Teaching disadvantaged youngsters the craft of hairdressing
Shaping Futures – all over the globe
Shaping Futures, Schwarzkopf Professional’s unique training program, is a worldwide social initiative dedicated to teaching disadvantaged youngsters the craft of hairdressing so they can forge a brighter future for themselves. Its unique training program has powered its growth around the world, with Jordan and the Philippines, two of the five new country additions in 2014.
Shaping Futures volunteers inspiring young people in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Patrick Fitzpatrick, the Schwarzkopf Professional Academy Advisor from Henkel Beauty Care Australia, was overwhelmed by his trip to the Philippines last year, as Shaping Futures rolled out to this new territory he returned with these words, “The program has changed my perspective of the world. The personal stories of these students and having formed a friendship with them, makes me want to help them as much as I can”.
After Shaping Futures offered the 21 year-old Kea the opportunity to be trained as a hairdresser, she used her talent and motivation and secured herself a job in a salon in Battambang, Cambodia.
The four-week training program in Jordan is delivered by volunteer hair professionals from the UK, Scotland, Croatia, Poland, Lebanon and Jordan. It covers a total of four modules: Consultation, Cutting, Dressing and Colour.
During classes, students are given the opportunity to meet with local salon owners, enabling them to purse careers in nearby salons once they graduate.
Until her 17th birthday Hung lived in the SOS Children's Village of Vinh City in Vietnam. After Shaping Futures has offered her a hairdressing training in 2012 she has secured herself a job in Ho CHi Minh City, Vietnam.
The biggest hairdressing school in India, VLCC, has started a co-operation with Shaping futures in February 2014. The training program started with 15 disadvantaged youngsters from Delhi.
In August 2014, Shaping Futures also started training in the Philippines for the first time. 22 young adults from SOS Village in Lipa took part in the six weeks of training.
Inspired by her experience as a volunteer in India, award winning hairdresser and Shaping Futures ambassador Janet Maitland (2nd from left) arranged a special event at her salon and donated the raised money to Shaping Futures.
After Shaping Futures offered the 21 year-old Kea the opportunity to be trained as a hairdresser, she used her talent and motivation and secured herself a job in a salon in Battambang, Cambodia.
The four-week training program in Jordan is delivered by volunteer hair professionals from the UK, Scotland, Croatia, Poland, Lebanon and Jordan. It covers a total of four modules: Consultation, Cutting, Dressing and Colour.
During classes, students are given the opportunity to meet with local salon owners, enabling them to purse careers in nearby salons once they graduate.
Until her 17th birthday Hung lived in the SOS Children's Village of Vinh City in Vietnam. After Shaping Futures has offered her a hairdressing training in 2012 she has secured herself a job in Ho CHi Minh City, Vietnam.
The biggest hairdressing school in India, VLCC, has started a co-operation with Shaping futures in February 2014. The training program started with 15 disadvantaged youngsters from Delhi.
In August 2014, Shaping Futures also started training in the Philippines for the first time. 22 young adults from SOS Village in Lipa took part in the six weeks of training.
Inspired by her experience as a volunteer in India, award winning hairdresser and Shaping Futures ambassador Janet Maitland (2nd from left) arranged a special event at her salon and donated the raised money to Shaping Futures.
Shaping Futures’ launch into Jordan, in partnership with non-profit organization SOS Children’s Village Amman, saw Schwarzkopf volunteers train a total of 37 local youngsters in the basic hairdressing skills that are needed to start a professional career and achieve long-term, financial security.
“We want to give these young people a new start in life and the prospect of a lasting future”, says Simon Ellis, International Creative Director Schwarzkopf Professional. Training classes usually last six weeks and consist of five modules: consultation, cutting, dressing, colour and form. “With our global network of hair professionals, our emphasis on training and our pool of professional hairsalon resources, we are in an ideal position to offer skills that can make a difference to the lives of disadvantaged youngsters, whatever their backgrounds.”
To date, Schwarzkopf Professional has introduced the Shaping Futures program to 19 countries and provided employment opportunities to more than 800 young adults. This number has been made possible by more than 200 Schwarzkopf partners who have volunteered from all around the world to share their passion for their craft, in more than 50 structured training programs. And every one of these volunteers has found it a uniquely positive experience. With such amazing results for everyone involved, this is just the start, as it is planned to rollout the program across a further seven countries in the next three years.
Since the beginning of Shaping Futures in 2008, when a small group of Japanese Schwarzkopf Professional employees travelled to Cambodia to teach basic hairdressing skills to street kids, this project has embodied the belief in the power of education to transform lives. Two years later in 2010, Shaping Futures was launched worldwide with training courses in SOS Children’s Villages in Peru and India, with expansion to Morocco, Latvia, Brazil, Colombia, Vietnam and Russia during the following two years. In 2013, youngsters from Slovenia, Tunisia and South Africa as well as orphans and refugees in Spain and Germany participated in this flourishing program. Then, in 2014 five additional countries, the Philippines, Jordan, Ukraine, Poland and Croatia, joined the worldwide network of change.
