Category: Blogs & News

Anne thinks aloud about the challenges facing hairdressing in 2026. Is the industry in crisis?

Hairdressing’s present and future is based on professionals sharing and supporting each other. I try to consciously give to support other people in the industry? Time, knowledge, introductions, training, honest advice, flexible opportunities, credit, encouragement.

My commitment to the next generation of professionals is built on one core principle: Education is freedom. I believe in “lifting as I climb.”

I have visited Uganda to share what I know with young women in a rural orphanage. It’s about giving them real hairdressing skills in collaboration with local professionals so they can stand on their own two feet and find financial independence. Whilst doing this, I learn textured hair skills directly from the experts.

At home, I use my platform to open doors. Whether it’s working with the Fellowship Net Zero group or mentoring, I want to make sure the next generation of stylists has a seat at the table, and the business confidence to stay there.

So, it’s not just about what I can give. I get so much back in return personally and professionally.
A stronger team, business growth, loyalty, confidence, collaboration, perspective and sometimes something unexpected!

A real perspective: My work in Uganda and with young stylists keeps me grounded. It reminds me why I started and keeps my own passion alive.

A team I can trust. When you truly invest in people, they stay with you. I’ve gained incredible loyalty and a team that isn’t afraid to innovate with me.

Confidence to keep going. Honestly, seeing a student “get it” or watching a mentee fly is the best feeling. It validates everything I’ve done over the last 30 years and makes me want to keep learning myself.

However, our industry needs so much more right now! Visibility, financial education, mentorship, fair pay, recognition, leadership opportunities, investment, structured support from government and simply an open conversation about the challenges it faces.

The training and recruitment crisis. New entrants are either declining in number (apprenticeships) or reaching the job market under skilled and under qualified (college students and self-trained non professionals). We need all hairdressers to be competent with all hair types. Currently, the majority don’t know how to work with Type C hair. Anne offers an Introduction to Textured Hair/Afro for Beginners course to help address this.

mandatory registration as they are in most other countries. In the U.K. anyone can operate as a hairdresser, putting the public at risk as well as damaging the reputation of the industry.

The future is concerning. Freelancing is great and the best choice for many. But it is the employment model that recruits and trains new entrants most effectively. The number of apprentices is falling. Many new stylists are only competent is their chosen speciality e.g. bayalage. Will AI and robots fill the gap? Fast forward 30 years and perhaps hairdressers will either be all over 50 or humanoids!

Anne Veck, Salon Business Awards Educator & Texture Expert of the Year, explains…

1. The ‘Clean Girl’ French Braid

Best For: Straight to wavy hair (Types 1-2).

The Style: A sleek, classic braid down the center.

How-to: Start on day-old hair for better grip. Use a tail comb for a straight part.

Essentials: Apply a smoothing balm from roots to ends to stop fly aways. Finish with hairspray.

2. The Halo Twisted Braid

Best For: Medium to thick hair with some length.

The Style: A romantic braid that wraps around the head like a crown.

How-to: Prep the hair with curls before creating two-strand twists from behind the ears. Wrap the twists around the head like a halo, allowing the ends to remain free for a soft, effortless look

Essentials: Use texturizing powder at the roots so the braid doesn’t slip. Secure with kirby grips.

3. The ‘Boho’ Fishtail

Best For: All hair types; looks great with highlights.

The Style: An intricate two-strand braid that looks better as it gets messy.

How-to: Split hair into two. Take a tiny piece from the outside of the left and move it to the inside of the right. Repeat.

Essentials: Use dry shampoo for a “rough” texture. Gently pull the edges of the braid apart for volume.

4. The Fulani-Inspired Accent

Best For: Naturally curly and coily hair (Types 3-4).

The Style: Thin, delicate braids near the face or along the part line.

How-to: Section a small 1-inch area. Braid tightly close to the scalp.

Essentials: A firm-hold edge control or braiding gel is a must to keep the pattern crisp.

