The Professional Beauty Association (PBA) has announced the finalists in the 32nd annual North American Hairstyling Awards (NAHA). The North American Hairstyling Awards is the most prestigious professional beauty competition in North America and honors the salon industry’s top artists who push the boundaries of skill and creativity. Since its inception, thousands of talented artists have used NAHA as a platform to showcase their work to win a coveted NAHA Award.
“This was an unprecedented year for NAHA due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, yet the heightened creativity and vast number of submissions were some of the most impressive in the competition’s history.” shares Nina Daily, PBA’s Chief Marketing Officer. “The industry rallied to channel energy into true artistry, innovation, and camaraderie, and we couldn’t be prouder of this year’s finalists.”
To enter NAHA, each artist submitted their work to an electronic portal — which was evaluated by a panel of 150 of the industry’s most esteemed hairdressers, makeup artists, beauty educators, and experts, including Serge Normant, Danilo, Vernon Francois, Robert Ham, Antoinette Beenders, Shogo Ideguchi, Eugenia Weston, Sam Brocato, Tracey Hughes, Nicholas French, Robert Lobetta, Tippi Shorter, and more.
Each NAHA submission is judged online, in multiple rounds, by the panel of judges.
The judging process has no contact between judges or knowledge of artist names to ensure anonymity and fairness, enabling a true celebration of excellence, creativity, and technical ability.
This year, NAHA introduced two new categories, Inspiring Salon of The Year, sponsored by SalonCentric, and Educator of the Year. Additionally, NAHA allowed previously published work to be entered for consideration for the first time ever. To virtually guide and inspire potential entrants on creating and submitting a winning collection, the PBA hosted a series of live-streamed, interactive “Creative Conversations.”
With names such as Michael Shaun Corby, Sam Villa, and Michelle
O’Connor sharing their insights and tips, this year’s nominees had access like never before to help shape truly award-winning collections.
Candidates span 14 categories of excellence across hair, makeup, and education artistry. Finalists include:
Avant Garde:
● Liza Espinoza Archurra
● Francesca Rivetti
● Sharie Valcin
● Damien Carney
● Nick Stenson
Editorial Stylist of the Year:
● Michael Albor
● Chrystofer Benson
● Silas Tsang
● Damien Carney
● Danielle Keasling
Haircolor:
● Suzanne Sturm
● Chrystofer Benson
● Steven Roberston
● Ashley Stewart
● Rodrigo Araneda
Haircutting:
● Stephen Moody
● Chris Baran
● Evalyn Johnson
● Matthew Morris
● Rodrigo Araneda
Hairstylist of the Year:
● Chrystofer Benson
● Silas Tsang
● Heggy Gonzalez
● Julie Vriesinga
● Daniel Holzberger
Inspiring Salon of the Year:
● Square Colour Salon + Spa
● Steller Hair Company
● WT Hair
● SuiteSpot Salonspa
● Martino Cartier Salon
Makeup Artist of the Year:
● Melissa Musseau
● Isidro Valencia
● Callie Cabral
● Nohemi Capetillo
● Sam Watson
Men’s Hairstylist of the Year:
● Nieves Almaraz
● Paul Pereira
● Carlos Estrella
● Dana Caschetta
● Milciades Rolon
Student Hairstylist of the Year:
● Madison Pollick, COLLECTIV Academy
● Joey Posner, Aveda Arts & Sciences Institute Minneapolis
● Alisha Kemp, Aveda Institute Los Angeles
● Aubrey Petty, Haus of Flint
● Amber Hensley, Aveda Institute Tucson
Styling and Finishing:
● Keith Bryce
● Alexander Turnbull
● Jamal Edmonds
● Nick Stenson
● Cassie Carey
Team of The Year:
● Backlot Studio 3
● Jose Luis Salon – Manor
● Jose Luis Salon – Austin
● Salon Entrenous
● Van Michael Salons
Texture:
● Lisa Von Kurvink
● Sharie Valcin
● Norm Wright
● Jamal Edmonds
● Ammon Carver
Educator of the Year:
● Tabatha Coffey
● Stephen Moody
● Chris Baran
● Vivienne Mackinder
● Sam Villa
Master Hairstylist of the Year:
● Vivienne Mackinder
● Silas Tsang
● Julie Vriesinga
● Matthew Morris
● Ruth Roche
NAHA 2021 will take place on August 29th at Cosmoprof North America Show (CPNA) in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention Center.
Tickets will go on sale this spring at probeauty.org/naha, with special packages exclusively available to Professional Beauty Association members. For more information and on-sale date updates, please visit probeauty.org/naha; get inspired and learn more about the most prestigious night in beauty.