly rates for the stylists’ time rather than set prices for each treatment. “We are the first salon to do this in Bristol. Under the current set-up, people are not sure what they are paying for, it’s awkward and makes people uncomfortable. We are going to forget all of that.
“It also gives you a bit more time to sit down with your client and give them a proper consultation. You get to know your clients better – for example, there is no point me giving a high maintenance hairstyle to a woman who is rushing around after three kids in the morning before work. It’s back to basics, getting to know their lifestyle and giving the client a proper service. People will forget the words and information you give them but they will always remember the way you made them feel.”
Bloggs Salon, 288 Gloucester Road, Horfield, Bristol, BS7 8DP
Bloggs Harbourside, The Plaza Unit, Millennium Promenade, Bristol, BS1 5SY
www.bloggssalons.com
Read our Fashion Editor Emma’s blog No Debutante
Main image: haircut by Joe Hemmings and Esther Woods, finalists for the L’Oreal Womens Colour Trophy 2018
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