Top Bulgarian coiffeur Ivaylo Dushkin won the hairdressers' contest at the International Londa Hairstyling Festival in Latvia's capital Riga. The festival is the Baltic's largest and most important beauty trade fair. With top coiffeurs from over 20 countries taking part, the event was specially set to predict next year's trends.
Ivaylo Dushkin met Milena Dinkova, editor of novinite.com and The News.
Q: What felt special about the Riga contest?
A: The contest featured relatively new rules. The contestants had to create six female hairstyles and four male. We had four hours to work with the girls and two for the boys. The idea was to outline the 2003 trends so we could do whatever we want. The only limitation concerned the use of accessories. So, if we were to use artificial hair, it couldn't be more than 30 percent of the model's natural hair. All contestants dyed in at least three colors as different hair nuances are the hit of the season. The Riga contest reflected the modern idea that there were no more coiffeurs for men or women - everything is uni-sex.
Q: So, there must be no difference in men and women's attitude towards hairstyling?
A: I think that men are also vain but they tend to be a bit more careless. All around the world men dye and perm their hairs. In my opinion, Bulgaria's men are now beginning to care more for their appearance, as they should.
Q: Do you rate Bulgarians as "conservative" in their appearance?
A: Some two years ago Bulgarians were very conservative. I had trouble trying to explain that if you go to the hairdressers', you don't have necessarily to know how you are going to look after. I think these days Bulgarians are showing more interest in fashion and they are more open to experiments. But still, there are a lot of people concerned with what others might say.
Q: Which is the most experiment-friendly nation?
A: British people love to experiment and I think that the new trends in the coming months or even in the next three or four years will be generated in the UK. In this branch of the beauty industry, Paris has long handed over the pioneers' role to Italy and especially to the UK.
Q: Have you met people with hairstyles that make even you turn around?
A: Yes. I've met people on the streets who have very much pleased me with their hairstyle. Sometimes, I encounter quite interesting haircuts or really nice colors. So, I stop the people and we talk. It makes me very happy to meet such people in Bulgaria and I regret there are not many of them, yet.
Q: What are the latest trends in hairstyling?
A: Very thin cut hairs are definitely in. Uneven and in some cases partly shaved hairstyles are the latest. As to the colors, at least three or four nuances make a trendy hairstyle. These are not the highlights we got used to. Now the whole hair gets styled in different nuances.
Q: What do you think makes the real professional in the hairdressing business?
A: You may posses talent in abundance but it won't get you anywhere if you don't realize that "the customer is the king". Most of the hairdressers in Bulgaria lack that understanding. And I would say that this is a common "disease" for Bulgaria's entire service sector. I think learning that simple truth will get Bulgaria's otherwise hugely gifted hairdressers very far.
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