Hair: La Barberia de Oliver (ES), Photography: Juan Francisco Pagan
The Spring edition is being published in the weekend that we’re finally, after three years, once again able to hold our BarberSociety Live event in Amsterdam on Sunday 10 April! Holding the event without any Covid-19 restrictions feels like a liberation. No more restrictions on carrying out our fantastic profession and enjoying our event. That feels like ‘freedom’ to us, but we are mindful that others in the world have no freedom at all. Terrible wars are raging, one of them on our own doorstep. That makes me appreciate the sense of freedom even more, and I can only hope that peace will soon return. When I saw Salvador Oliver’s new collection, La Barbería de Oliver, I knew I had to put his image on the cover. This is how he explained it: “Jorge, with his neat and aristocratic volume hairstyle, represents the French Revolution; the beginning of what made us all free and equal.” Liberté, égalité, fraternité mean liberty, equality, fraternity. These words are as important today as ever. And brotherhood sums up how I feel about the world of barbering. Barbers sense a unique mutual bond, and that’s there for all to see at our event.
“Brotherhood sums up how I feel about the world of barbering”
I can’t wait to experience our 5th edition on Sunday, 10 April! At last, we can once again meet friends of the barbering profession: colleagues from home and abroad, the people behind the fantastic brands at our event, from distributors to trainees and everything in between. An event that brings together everyone who is passionate about barbering. Taking part makes you a better barber, but it also helps develop our craft and raise the quality of our profession. I’m grateful to all the brands in the industry that have supported us, but especially to our sponsor 1922 by J.M. Keune who have been there for us since the first edition in 2016. Big thanks also go to the other brands who are taking part again this year and to all the barbers from the Netherlands and abroad who are all part of our barbering family. 1922 by J.M. Keune are big fans of competitions and encourage everyone to join in, so they have once again agreed to sponsor this year’s battles, together with Wahl. You can buy your BarberSociety Live tickets via this link.
This year, BarberSociety Live is celebrating its fifth anniversary with 1922 by J.M. Keune as its main sponsor. But Keune Haircosmetics is also celebrating an anniversary of their own: their centenary! We spoke to co-owner Eelco Keune and were fascinated by what he had to say about their extraordinary family business. You can read all about it in our Spring issue!
Keune Haircosmetics founder, Jan Keune, who had a drugstore at Oudezijds Voorburgwal in Amsterdam. He was a chemist, an army barber and, in 1923, the first European to make perm lotion. The men's line ‘1922 by J.M. Keune’ is an ode to him.
Behind the creative cover provided by a Spanish barber, the Spring edition features two interviews with top Spanish barbers: Fran Aranda, who is also giving a show at BarberSociety Live, and Barber Babe Pilar Zaragozá. Both are incredibly talented barbers and share more or less the same message with our readers: always take the road that motivates you most and draw inspiration from everything you do.
Eddine Belaid
The Spring edition also presents the compelling and interesting story of the talented Swiss barber Eddine Belaid, who helped us with ‘Barbers & the City Zurich’. These barbershops offer impeccable quality in line with Switzerland’s tradition of excellence that keeps on ticking in the world-famous Swiss watches! So be sure to check out the article for tips on how to buy the perfect watch, illustrated by the Maurice Lacroix AIKON series.
Bo van Lavieren (in the centre) with his father and grandmother
Last but not least, Dutch barber Bo van Lavieren shares his family story with us. He is following in the footsteps of his grandmother, father and uncle, who all worked (or still work) in barbering.
Marc van de Hare
BarberSociety Founder
PS The Spring issue will be published in English language around 15 April on our website. For a Dutch printed issue you can subscribe here.