For more uber cool inspo ,check out Anne’s gallery Hair is Art.

Thanks so much to Estetica for this wonderful piece about Anne’s new project empowering the next generation of hairdressers in Uganda!

“Impassioned texture expert Anne Veck has launched a vital mission to up skill young women in rural Uganda through the gift of hairdressing.

Anne Veck, the award-winning hair artist and renowned texture educationalist, has recently returned from a transformative journey to the village of Namataba, Uganda. Known for her mastery of afro and textured hair, Anne swapped the high-end salons of the UK for a volunteer mission to empower and upskill five enthusiastic young women. The trip was more than just a training session; it was a deeply personal exchange of knowledge and heart. Anne sensed an incredible hunger for learning displayed by her students, describing the experience as a privilege that set her soul on fire. Having arrived in the UK years ago without speaking English, Anne credits hairdressing as the universal skill that allowed her to build a future. Now, she is passionate about sharing that same gift of self-sufficiency to the next generation in Namataba, turning a spark of craft into a sustainable career path.

(For your own hairdressing and upskilling with Anne get in touch!)

A Legacy of Learning at the Kirinya Children’s Centre.
The backdrop for Anne’s mission is a remarkable school built by Helen Margaret Owen, an inspirational British woman who used her life savings to transform a makeshift shelter into a permanent sanctuary of learning. The Helen Margaret Owen Foundation has become a hub for the community, providing education to hundreds of vulnerable children and orphans. Last year, the foundation launched vocational workshops, revealing an extraordinary well of untapped talent among the village’s young women. Anne’s arrival, supported by professional equipment from BaByliss Pro and Olivia Garden, marked the beginning of a formal hairdressing journey for these students. By integrating vocational training into the school’s curriculum, both Anne and the foundation are laying the groundwork for long-term economic independence in a region that once lacked such infrastructure.

The Goal: Raising £5,000 for Year-Round Mentorship
While Anne’s initial visit was transformative, she recognised that consistent mentorship is the key to lasting success. To ensure this isn’t just a one-off event, Anne has also committed to raising £5,000. This modest but impactful amount will fund a locally sourced professional educator to teach at the school every week for an entire year. This strategy not only supports the young women but also invests back into the local Ugandan economy by employing a skilled professional. By establishing a permanent vocational programme, the project aims to create a guaranteed career path for these women, mirroring the independence that hairdressing provided Anne at the start of her own journey. Furthermore, every pound raised will go directly toward providing the consistent guidance these students deserve to master their craft.

Mastering the Art of Giving Back
Anne is a firm believer that true mastery in hairdressing is defined by what you give back to the industry and the wider world. Her time in Uganda was an exercise in “authentic education,” where she spent as much time soaking up local wisdom as she did teaching. This reciprocal exchange has left her more invested than ever in the growth of the Namataba community. “I never tire of the joy of witnessing the potential for a spark of craft to turn into a career,” Anne commented. Her mission serves as a poignant reminder that hairdressing is a universal language – one that can bridge cultural divides and provide a lifeline to those in need. By supporting this cause, the UK hairdressing community has the opportunity to help Anne turn her passion into a permanent legacy for the stylists of tomorrow.”

Thanks again Gary Kelly at Estetica for this lovely feature.

To help Anne reach her goal and support the stylists in Namataba, please visit her fundraising page

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The Fellowship for British Hairdressing launched its “Net Zero” sustainable hairdressing project on Monday 23rd March with a truly engaging and educational webinar.

Featuring hair industry sustainability champions Karine Jackson and Anne Veck with expert moderating by fellow green queen Ashleigh Hodges (also, of course, President of the Fellowship), the session focused on setting the sustainability scene for hairdressers and salon owners.

With nearly 40 participants, the webinar was the first in an ongoing series which aims to equip hairdressing professionals to make a real difference by reducing waste, energy and water use, CO2 emissions and plastic and chemical pollution.

