Salon International 2026 brought together some of the industry’s most exciting talent for two days of education, inspiration and trend-led hair on the Trends Stage.
From the cuts and colours set to dominate salon chairs to fresh techniques, creative finishes and plenty of expert insight, the stage offered a front-row look at what’s shaping hair right now. Across Sunday 4 and Monday 5 October, leading artists and educators took to the stage to share their skills, predictions and latest looks live.
Missed a session – or want to revisit your highlights? Here’s everything that happened on the Trends Stage at Salon International 2026!
Sunday 4 October
10:30 – 11:10 Georgia Mountain & Enrica Russo
Kicking off the show, we saw Georgia Mountain and Enrica Russo take to the Trends Stage.
Enrica showcased a stunning avant-garde, sculptural look which was inspired by movement, texture and the beauty of the unexpected. Discussing the look, Enrica explained: "The look featured twisted braids with wire woven through them, allowing me to bend and reshape the hair exactly how I wanted. I also created a bubble-shaped piece using a 3D pen and added it into the look with cable ties.”
Meanwhile, Georgia created two contrasting looks, showcasing how current trends can be translated into both editorial and commercial styling. The first was a textured wet-look style inspired by Emma Willis. While the wet-look trend is particularly current, Georgia wanted to demonstrate how it could be adapted into something wearable and commercially relevant. The second featured bouncy, textured curls, enhancing the hair’s natural movement while making the bold colour placement a key feature of the look.
11:15 – 11:55 Dean Lawton-Taylor & Karis Woodward
Inspired by effortless sophistication of French beauty and the unmistakable world of L’Oreal, exploring the art of transformation - showing how one look can evolve into something completely new.
Rooted in timeless French chic but interpreted through a modern lens, each look was designed to feel polished, wearable and effortlessly cool. Through subtle changes in shape, texture, movement and finish, the hair transformed before your eyes, proving that great hair is never about just one look. Best friends Dean and Karis also talked about the journey through the industry.
12.00 - 12.40 Phoebe Bashford
Phoebe’s look was inspired by collaborating with an emerging fashion designer, @studio_lillia, who created a bespoke corset from pheasant feathers. Discussing the hair, Phoebe said: “I wanted to mirror the natural lightness, movement and texture of the feathers through an avant garde hair piece, using sculpting, shaping and detailed line work. The colours and patterning were inspired by the natural markings within the feathers, creating a look that felt like an extension of the garment."
12:45 – 13:25 Fellowship FAME Team Finals
After a short interval, The Fellowship for British Hairdressing’s F.A.M.E. Team 2027 Finals, sponsored by K18, Hanzo Scissors, and Olivia Garden, returned to Salon International with a bang!
In front of an esteemed panel of judges and a live audience, the eight hopeful F.A.M.E. Team finalists took to the stage to participate in a series of challenges. For Round One on the HJ Trends Stage, the finalists were tasked with dressing long hair up in 20 minutes, demonstrating their immense talent and technique. For Round Two, the finalists were asked to present a two-minute show that showcased their vision of hair fashion, future trends and their own personal style. It was an incredible day of creativity, artistry and most importantly, fabulous hair! The F.A.M.E. Team 2027 will be announced on the 7 December at the Fellowship Luncheon & Awards.
You can check out the eight F.A.M.E. Team 2027 finalists here.
13.30 - 14.10 Jake Unger and Demetri Deacon-Jones
14:15 – 14:55 Elle Foreman and Tribe Salons
Elle Foreman and Billy Ryan and the Tribe artistic presented their Anthropology collection with looks combining precision cutting, expressive colour, creative texture and amplified form, taking trends as a starting point and letting the person wearing the hair shape the outcome. Texture and movement were buzzwords.
15.00 – 15.40 Joseph Koniak
15:45 – 16:25 Zoë Rees & Sheree Gough
16:30 – 17:10 Emma Simmons
For her Trend Stage appearance at Salon International, Emma wanted to show how commercial hair could be pushed into something more editorial, creating two contrasting looks.
“Salon International is always an incredible place to push yourself creatively," said Emma. "For me, these looks were about showing that editorial hair doesn’t have to be complicated for the sake of it. A strong shape, clever colour placement and the confidence to take an idea further can completely transform a look. Being able to create that live on the Trend Stage was a brilliant experience.”
17.15 - 17.55 Charles Rose and The Crate Artistic Team
Monday 5 October
10:30 – 11.10 Kirby Blythe
Kirby created big, beautiful, bouncy curls before demonstrating how to switch up the look into a glamorous updo!
11.10 – 11.45 Taylor Borthwick & Alex Thaddeus
“For my Salon International look, I wanted to create something that felt sculptural, unexpected and almost as though the hair was awakening and unfolding from within itself,” shared Taylor. “The inspiration came from the idea of awakening – something breaking free from its original form and evolving into something more expressive. I wanted the finished look to feel organic but structured, with exaggerated shapes and movement that pushed the boundaries of traditional hairdressing.”
Alex Thaddeus, Stylist and Owner of Alex Thaddeus Hairdressing showcased her skills in Avant Garde with a live demonstration of eye-catching, fashion forward, styles on the HJ Trends Stage. Both of Alex’s looks were incredibly unique and futuristic, with a striking silver lob styled with a uniform fringe and precision crimping. Alex’s other look was a long curly ‘un-done’ look, with contrasting pink and blonde hues blended throughout.
11:50 – 12:25 Becki Jones, Bronte Jones
12.30 - 13.05 Ashley Long
Ashley created a stunning bouncy blowdry on a butterfly cut, with hair extensions elevating the look with added length and body. Ashley commented: "I absolutely loved being on stage, showcasing my top tips on how I achieve the results I do whilst minimising the time it takes to achieve them. It brings me great joy being able to help others create beautiful work."
13.10 - 13.45 Angel Del Solar, Antonio Vaz, Anna Lum
13:50 – 14:25 Rachael Lomax
Rachael Lomax aka The Copper Queen took to the Trends Stage with a team of her students with a show that celebrated copper hair through the decades – with music, culture, creativity at its heart.
The show opened with the glamour of the 1950s, taking inspiration from the iconic Marilyn Monroe by Kay Coppin before moving into the unmistakable energy and volume of Diana Ross and the 1970s by Daniella Fowler. The 1980s brought the bold, expressive style of David Bowie created by Rachael with her son modelling, followed by the fun, attitude and individuality of the Spice Girls in the 1990s by Molly Breame. The presentation finished with the unmistakable pop glamour of Christina Aguilera and the noughties by Karis Woodward.
14.30 - 15.05 Jade Betson
Inspired by the 80s, Jade transformed the traditional perm into something softer, sexier and more modern. She created the shape with a chopstick tong before teasing it out with her fingers, keeping the curls intact while building a bigger, softer oval silhouette.
“An iconic ’80s shape, but with a modern attitude – soft, sexy and full of movement. Being back on the Salon International stage and bringing the look to life was such a buzz!”
15.10 – 15.45 Amelia Wilmott, Charlotte Singleton & Darcey Clarke
16.25-16.55 JJ Savani
