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A Derry barber is celebrating this morning after being crowned champion of Northern Ireland in a national competition to find Britain’s Best Wet Shaving Barber – and securing his place in the final round of the prestigious tournament.
Barry McCafferty, of The Derry Barber Company on 22 Great James Street, Derry, beat off razor sharp competition from 13 other barbers to claim the title at the regional final, held at the Belfast Metropolitan College at the end of March.
This is the fourth Northern Ireland title to come to the traditional gentleman’s setting in Derry. Last year David Craig was crowned Northern Ireland’s best male stylist in the Northern Ireland Hair and Beauty Awards, David and Niall O Neill were awarded with the title of King of Wet Shaves in 2015 and Jake Gallagher was 5th in The British Barbers Association’s Classic Master Barbers title.
As well as winning the coveted regional title, Barry, 25, will now go on to compete in the national final against seven other top barbers from across the country at this year’s Barber UK. The two-day trade show takes place at the Birmingham NEC over 22nd and 23rd May, and promises to be a bigger and better celebration of British barbering than ever before.
Barry will attempt to impress judges on a number of criteria, including shave preparation, razor technique, post-shave routine, health and safety and overall efficiency – as well as taking on 2015 champion Luigi Caterino, who will return to defend his title
The competition, organised by premium men’s grooming brand The Bluebeards Revenge and the esteemed British Barbers’ Association, is now in its third year, and saw a huge increase in the number of barbers applying for the competition for 2016.
Barry said that he was proud to be representing Northern Ireland in the competition.
“I am really humbled and honoured to be presented with the prestigious title of Best Wet Shave Barber in Northern Ireland and to bring this coveted title to Derry. I would also like to dedicate this award to the team of skilled barbers in The Derry Barber Company who have shared my passion for excellence in the traditional craft of barbering and male grooming. I am delighted that my endeavors have been recognized in this way and to be an ambassador for this historic and extremely rewarding profession.”
Owner of The Derry Barber Company and its Master Barber David Craig added: “Barry was one of the first graduates of The Derry Barber Company’s apprenticeship programme. He demonstrated very early on that he had the work ethic, personality, attention to detail and natural talent for barbering. We are delighted that we were able to nurture his successful career as a barber and congratulate him on his title as Northern Ireland’s best wet shave barber.”
Commenting on the accolades David said: “We are barbers simply because we love the job and are good at it. Whilst the awards are a very welcome addition, we gain most job satisfaction from crafting a quality male haircut, develop a lasting and strong relationship with the customer on our chair and the feeling at the end of the day that we have made men of all ages look and feel good about themselves.”
The winner of Britain’s Best Shave 2016 competition will land the coveted title of Britain’s Best Wet Shaving Barber, walking away with £500 worth of The Bluebeards Revenge grooming products and merchandise.
Nick Gibbens, marketing manager at The Bluebeards Revenge, said: “The level of talent in the first year of the competition was extremely high, but our 2015 entrants managed to exceed that to an impressive degree. This time around, the bar has been raised even higher, with some fresh new faces proving a real force to be reckoned with for last year’s top contenders.
“The aim of Britain’s Best Shave is to raise barbering standards across the industry as a whole, inspiring young barbers to reach the top of their game, but also enabling experienced barbers to put their skills to the test and see how far they have really come.
“Figures showed that the number of barbers performing cut-throat shaves had jumped by a whopping 50% in 2013, and the number continues to rise steadily as we see wet shaving making its way firmly back into favour.”
Mike Taylor, director of the British Barbers’ Association, suggested that the ever-flourishing trend for men’s grooming was showing no signs of slowing down.
“Men are looking after themselves a lot more and have finally realised that the barber is the best person to cut their hair, rather than a hairdresser. There is also a rising demand for hot towel shaves, and salons fail to offer this service.”