The next webinar on 25th March will feature Zoe Rees of Bliss salons, who together with Lynette at Studio A114, will explore why operating your business sustainably is the best way to be profitable.

Whilst behind the scenes, the team are working with colleges and qualifications bodies to make significant changes in the way that sustainability is included in hairdressing qualifications. Major news about this expected later in 2026!

So please do join the hairdressing Net Zero community! Open to all and the more the better.

And for lots more on sustainable hairdressing get your Anne Veck sustainabilty tool kits –
Salon RE:Source and Freelance RE:Source.

Last November the British Beauty Council sent an open letter about hair equity to Baroness Smith, Minister for Skills, calling for mandatory, inclusive hair education within government-funded qualifications. The letter was signed by hundreds (yes really) of hairdressers and industry figures, including Anne.

You can read the letter in full here. It is hard hitting and to the point.

Basically its asks why college qualifications don’t include the National Occupational Standards covering competence in all hair types which were updated in 2020.

And here is the meat of the Minister’s reply.

“Thank you for your correspondence of 25 November, regarding updating
government-funded hairdressing qualifications to mandate training on all hair types,
including textured and Afro hair. I would be grateful if you could share my response
with your co-signatories.
I have noted the points made and very much appreciate the considered approach to
this issue. On the call to unlock funding to implement updated National Occupational
Standards (NOS) across all qualifications, while the NOS provide greater detail than
the English standards, the existing occupational standards in England already allow
for the implementation of that detail through their requirements.
Regarding the call to commit to a fast-track review for inclusive standards, the level 2
hair professional occupational standard was updated in 2023 and made more
inclusive of all hair types and clientele. The updated standard has been praised and
positively received by the sector. As you may know, revision of the level 3 hair
related occupational standard was paused earlier in 2025 due to the transition of the
Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education into Skills England.
Thank you also for your kind invitation to meet. Unfortunately, diary pressures mean
that I am unable to accept at this time. However, department officials would be
happy to meet with you to discuss this further.”

Unfortunately, Baroness Smith’s response: “the level 2 hair professional occupational standard was updated in 2023” etc, etc., refers to the qualification embedded in the Hair Professional Standard, that is, the apprenticeship. Similar for comment on Level 3 , the Advanced Professional Standard. She effectively avoids dealing with the issue with regard to Level 2 & 3 diplomas for college students. (As I guess most readers will know, the hairdressing apprenticeship in England includes a level 2 diploma).

The simple explanation is that the hairdressing level 2 diplomas as offered by qualifications bodies including VTCT, qualifi and City and Guilds, were released back in 2015 and haven’t been updated since. (The diplomas included in the Standard aka apprenticeship were published in 2017 and appear to be based on the 2015 versions). So the obvious question is, when exactly will the qualifications organisations get round to bringing their diplomas into the 21st century? (And of course its not only about textured and Afro hair, some colleges are still training students to do cap highlights!).

Frankly, this situation is inexcusable and its good to know that the British Beauty Council are following up. On the immediate practical side, it is of course not the fault historically of so many qualified hairdressers that they weren’t trained in textured hairdressing skills either at college or during their apprenticeship back in the day. However there is no longer really any excuse for experienced hairdressers who lack this skill set, to carry on and accept the appalling situation they find themselves in, never mind their potential clients. CPD training in Afro,textured and curly,coily hair is now widely available.

Including by Anne who offers an “Introduction to textured hair” aka “Afro for Beginners” course. Do contact her about this on 07525498903 and email her at anne@anneveckhair.com. More about Anne Veck Education here.

WHICH IS THE BEST ENERGY SUPPLER?

Which is the best energy provider for my salon or freelance hairdressing business? By best we mean best for the planet of course, wich means no fossil fuels involved, instead gas and electricity from renewable energy sources.

And important to know, the energy you use comes from the grid and it’s the same as everyone else’s. How it works is that if you buy green energy then your supplier will (or should) add sufficient renewable energy to the grid to match what you take out.

