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Toi ā-Ringa

Art and design

Hands-on (haptic/tactile) art and design, barbering, hairdressing, beauty, fashion, advertising, visual media and communication. Toi ā-Ringa uses a range of tools, materials and technologies to shape creative outputs. Almost three in four people in this sector are women, and hairdressing is the largest of the Toi ā-Ringa occupations.

Kia Ita! workforce development plan

Kia Ita! is the first workforce development plan (WDP) for Toi ā-Ringa (the art and design sector) created by Toi Mai Workforce Development Council. This plan specifically focuses on the barbering and hairdressing industry and is supported by the results of sector data/analytics and interviews, wānanga and other engagements with barbers and hairdressers from across the motu.

This WDP takes barbering and hairdressing back to its roots in Aotearoa, promoting the need for support for this industry by emphasising the cultural significance of hair within te ao Māori, drawing inspiration from the ancient Māori story of Māui surviving from the topknot of Taranga – “to be tight” (as in a topknot) is a strong theme throughout.

In our engagements and research, Toi Mai found that barbers and hairdressers faced many different but similar challenges. To tackle these challenges, the plan has identified various solutions-focused recommendations and actions. Our hope is that these, if enacted, will bind together the loose strands of dishevelled hair within the industry and unite the hair and barbering communities, just like the heru ­– a traditional Māori comb used to keep long hair fastened into a topknot – does so effectively, as we work towards a thriving workforce by 2035.

Toi Mai would like to acknowledge and thank those who shared their invaluable feedback on the WDP. Further updates (including the final recommendations and actions) will be shared in due course.

Contact us at [email protected] if you have any questions.

The research, facilitation, analysis, writing and documentation of this workforce development plan has been completed by the Toi ā-Ringa team at Toi Mai, ably led by Astrid Visser and Daniel Payne.

Also, thanks to Kashmir Kaur for help with writing and editing, Simon Holbrook for his theming guidance and whakaaro, and Anton Matthews for his kia ita metaphor that brought this plan to life.

But mostly, we would like to thank the many industry representatives across the motu who opened their doors from the barbershops, hair salons, Hair and Barber New Zealand, training providers, and industry advocates, whose honest and open feedback enabled us to gain compelling insights so that together we can shape a better future for barbering and hairdressing and the people of Aotearoa.

We would also like to acknowledge the time and contribution of the following people:

Contributors

Ali Al Subi, Capital Barbers

Nadya Ashley, Mane Salon

Trudy Brown, Te Pūkenga Southern Institute of Technology

Matt Brown, My Fathers Barber

Randy Buckley, Access Long Hair

Patrick Cameron, Access Long Hair

Nicola Chittenden, Just Cuts

CiCi, New Era Barbershop

Deb Clark, Varda

Tyrone Clark, Cutthroat Brothers

Jabez ‘Makawe’ Collins, Makawe Barbershop

Jess Corbett, Premier Institute of Education, Hair & Barber NZ

Erica Cumming, Waihanga Ara Rau

Rachelle Cummings, Te Pūkenga Southern Institute of Technology

Megan Currie, Te Pūkenga Southern Institute of Technology

Trish Dowling, Te Pūkenga Southern Institute of Technology

Danny Edwards, Nexus Barbershop

Ian Filo, UGC – Underground Cutz

Seletar Taputoro Filo, Whanganui District Employment Training Trust

Russell Finlay, Te Pūkenga Southern Institute of Technology

Fitz, twosevenfive Barbershop

Pip Grundy, Zibido Hair

Te Arai Hakopa, Only Fades Barbershop

Lauren Harrison, Kulture

Jeremy Hava, Hava & Co. Barbering

Kylie Hayes, Moha Hairdressing

Carol Hayward, Chonel Hairdressing, Hair & Barber NZ

Cara Healy, Varda

Amelda Henderson, Headhunters

Niq James, Headspace Hair, Dapper Barber, Hair & Barber NZ

Ben Jarvis, Hair & Barber NZ

Simone Jones, Headstart Total Body, Hair & Barber NZ

Marie Keast, Rodney Wayne

Luke Koia, MoTown Barbershop Studio/Te Pūkenga Ara

Jason Lee, Nexus Barbershop

Julian Maloney, Maloneys Barbershop

Zaccari Marsters, Boar & Blade

Lynden Mason, VIVO

Jordan McDowall, Jordy Barber

Boaz Mellor, Barbers on Manners

Wanda Menchi, Te Pūkenga, Hair & Barber NZ

Sam Monaghan, Monaghans Barber

Rachel Mountstevens, Te Pūkenga Ara

Wayne Newman, Cuba St Social

Peleti Oli, twosevenfive Barbershop

Maui Ormsby, Cuba Street Barbers

Michael Petrie, Cuba Street Barbers

Stacey Rangitakatu, Blow

Jess Robinson, Aroha’s Way – She Fades

Mason Robust, Dela Llana Salon

Hohepa Rutene, Boar & Blade

Jeremy Scarle, Coiffed by Jeremy Stuart, Hair & Barber NZ

Michelle Shirkey, Kulture

Janine Simons, Mane Salon

Tame Soatame Taufa, Tame X Barber

Bianca Southey, Mane Salon

Tony Stowers, Groove Kuttz Barbering Academy

Chantal Taylor, Taylor Fadez

Ghanum Taylor, Tommy Guns

Johnnie Timu, Brown Pride

Amanda Tonge, Mane Salon

Devante Waho, Cutthroat Brothers

Donna Waterson, Hair To Train

Amanda Whitaker, Te Pūkenga

Keep up to date with all things Toi ā-Ringa

Through the second half of 2023, Toi Mai kaimahi conducted an around-the-motu hikoi to gain insights from barbering and hairdressing business owners, employees, learners and industry bodies.

This was a key opportunity to capture what’s top of mind for these industries and how Toi Mai can help ensure that Toi ā-Ringa is future-proofed and supported by a skilled and thriving workforce.

Watch this space as we release a series of videos throughout the month of February 2024, sharing the thoughts of the wider barbering and hairdressing industry of Aotearoa on topics from fair industry practice to the value in qualifications.

Meet the team

As the workforce development council for the barbering and hairdressing sector, Toi Mai is positioned to help the industry to thrive and prepare for its future by being the voice of the collective in the vocational education and training space.

Meet our dedicated team of Toi ā-Ringa experts and begin the journey to creating a skilled and thriving workforce for today and the future of the industry.

The journey to becoming a barbershop owner

Meet Michael Petrie, owner of Cuba Barbers in Wellington, and hear his take on the barbering industry today and what it needs to thrive going forward.

Getting started as a barber

Meet industry newcomer Maui Ormsby, barber at Cuba Barbers in Wellington, and listen as he shares his whakaaro as a recent learner and apprentice barber.

The future of hairdressing

This instalment in the barbering and hairdressing video series has the talented, award-winning hairdresser Mana Dave sharing his rich insights into the industry’s qualifications, its place in the international market and what needs to happen for its future.

Toi Mai and Hair & Barber NZ

The final instalment in our barbering and hairdressing video series features Niq James, the newly appointed Chief Executive of Hair & Barber New Zealand.

Watch the video to hear Niq share Hair & Barber New Zealand’s vision, with vocational education and training playing a key part in ensuring its industries are supported by a skilled, diverse and thriving workforce.