Barbers on the march again

It’s time for another barbing slugfest as the Annual Wahl Barbing Competition and Charity Show holds in Lagos on June 8, 2014.
This year’s event is the 22nd in the series. The first edition held in 1992, organized by J. Green Mbadiwe & Sons, in conjunction with Wahl Clipper Corporation of Illinois, U.S.A.  The barbing contest holds at The Syrian Club, Ikoyi: Lagos, from 12 noon.
Speaking on the forthcoming event, Chief Victor Ngozi Mbadiwe, Chairman of J. Green Mbadiwe & Sons, says elevating the art of barbing, as well as its hygiene values “is a commitment that we are not ready to compromise at all.  We shall continue to encourage barbers to maintain highest levels of hygiene, so that the health of their customers is not jeopardised in any way.  We shall also encourage them to be as professional as possible.”
J. Green Mbadiwe & Sons is the sole distributor of Wahl Clipper Corporation products in Nigeria.
The annual barbing contest is also an avenue to give back to society, as proceeds from the event usually go to charity.  In the past 21 years, many charity homes round the country have benefited in cash and kind.
American-trained Carissa Mbadiwe is the executive in charge of J. Green Mbadiwe & Sons, and she says handsome prizes are up for grabs at the barbing show.
a“The first prize winner goes home with the sum of N150,000, the second prize winner gets N100,000, while the third place winner collects N50,000.  There are many other consolation prizes including barbing kits, clippers, and other hygiene products from Wahl,” she says.
Intending contestants are expected to enrol at the venue on June 8.  The event is expected to be graced by Mr Bob Thomas, the Global Special Projects Manager of Wahl, Hon Dr Eddie Mbadiwe, a member of the House of Representatives, and other distinguished guests.
Chief Victor Mbadiwe concludes: “In the past 21 years, God has really blessed our efforts, and barbing has become professionalized in Nigeria.  The profession is no longer seen as that of dropouts and riff-raffs.  It is now a respectable calling.  Presidents, chief executives, all have their barbers who cut their hairs regularly, so why should the profession be looked down on?  The annual barbing show, and the awareness it generates among barbers on hygiene, has taken the calling several notches higher.  And our country is the better for it.”