For electricity it’s all relatively easy to understand, for gas, maybe not so simple!

If you want to go directly to choosing your greener suppler without reading further, the best 2 according to Ethical Consumer are 100Green and Ecotricity.

They also recommend Good Energy and Octopus Energy. Octopus Energy offer some potentially cheaper tariffs. However, remember, the best approach to reducing your energy costs and carbon emissions is to use less. Check out Salon RE:Source or Freelance RE:Source for how to do this.

Which supplier to choose for electricity?

100green, Ecotricity, Good Energy and Octopus all stand out.
Avoid the various renewables tariffs offered by the “big 5” companies. Unfortunately many “green” or “100% renewable” tariffs use a loophole called REGO (Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin ) certificates. Unfortunately these don’t guarantee 100% renewable energy,(it’s all a bit complicated).

Which supplier to choose for gas?

Remember “natural gas” means mains gas. It is natural in that it is sourced from natural fossil fuel deposits. Coal and oil are natural too. Natural gas has high carbon emissions from drilling, cooling and shipping.
Good Energy, 100green and Ecotricity each claim to provide green gas. But its not that simple.
100green uses gas produced from organic waste through anaerobic digestion which covers 100% of their customer demand.
Good Energy uses this type of gas too, but just 10% of its supply whilst the other 90% is natural gas for which they offset the carbon emissions.
Octopus also include “green gas” in their mix and offset the rest.
Ecotricity have their own green supply, using grass cuttings broken down by anaerobic digestion to produce gas. But this only contributes 1% (according to Ethical Consumer, posibly increasing over time) to their supply with the other 99% being offset.
So the best choice for gas appears to be 100green.

Which means that if buy both electricity and gas, it looks like the best choice is 100green.
If you are very price conscious, then Octopus is your best bet. Whilst Ecotricity source their electricity (and 1% of their gas) from their own solar and wind parks (and grass cuttings!)and campaign actively to end fossil fuels.

And don’t forget, switch off the lights and turn down the heating!

Thanks to Ethical Consumer for much of this information.

Happy Education New Year everyone. It’s time to plan your staff development for 2026. So we strongly recommend you take a look at Anne Veck’s hairdressing training brochure. to find a course that will meet your needs!

Anne’s most popular workshops in 2025 have been Afro for Beginners, Colour Correction, Vintage Styling and The Perfect Consultation. She will design bespoke education to meet your needs- whether one to one or for your salon team or college or wholesaler/brand academy.

Cost and time out of the salon an issue? Talk to Anne about her bite size training courses at your salon at a time to suit your business.

She can visit you anywhere in the world (she works in French as well as English) or you can visit her at the Anne Veck Academy in Bicester near Oxford.

For lots of tips and demos visit her on Instagram and Youtube and do sign up for her Anne Veck Education e-newsletter too.

Now, just because you are an expert doesn’t mean you are a good teacher, so to ensure that she walks the talk, Anne has the HABC Level 3 Award in Education and Training. Finalist for Fellowship for British Hairdressing Educator of the year 2025 and 2024 and Creative HEAD Education Expert 2024 too.

Enquire here and Anne will be in touch about organizing training for you and your team. or give her a call on 07525498903.

“I have been educating for 9 years and I have never received such a huge and solid portion of inspiration.”
Karolina Chodzenska, Warsaw, Poland

“So grateful to her for the session this morning. So many amazing things to take away and many top tips. I had so many staff saying how wonderful it was.”
Jo Malone, Glasgow Clyde College, Scotland

“Anne has amazing knowledge about curly hair. It was great to spend time with her and learn about Afro hair. Her training was detailed and everything was explained thoroughly.”
Luisa, Kelly’s Hair Oxford

“Une superbe formation avec une formatrice incroyable!”
Kevin Reault, Maison de la Coiffure, Tours, France

Anne loves a good collaboration and here we feature Lunatic Fringe in which she visits Toulouse in France to work with her jewellery designer and model daughter Chloe aka Dirty French Girl.

