The Philippines has to establish an internationally acclaimed Hair Styling Academy to keep up with the growing demand for Filipino hairstylist all over the world.
French hairstylist Philippe Tordjman said that Filipino hairstylists are very talented. However, this pool of talented individuals should be given formal educational portal in order to be more competitive.
“The problem in the Philippines, although you have very good Filipino hairstylists and cosmetology skills, you don’t have formal licensing for this kind of skill. This has to be addressed,” Tordjman said in an interview.
Just like other professions, such as nursing, caregivers, among others, cosmetology related skills, especially for hair stylists, should be given an equal professional attention, and that the government should provide a licensing mechanism, to quantify the quality of good skills specifically in hair styling.
Tordjman, who is an artistic Ambassador for L’Oreal in the Philippines, has decided to settle down and invest in establishing a chain of salons in the country, as he sees a huge potential for this business here.
He said because of this need, he plans to initiate a move to invest on putting up the country’s pioneer Hair Styling Academy, in Manila, as well as in Cebu and Davao.
At present, he said he is still talking with potential partners to help him in this venture.
He said the presence of a Hair Styling Academy could sustain the availability of good Filipino stylists, as Filipinos are now in demand in other countries. This could also pull-up the value of Filipino hairstylist in other countries, if they were going to present their licenses or certificates.
What he observed in the Philippines is that, although the skills are good, anybody can become a hairstylist or cosmetology service provider through “on the spot” learning. Some of them or majority of them have acquired the skills through experience, but not in the formal school or training center.
“In other countries, you need to be licensed in cosmetology, in the Philippines they learned on the spot,” he said.
In Europe, he said it will take about two to three years to study professional hair styling. But, he said in the Philippines, he is planning to develop a one-year course for the hair styling academy.
Tordjman, who also owns a chain of salons in San Francisco, California, said that Filipino cosmetology skills are now most in demand in the world. He said aside from their innate artistry, Filipinos can easily learn or adopt new trends and updates.
He said the planned Hair Styling Academy, which is targeted to be operational in the next two years, will be designed in such a way that it has good connection in terms of affiliate deals with recognized hair styling academy in France, Spain, Italy, England and California.
This will make Filipino more in demand in most part of the world, specifically if they have certificates and licenses recognized by these well-known hair styling institutions.
Tordjman was in Cebu recently, to introduce L’Oreal’s new Hair Color collection for Spring and Summer seasons.
Products of French brand L’Oreal, is being exclusively distributed by Gan Go Trading in the Visayas and Mindanao areas.