Southern / Western

Biography

Current North Eastern Hairdresser of the Year Robert Eaton is one of Britain's most exciting stylists. His innovate colour work and technical styling has gained him respect from industry leaders and hairdressing icons.

His hairdressing career began working at the Russell Eaton, his father's salon, during weekends and the school holidays. The realisation that he had a strong passion for hairdressing soon became apparent and his career thrived from this point onwards.

Robert served a traditional apprenticeship at Russell Eaton in 1997 and studied amongst other concepts, classic cutting and styling, which helped to establish a strong foundation for his present hairdressing techniques.

Progressing rapidly, Robert quickly moved up from Senior Stylist to his new title as Creative Director. Since becoming a Fame Team member in 2003, Robert has picked up several awards including the 2003 National L'Oreal Colour Trophy, North Eastern Hairdresser 2003, 2004 and 2007 and Most Promising Newcomer of the Year by the Fellowship of British Hairdressing.

Active Fellowship member, Robert Eaton is the youngest person to complete the L'Oreal Colour Specialist Degree course with 98%.  His gift for colour work over recent years has seen him take an advisory role with L'Oreal Professional coming up with creative colouring techniques such as 'Shine Lines' which, was promoted throughout the Loreal portfolio. Robert has also had three nominations for British Hairdressing Colour Technician of the Year award.

Robert Eaton's profile in the media is ever present. His hair collections fill pages of the hair titles, he regularly styles hair for celebrities for big consumer titles such as Now magazine whilst his quotes are spotted across all kinds of media including national and local press. Robert is also the resident hair guru for BBC Radio Sheffield.

Robert's next goal is to become British Hairdresser of the Year.

Interview

What is the significance of the L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy to the hairdressing industry?
The L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy is the biggest hair competition in the UK.  It's a great platform for any hairdresser to launch their career and salon; it raises publicity, awareness and generates consumer press too. It's still the most prestigious award to win in the hairdressing industry. 

What are your favourite L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy competition memories?
My favourite memory was the year we won… 2003. It was something I always wanted to win and was definitely an unforgettable night.  

What is your criterion for a L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy winner?
I'm really looking for a directional look, something that is quite progressive with fantastic colour. Great styling means a total look that is forward thinking!

What does it mean to win the competition?
Winning the L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy provides a great opportunity to work with L'Oréal on different events, training seminars etc. It's the ultimate thing to be able to win as a hairdresser and, as I said before, it does a lot to raise awareness and exposure for a salon or stylist.

If you were entering in this year's competition, what advice would you like to be given?
Keep things fairly simple. It's got to be something that's wearable and something that appeals to as many people as possible. The L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy is about beauty. It's about a total look that makes someone want to be that person walking down the catwalk.  You need to create the must-have look of next season.

What personal / character traits do you think make a L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy winner?
You have to be someone that is dedicated and passionate about the look that you are creating.

How do you think the standards of the competition have changed in recent years?
Every year the entries get stronger and stronger. Generally the standards are getting harder because everyone puts in so much effort. Everyone has raised the game.

What are the benefits of competing and being a part of the L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy competition?
It's great for the whole team; it gets everyone involved, it's an inspiring experience and its good training for everyone wanting to be a serious hairdresser.