The uber talented team in full was
Hair Anne Veck
Make-up @fee_ministe_makeup
Design @dirtyfrenchgirlbijoux and @dame.de.coeur.atelier
Styling @dirtyfrenchgirlbijoux
Models @belierartistic, ceejaylemon, @yelena and @richie
Photography @vac8rme

They say “Delve into the haunted glamour of an aristocracy unmoved, where beauty and glamour dance on the edge of forgotten inheritance. This collection explores the exquisite unravelling of a noble past, reinterpreted through daring cuts and dishevelled elegance.” Totally French but is reminiscent of recent shenanigans within our own UK royal family! Without the unpleasantness of course.

And in more character detail:
“The Unchained Marquis. He was born to reign, but he chose to burn the throne.⁠
Titouan, the Marquis with torn gloves, laughs amidst the gilded ruins of his lineage.⁠
He clicks his heels on the cracked marble, an absinthe glass in one hand and a whip in the other.⁠
The Priestess of Ashes. The Silent Eye⁠. They say she was the queen’s oracle before the kingdom crumbled. Since then, she walks on ashes, bareheaded, tattooed with forbidden truths.⁠
Her voice slices through silence like a blade: rare, sharp, unforgettable.⁠”

Explore more “Hair is Art” right here!

Which are the best towels for hair salons? And which are the best for the environment and the people who make them?

In this blog we reproduce some important research by Green Salon Collective about the environmental impact of compostable and cotton towels and add our own views on the importance of where and how these alternatives are manufactured plus a very brief comment on micro fibre towels.

First up, here’s what Green Salon Collective have to say:

All about salon towels…
You might have seen our research on Salon Towels a couple of years ago, and the main conclusion was that it’s not so much what towel you use, but how you use it!

From our research, the most sustainable option is to use a compostable salon towel but only use ONE per client.

If you can’t stick to one, then use reusable towels and launder them – or a mix depending on the client’s hair needs.

If you’re using compostable salon towels, then it’s important to actually compost them! Otherwise, they could end up in landfill or incineration where they’re no good to anybody, and can end up causing more harm…
You can read their report in full here.

So far, so good. We would add that some other downsides of cotton towels are a) that growing cotton uses large amounts of water, a resource that is becoming increasingly scarce in many cotton growing areas, b) most cotton is grown with chemical inputs which damage the soil and c) some major cotton producers (e.g. China) allegedly use forced labour. On the other hand in India and Bangladesh there are many small cotton farmers supported by the Fair Trade movement.

The key issue with compostable towels is that they are made out of trees. Which tree species, where are they grown and are the forests managed sustainably? Both Scrummi and Easydry carry the necessary independent accreditation giving reassurance on these questions. Enki, Ecotowels and Replant are certified as compostable but we can’t find independent certification relating to what they are made from, on their websites. Maybe we didn’t look hard enough? if you guys read this, please let us know.

As for synthetic, plastic, micro fibre towels, when you wash and dry them, you’ll release tiny microplastic fibres into waterways, as well as having to use lots of water, energy and chemicals. Micro fibre brands may claim sustainability credentials on the basis that they dry more quickly, etc, but they won’t mention the dreadful environmental impact of the micro fibres they release (and not just in the oceans and marine wildlife, these are in your body too!). Made from oil of course as well.

Hope this helps when you choose which towels to order. For much more on salon sustainability get our Salon RE:Source play book!

Plastic recycling is a super important subject for hair salons, hairdressers and of course clients and the public.

Here we republish a very informative piece by Kate Whitman, Cressida Bowyer and Steve Fletcher, three very serious academics from the University of Portsmouth, about results from The Big Plastic Count which you might have taken part in. (We have edited it down a little).

