‘It’s a Family Affair’…
And that’s how it felt in Amsterdam this weekend as KAO Salon Division hosted their first LIVE Global Experience since the Pandemic.
Almost 2300 hairdressers from around the globe congregated in this vibrant, colourful city for a two-day hair extravaganza of spectacular shows, a hotly contested competition and inspiring artist sessions. Pro Hair Magazine was there to soak up the atmosphere and report back on this much anticipated KAO Salon Experience 2022.
Over the weekend guests were invited to watch the live competition unfold and to explore and interact with the KAO brands: Goldwell, KMS, Varis and Oribe. They could also enjoy the creativity of inspiring Artist Sessions from internationally renowned masters of the craft and learn new trends and techniques at the Academy Sessions.
The highlight of the weekend was the Global Creative Awards evening which entertained the international audience with world-wide winners, a film premiere and some awe-inspiring shows.
The opening extravaganza was a celebration of all things Dutch – a triumph of tulips, clogs and colour energising the audience in anticipation of what was to come – a celebration of hairdressing at its best.
Mario Krankl’s presentation was a magical masterpiece: A declaration of love for Goldwell and a teaser for the brand’s 75th Anniversary next year, as he took us on flight of fantasy to his ‘creative hair factory’.
The jewel in the KAO crown was the new Goldwell collection from Global Ambassador, Angelo Seminara, as he wowed the audience with his astonishing HAIR EVERY WEAR 2.0 show which moved from film, which you can watch here, to stage in mesmerising style that had the audience captivated. As Angelo explained, “It’s going to bring you an emotion, and from an emotion, it becomes a feeling, and from a feeling, it becomes a piece of art.” It certainly moved us!
When it came to the announcement of the Global Creative Award Winners, the Union Jacks were flying high with a clean sweep for the UK in the Editorial Colorist of the Year category plus some other great wins! Well done guys – you did us proud!
Editorial Colorist of the Year
GOLD: Ben Driscoll-Price – Price & Driscoll
SILVER: Amy Wardley – John Oliver’s
BRONZE: Jack Mead & Lydia Wolfe – Jack & the Wolfe
Salon Team of the Year
BRONZE: Donna Page & Chantelle Elliott – Salon Prisma
Men’s Hairstylist of the Year:
GOLD: Andrew Plester – Hare & Bone
New Talent Colorist of the Year
BRONZE: Lucia McEvoy – Tony Wood Hairdressing
We will leave it to John Moroney, VP Creative & Communication KAP Salon Global, to sum up the event:
“It was a huge pleasure to be able to do host the event live again this year. Our salon owners and stylists were thrilled. According to our stylists, attending this year’s Kao Salon event was like coming home to a family reunion – if your family was made up of the coolest, most creative people in the industry. It’s a place to meet up with like-minded artists and create friendships for life. Every type of creativity was waiting for the guests – from the contemporary color and style of Goldwell to the street style craftsmanship of KMS and the chic, editorial styling of Oribe”
Thank you for having us @kaosalondivision, @goldwelluki
For a full list of all the winners please see below:
GOLD: Tiew Pei Yu from Malaysia
SILVER: Emily Kooistra from Canada
BRONZE: Lucia McEvoy from United Kingdom
GOLD: Junz Loke from Singapore
SILVER: Ian Lee Jia Pei from Malaysia
BRONZE: Tasha Yip from Hong Kong
GOLD: Daniela Farzetti from Italy
SILVER: Rafael Monzó López from Spain
BRONZE: Alex Tant from USA
GOLD: Ben Driscoll-Price from United Kingdom
SILVER: Amy Wardley from United Kingdom
BRONZE: Jack Mead & Lydia Wolfe from United Kingdom
GOLD: Tom Yek Teng Siong from Malaysia
SILVER: Manou Grijsen from Netherlands
BRONZE: Abbie Jackson from Australia
GOLD: Siew Thiam Kui from Malaysia
SILVER: Rafa Monzó López from Spain
BRONZE: Donna Page from United Kingdom
GOLD: Andrew Plester from United Kingdom
SILVER: Jeffrey Den Dikkenboer from Netherlands
BRONZE: Jos Verzijlberg from Netherlands
