NIGERIAN HAIR SHOW CELEBRATES NIGERIA AT 50
As Nigeria marked her 50th independence recently, the 6th edition and the grand finale of the Nigerian Hair Show was a celebration of the country's beauty. At the event which took place at Ettal Hotel, Oregun, Ikeja, 10 stylists displayed different hairstyles to boost the country's image at 50. Speaking at the event, the Project Director, Chukwuma Emmanuel described it as a remarkable celebration. 'With Nigeria at 50, it's great also celebrating hair and style to mark the African /Nigerian beauty'.
Quite unlike the preliminaries which focused on wig, the competitors created styles that portrayed ethnicity to boost Nigeria's image by showcasing old and modern hairstyles.
Creating the ethnic styles which is called 'styles from the oldees', the contestants used Ultra braid and Sunny braid, while the modern styles were created with Romance culr and Scharry, all are products of X-Pression, the sole sponsors of the event.
It was a stiff competition as the contestants who were drawn from across the country, were judged on originality, exhibition and showmanship. However, winners emerged as Mrs. Mayowa Olatunji of Mayor Beauty Salon based in Lagos beat other contestants to win the 1st position. The 2nd place went to Daisy Salon Port Harcourt, while Platinee Salon clinched the 3rd position. Other participants from other states included I Shine Beauty Salon, Remarkable Salon, Virgin Beauty Salon, Bashiru Signature, Princess Salon, Steven Salon and Alternative Beauty Salon.
The winners did not go home empty- handed. The first prize winner will enjoy a Salon branding which includes provision of some equipments, all expenses paid trip to Accra for Advance Hair Techniques Course, course in Beauty Therapy in America and Australian Correspondence and online course, total worth of the prize is N400,000.00.
The second prize is also salon branding and courses in Advance hair Maintenance Techniques in Accra, Ghana worth of prize is N200,000.00, while the third prize gets salon branding, DVD and standing fan worth of N100,000.00.
The judges were made up of hairstylist and fashion writers of high repute. Among them are Mrs. Sola Ogungbe of Sholy Beauty World, Bisi Bamgboye, a style writer and Mr. Tony Ekeanyanwu.
On why X-Pression was involved in the programme, the Assistant Marketing Director of X-Pression, Mrs. Grace Ejikeme, said the interest of X-Pression arose from the fact that the duo needed each other to grow and it is through the Nigerian Hair Show that X-Pression can talk to the stylists about the product. She expressed the company's determination to partner NHS to bring up the stylists in a way that they will be reckoned with in the society.
Highpoint of the event was an award to the Most Outstanding, Creative and Innovative style writers of the year for their contribution to the hair and beauty industry. Among the winners are Vivian Onyebukwa of The Sun newspapers who won the Most Outstanding Style Writer of the Year, Joy Essien of The Guardian won the Most Creative category while Kehinde Falode of The Nation newspapers clinched the Innovative Style Writer Award. Also, Olori (Mrs.) Kunbi Elegushi of Kunbi Fashions, received a recognition award for her contribution to the fashion industry.
According to Mr. Chukwuma, the 6th edition of Nigerian Hair Show had brought the country goodies and goodwill from hair and beauty industry that other countries have not enjoyed. 'When we started six years ago, it looked impossible and tasking, but today you can count a lot of hair shows by our hardwork to promote this sector. We, therefore, solicit for more support from the government and corporate bodies to enable us to forge ahead', Chukwuma said.
The guest of honour at the event was Olori Sekinat Eleguishi. Other dignitaries included the Marketing Manager X-Pression, Mr. Peter Kim, MD of Sholly Beauty World and Mrs. Shola Ogungbe, among others.
Other sponsors of the event included Dr. Brown, Nightinghale, Multi Devices Communication and Global News.