Meet luke benson - a future star of men's hairdressing

It's always great to meet young hairdressers who are passionate about men's hairdressing. This week at the launch of the new HOB Salons Assistants Academy in Camden Town, London, I met Luke Benson, assistant manager at the group's Rickmansworth salon, and a member of the latest Wella Professionals Generation NOW team. Luke expressed his love for cutting men's hair within seconds of meeting me, so I thought it would be nice to get his take on it. Here's what he had to say.

WHY DO YOU LOVE MEN'S HAIRDRESSING?

Men have been "allowed" to look good and take care of themselves in recent years and it has had an amazing effect on men's hairdressing. Hair is such a fashion statement and can determine your own individuality. I love how quick and easy it is to change or tweak my clients' looks each visit to try and push the boundaries of men's hairdressing and be fashion forward.

 

WHAT HAIRDRESSERS INSPIRE YOU IN TERMS OF MEN'S HAIRDRESSING?

Jamie Stevens - his collections show such diversity in men's hairdressing, always incorporating different lengths and textures, even incorporating Afro hair in his collections. He uses different cutting techniques and introduces colour to achieve a collection of very on-trend looks. They are always looks that can be brought back into the salon and shown to my male clients and adapted to suit their style and lifestyle.

WHAT MALE CELEBRITIES ARE GETTING IT RIGHT HAIR-WISE RIGHT NOW?

I don't think there is a clear individual getting it right because men's hairdressing is so varied. There has been a huge influence from TV series such as Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire pushing the classic 1920's and 1950's hair styles which have been seen from the catwalk to musicians to the high street. If hairdressers keep up to date with what's happening within men's hair fashion then it will continue to drive this area of our industry and progress creativity event further.

HOW HAS MEN'S HAIRDRESSING IMPROVED IN RECENT YEARS?

With more and more clients willing to try something new and global brands running competitions for men's hair, it is allowing hairdressers to grow and push themselves to be better. It is becoming a much more focused part of Assistant training from an early age which in turn will produce a lot more capable stylists in the future who aren't afraid of "scissor over comb" and clipper techniques. Blogs, social networking, fashion and industry magazines are making men's hair and fashion a lot more accessible and this can only be seen as positive for the industry.

YOU HAVE VERY COOL HAIR YOURSELF - IS THAT SOMETHING YOU THINK ABOUT?

I used to have a grade 2 all over but I realised as my clients wanted to push themselves to try new things, I had to also. If I am not doing my best to bring "fashion forward" hair styles back into the salon, how could I possibly expect my clients to leave with one?