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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.

Barbering and hairdressing video series

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.