The Industry launches nationwide campaign

Created by The Hairdressing Industry, the Community Interest Company dedicated to showcasing the value and opportunity of careers in hairdressing, in an exclusive collaboration with L’Oréal Professional Products, the campaign features the stories of nine salons across Bristol, Dublin and Edinburgh, demonstrating a wealth of creativity and commitment among hairdressing professionals to support and nurture local neighbourhoods, with initiatives ranging from mindfulness and nutrition advice to charity work and menopause clinics. It was shot by photographer/ videographer Sarah Seal, and art directed by The Hairdressing Industry chief executive, Jenny Brooks.

Not ‘Just’ A Salon highlights the importance of hairdressing salons in their local communities as places of comfort, conversation and expert pampering, as well as judgment-free spaces where problems can be offloaded. The campaign also reinforces the message behind The Hairdressing Industry’s 2022 Not ‘Just’ A Hairdresser campaign, highlighting the salon as a vibrant, inspirational place to work, offering lifelong learning and career development opportunities.

The campaign rolled out on social media across Meta platforms and YouTube from October – geo-targeted to people living in the three cities and also nationally. In Bristol the campaign also appeared on billboards and other outdoor sites around the city, as well as on the sides of two major bus routes. In total, it’s estimated that Not ‘Just’ A Salon was seen by around 30 million people.

Says Jenny Brooks: “The dedication and commitment of hair professionals to their local communities don’t just impact the services they provide, but also the people they touch, making it a better world for everyone. Not ‘Just’ A Salon reminds people of the benefits of a salon visit to mental health and wellbeing while also showcasing how salons are innovative, exciting and compelling places to work and make a difference.”

Says David Higgins, managing director of L’Oréal’s Professional Product Division UK&I: “We are delighted to be supporting The Industry on yet another important and impactful campaign. Salons and hairdressers are at the heart of everything we do at L’Oréal and we are committed to elevating the professional hair industry because we recognise that salons go far beyond a cut and colour, they are as the name of this campaign suggests – Not ‘Just’ A Salon. Salons are some of the most vibrant and diverse workplaces, with teams of varying expertise and experience ready to educate and embrace the next generation of hairdressers.

I’m so proud to support this campaign that shines a light on the importance of salons on our high streets. Salons are at the beating heart of our villages, towns and cities and we are so very lucky to have them.”

The campaign comes at a time when the hairdressing industry is facing its greatest recruitment challenge in a generation. According to a 2022 report by the National Hair & Beauty Federation, ‘Careers At The Cutting Edge’, there were 10,000 fewer hair and beauty apprenticeship starts in the United Kingdom in 2020/2021 than four years earlier. With the campaign linking people to a dedicated website, the-industry.co.uk, where they can meet all the case studies and find out how to get started in hairdressing, Not ‘Just’ A Salon is part of a wider drive to create and safeguard a new pipeline of talent to meet the needs of salons and barber shop businesses in the future.