With legislation already in place for businesses employing more than ten people (so some salons) and coming for everyone in March 2027 about separating your waste, we thought this was a useful read setting the scene. And here’s a shout out to everyone who is following best practice already and not waiting to be told what to do!

Interestingly it also argues for the importance of citizens taking action to make change happen.

“Every week, the average UK household throws away dozens of pieces of plastic packaging. When people actually start counting them, they’re often shocked to discover just how much there is. And unfortunately, most of this plastic cannot be reused, refilled or recycled.

That’s one of the main findings from our new research on the Big Plastic Count, a nationwide citizen science campaign organised by social enterprise Everyday Plastic in collaboration with environmental campaign charity Greenpeace. Involving more than 160,000 UK households, it’s one of the largest efforts ever to track household plastic waste in the world.

Our analysis combined the Big Plastic Count data with an attitude survey of more than 8,000 plastic count respondents and an experiment on public engagement. It showed that taking part in “citizen science”, research carried out with the public rather than on the public, can do much more than generate data. It can bring a sense of urgency to an environmental problem, change behaviour, and even mobilise political action.

People tend to overestimate the positive environmental impact of recycling. Many participants began the project confident they were already making environmentally friendly choices, for example buying recyclable packaging. But when they actually counted their weekly plastic waste, the results told a different story.

The typical household generated 20-30 items of plastic in just one week, mostly soft plastics such as film lids, crisp packets and food wrappers. These items, despite often carrying positive environmental messages, are impossible to reuse or refill, and are rarely recycled in practice.

This gap between perception and reality, what we call “plastic blindness”, reveals a crucial barrier to tackling plastic pollution. People simply don’t see how much plastic they use or misunderstand, or perhaps are misled as to what happens to it after disposal.

When we see it, we care more

The act of counting plastic waste had a powerful psychological effect. Participants who tracked their own waste reported feeling more aware and more concerned about the plastic waste they were generating – and more open to alternatives such as refill and reuse systems.

These models, where customers use their own containers or borrow returnable ones, are widely seen as essential to a circular economy. Yet their success depends, along with supportive policies, on public understanding of why recycling and other waste management strategies are not enough to tackle plastic pollution.

By making the invisible visible, citizen science can help close that understanding gap. Participants who saw their plastic waste laid out in front of them were far more likely to express concern about pollution and to support stronger policies on plastic reduction.

Citizen science can spark action

We found that awareness translated into political engagement. Participation in the Big Plastic Count coincided with a significant increase in signatures on a Greenpeace petition launched at the same time, calling for stronger action in the ongoing global plastics treaty negotiations.

This suggests that citizen science isn’t just a way to collect data. It can also mobilise public support for policy change. When people see clear evidence of a problem that they have limited control over, they’re more motivated to demand systemic solutions.

Our findings add to growing evidence that recycling alone cannot solve the plastic problem. In the UK, the Everyday Plastic study showed that only around 17% of household plastic waste is actually recycled, while most ends up being incinerated, exported or put into landfill.

Policies that focus solely on end-of-life solutions ignore the need to reduce plastic production at its source. That’s why policy must look upstream. The global plastics treaty, a United Nations initiative aiming to reduce plastic pollution worldwide, could commit countries to legally binding limits on virgin plastic production and enforce stronger requirements for reuse and refill systems. (Editor’s note: pigs will fly first. Plastic is made from oil, so that treaty is not happening anytime soon!).  

The results of the Big Plastic Count show that when people are given the opportunity to see their own contribution to the plastic problem, they want to see change – and they expect policymakers to lead it.

Quite simply, we can’t fix what we can’t see. Plastic pollution is often hidden in plain sight – behind positive “eco” or “recyclable” labels, messages such as adverts normalising single-use plastic use, within supply chains and under the convenience of online shopping.

Citizen science initiatives such as the Big Plastic Count help to lift that blindfold, empowering citizens not just to count plastic, but to count in the movement for change.