History of the Awards

It may have had small beginnings in 1956 but today the L’Oréal Colour Trophy is an international phenomenon with competitions held all over the world.

From Colour Cup to Colour Trophy
Originally organized by the General Association with L’Oreal, the competitor’s main prize was called the Gold Cup but L’Oréal had a Colour Cup within the competition. It was this that captured the hairdressers imagination and quickly evolved into the L’Oréal Colour Trophy.

The events main objective was to promote creativity with professional hair colour, which in the 1950’s and 60’s was extremely limited, with nothing like what it is available on the market today. The first Grand Final was held in Seymour Hall and the winner was Dawn Gloria Heaven.

Cultivated by L’Oreal’s Cyril Ashley, soon just holding one Grand Final in London was not enough, and by the 1960’s there were 10-14 heats running around the UK. These were held in huge venues with enormous numbers of hairdressers competing for a place in the Grand Final held in London.

From the 1960’s there were over 140 competitions and the event was held at the amazing Royal Albert Hall. In some years there were over 30,000 people attending the Regional heats and the Grand Final.

At the Grand Final competitors had to show up at the event with their models fully prepared, and the spectacle of the evening was ‘stars’ show. This consisted of up to 20 well-known hairdressers preparing a model on stage in front of an audience of up to 8000 people.
 
Always with the quest to make it more exciting than ever, over the years the Grand Final has hosted a variety of entertainment including a brass band, dancing competitions, comedians, fashion shows, live singers and bands.

Time for a Change
The last Grand Final at the Royal Albert Hall was held in 1989 and it was decided that after decided of tremendous success it was time for a change. After huge round table discussion with the UKs most influential hairdressers, the competition and Grand Final format was changed.

“The colour market had changed so much” believes Pam Goff who was in charge of the L’Oréal Colour Trophy for over a decade. “The perm was on demise and there was a lot of interest in hair colour, so we wanted the competition to be more commercial than competitive.

“Photographic entry was introduced as a way of winning a place at one of the Regional Finals and reducing the number of competitors, the Grand Final date was moved from the first Monday in November to May, and the Grand Final venue was changed to the more intimate setting of the Grosvenor House Hotel. There was an exclusive sit-down dinner format and we introduced themes and theatrical hairdressing shows. Over the years venues have included London Earls Court, Billingsgate Market and The Grosvenor House.”

Celebrity presenters became even more key to the show – over the years they have included Davina McCall, Cat Deeley, Joanna Lumley, Martin Kemp, Vernon Kay, Graham Norton, George Lamb and Sara Cox.

The Regional competition and Grand Final have gone through some exciting changes since 1999 with the introduction of the L’Oréal Men’s Image Award, Young Colourist Award and The Mizani Afro Catwalk Award with a continual focus on Hair Inspired by Fashion across the event.

Each year an exciting London Fashion Week designer showcases a unique selection of their latest collection exclusively for the L’Oréal Colour Trophy Regional finals. But whatever the changes today it is still well and truly regarded as the ‘Vogue’ of hairdressing award ceremonies – fashionable, aspirational and premium with a unique format.

Going International and Digital
By the mid-1990s the UK format was incredibly successful and the relatively easy to replicate, so the L’Oréal Colour Trophy became international and is now repeated across over 35 countries worldwide.

Both the official UK L’Oréal Colour Trophy facebook, twitter and website has continuous traffic with followers sharing their imagery and ideas with each other. In 2012 digital photographic entries were introduced and competitors were able to utilise the Colour Trophy website to upload their entries to be ready to be judged.

Above all else, what really distinguishes the L'Oréal Colour Trophy beyond all other competitions is its capacity to inspire. For over 56 years, The L'Oréal Colour Trophy has been the benchmark of British hairdressing inspiration. Since its first competition, the L'Oréal Professionnel Colour Trophy has exceeded its own level of excellence each year that the bar is raised and the level of distinction is surpassed. It has had the unique capability to really put to test the quality of the hairdresser live.