Local barber hopes to make the final cut

Raymond Simons, 49, from Ray’s Barbershop, will need to produce some of his finest work as he looks to make his way to the live final of Scotland’s Best Barber 2017, which will be held at the Scottish Hair and Beauty show on April 23, at Edinburgh’s Royal Highland Centre.

A selection of Raymond’s work will feature on the Scotland’s Best Barber website where the general public have been invited to vote for their favourite barbers and hairstyles.

Over 100 barbers entered the competition, and these have been shortlisted to 25.

If Raymond can secure one of the top four spots from this vote, he will have the chance to perform two haircuts during the live final on the Great British Barbering Academy stage for his chance to be crowned the king of Scottish barbering.

Barbering is a career that Raymond places a lot of pride in.

He said: “The shop my father worked in was looking for somebody to wash hair and sweep the floor when I was about 13.

“Watching them cut hair fascinated me, so when I left school I decided to attend college and become a barber. That was nearly 30 years ago.

“Today, I still love the job and am still learning new techniques and helping others to learn. My brother and son are also barbers, so it must be in our blood. Outside of barbering, I also organises a few of the industry’s biggest Facebook community pages such as The Barber’s Post and The Barber’s Learning Exchange pages with the help of a few others.”

Scotland’s Best Barber 2017 is being hosted by premium educational service the Great British Barbering Academy (GBBA) and one of the hair and beauty industry’s biggest professional retailers, Salon Services.

Joanne Etherson Salon Services’ PR manager, said: “We are very happy to announce our involvement in this year’s Scotland’s Best Barber competition. Barbering is a profession that Salon Services take very seriously and we are excited to see this fantastic competition unfold.”

On the day, Salon Services will award the overall winner with a brand new barber chair to take back to their shop. The company will also be rolling out its new Basin St pods at Scottish Hair and Beauty.

These pods are dedicated to providing barbers with all of the products they need and highlight Salon Services’ commitment to the barbering industry.

The live final will be judged by some of the United Kingdom’s most renowned barbers, including Mike Taylor, the GBBA’s head educator and last year’s winner Stacey McCabe.

Mike said: “The standards of barbering displayed by all of those that have been shortlisted are a testament to Scottish barbering and the hair and beauty industry as a whole.

We’ve seen more entries this year than ever before and can’t wait to crown a new champion.”

To vote for Raymond, please visit http://tinyurl.com/hwwmlrx.