AFTER being named one of the country’s best hairdressers Andreea Dumitru now has high hopes of opening her own salon.

The Cowley-based hairdresser, who has been working in Oxford for five years, was a cut above her competitors in the Britain’s Best 2014 contest.

She came first in the Colour of the Day category in the National Hairdressers’ Federation contest, beating competitors from across the UK with her striking bob on a male model.

Miss Dumitru, 35, said: “I had to do a cut and colour. Because there were so many people – 300 people around me – I did the work at home and then presented [the model] on stage there.

Our top stories

“It was an asymmetrical bob. I wanted it to have a story behind the hair I created.

“I imagined him at a rooftop bar in the evening, someone that’s not quite what you expect.

“One side of the hair is pretty classic and the other side not so much. It makes you want to know more about him.”

After winning the contest at the end of last year, the vote of confidence has pushed Miss Dumitru into expanding her business.

She said: “I’m planning on opening my own salon this year.

“I’m mobile at the moment so I don’t belong to any salon. I’m the underdog, as it were.

“I did all this out of passion for hair and my craft.

“Winning was more of a push forward and a wake-up call for me.

“I’m working on my business plan at the moment and deciding where would be a good place to settle.

“I want to make it easy for my existing customers to get to me because I’m not coming to them any more but I want new clients as well.”

Miss Dumitru, who moved to Oxford from Romania, said: “I like hair as a material because it moves and you can create really great shapes out of it.

“I also love the fact that its connected to a person, it’s a part of them.

Oxford Mail:

  • One of her striking bob styles

“It should not be neglected because it’s part of their structure and their personality.

“It’s an amazing process to get the perfect look for someone.”

While her November showstopper spurred on her career, it’s a hair cut from 2009 of which she is most proud.

She said: “It was for a television show in Romania. I called it Virtual Life.

“I wanted it to look like Photoshop but not be Photoshop. Not quite perfect, because we’re all human, but nearly perfect.

“I spent 10 hours putting 14 different colours in the model’s hair. It was a lot of work for one image.”

 

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.