Ricky Reyes and Fil-Hair brace for Guinness Record

In August 2008, hairdresser Ivan Zoot set a new Guinness World Record for the single fastest haircut, layering a bob cut in merely 55 seconds.

Zoot also clocked in for the most professional haircuts in one hour (34), and the most haircuts in 24 hours (340), beating previous records (1:11 for fastest haircut, 23 for most haircuts in one hour, and 300 for most haircuts in 24 hours) by a significant margin.

Dani Figaro of Dimona, Israel, on the other hand, holds the record for the most number of scissors used to cut hair. He can use 10 pairs of scissors in one hand, controlling each pair independently.

Hair and beauty guru Ricky Reyes, together with Fil-Hair Coop, the country’s biggest association of hairdressers, are now set to make a new Guinness World Record.

In celebration of Fil-Hair’s 25 years of uniting and professionalizing the hairdressing industry, Reyes and Fil-Hair are in the heat of preparations to set the most number of haircuts in a single venue in eight hours with over 300 to 400 hairdressers participating.

“This is going to be a momentous event for the Philippine hairdressing industry and this early we are already training Fil-Hair members in preparation for this event,” says Reyes, founder and president of Fil-Hair cooperative.

“There is pride in being a Filipino hairdresser and we want to show the world what we can do,” he adds.

In preparation for the challenge set in May 2009, Fil-Hair will conduct a nationwide search for hairdressers/participants. The search for the fastest hairdressers will be done around the country with haircut auditions to be mounted in various town plazas starting February.

Fil-Hair Coop has about 20,000 affiliated members. It started in 1984 as a cooperative for hairdressers with a store along Morayta, Manila selling items and equipment for hairdressers.

“But we realized that hairdressers need to have confidence and pride in their profession first before putting up their own business. They need to be noticed,” Ricky notes.

Fil-Hair achieved this through the professional competitions that they’ve mounted. True enough, the winners got the recognition they needed to boost their confidence.

Fil-Hair also takes pride in its long-running Isang Gunting, Isang Suklay (IGIS) project which Reyes started out in 1984 as a livelihood program in a relocation area in Dasmariñas, Cavite.

Today, IGIS has benefited about 96,000 people nationwide and is ongoing in the different parts of the country.