Five minutes on salon international with... jamie stevens

Winner of HJ’s Men’s Hairdresser of the Year in 2011, Jamie Stevens has also been nominated for HJ’s British Hairdresser of the Year for a second time in 2013. He will be appearing on the HJ Stage on the Monday of Salon International and will also be judging the Student Creative Competition. Who would you most like to collaborate with at Salon International? I always enjoy working with the Fellowship and it was great to showcase men’s hair work on the HJ stage last year. If I could work alongside another hairstylist on stage, I’d really love to get all the other seven British Hairdresser of the Year nominees on stage together. I think it would be great to see the diversity of skills and techniques on one stage and us all bouncing ideas off of each other. How do you prepare for Salon International? A lot of long days and nights! Last year we had also started working on The X Factor so we came straight from the TV studios after the live shows to our hotel at ExCeL to do shows the following morning on the HJ and Fellowship stages. It meant a lot of team work from my wonderful staff in coming up with moodboards, sourcing models and making sure that our first shows as the Jamie Stevens Hair London Team represented what we are about, which is mastering all aspects of hairdressing. We showed some men’s and women’s hair, afro, colour and editorial, as well as more avant-garde looks. What's your must see stand, presentation or event at Salon International? As soon as I get a chance, my first stop is always HJ’s British Hairdressing Awards Gallery, sponsored by Schwarzkopf Professional, to check out all the shortlisted imagery. It’s so exciting to see what the industry is producing. Some years there are clear standout winners and others it feels like a level playing field, so I’ll be intrigued to see what the standard is like this year. Plus the HJ and Fellowship stages always showcase a real mix of artists and you’re always guaranteed to see something inspiring. What's your top tip for anyone attending Salon International? It’s such a big venue with a big crowd, so I’d always suggest getting the timetable or app and hand-picking in advance what to see and do and getting there early, so that you manage to pack in everything you want to get from the event. What's on the agenda for you when the exhibition is over? After Salon International, I’m straight off to New York the following week to shoot a global campaign for Matrix and then I should also be heading into The X Factor live shows. I'll also be preparing for the Christmas season in-salon and the British Hairdresser of the Year nominees show at HJ’s British Hairdressing Awards sponsored by Schwarzkopf Professional - so plenty on the agenda! Salon International 2013 takes place at ExCel London from 12 to 14 October. For more information and to book your tickets, visit www.salonexhibitions.co.uk or call 0844 894 2000. Don’t forget to follow @Salon_Intl and #salon2013 for all the latest updates, or like the Facebook page here.