Skin fades and sculpted bobs are out. Messy tops and longer locks are in. For fashion hawks, the move towards lengthier hair is hardly news, but it may not be fashion alone that is driving the shift. Rising costs and tightened belts are among the reasons some believe are behind the trend for longer hair.
The average cost of a haircut for men and women in the UK has soared by more than 30% since 2020, according to government data. As a result, many of us have adapted our hairstyles.
“We’re still in a cost of living crisis,” said Phil Smith. “Most people are struggling. Anything that’s going to give your hair a bit of a longer life is going to stay in fashion.”
For Smith, the owner of the salon Smith England in Salisbury, which caters to men and women, the move towards longer-lasting styles has hit business. “It’s been disastrous,” he said. “People are not coming in as often.”
The most common shift he has seen among men is a move away from skin fades, where hair on the sides is cut tightly and blended to created a faded look – a style that needs regular maintenance.
Instead, people have opted for taper fades, which provide a similar blended look but retain more length on the upper sides and top.
“Short hair is dying out and longer hairstyles are back in fashion,” he said. “When the taper fade is done properly, it lasts that little bit longer. The skin fade lasts two weeks and you’ve got to do it again. When the taper grows out, it looks a bit cooler and messier.”
Mullets are also back in fashion, but Smith has a note of caution for those wanting the in-demand do. “If it’s been cut badly, it’s just a throwback to Chris Waddle.”
The collision of the cost of living crisis with the salon is most keenly felt by women, who have traditionally paid more for their hair styling than men. Smith said here too, there have been cost-influenced fashion trends.
The treatment that has undergone the largest change is hair colouring. Dyed roots, which need to be redone every 10 to 12 weeks, are out. Balayage, where colour is applied directly to the hair, is all the rage. This treatment only requires a bi-yearly visit to the salon.
“It looks like sun-kissed ends, lovely hair that’s being lifted by the sunshine,” he said.
In his own shop, Smith said he has had to raise his prices by about 15% to 20% as rising costs, including the recent national insurance rise and inflation on salon products, hit hard.
“I’ve been doing this for 41 years and this is by far the hardest I’ve ever seen it. The recession and 2008 banking crisis was a walk in the park compared with how things are now,” he said.
Bobby Gordon, the owner of the men’s barber Fella, which has branches in London and Kent, has found the climate similarly challenging.
“There’s a limit to what people will pay for certain things,” he said. “It’s the same with a haircut. I think the work has been cheapened for a very long time and we’re playing catch-up.”
“For a long time, people just assumed a men’s haircut was a tenner. But the quality of work that barbers are doing now is, on the whole, a lot better.”
He said the skin fade and shorter styles in general were on their way out. “Hair couldn’t get any shorter unless we started to take people’s scalps off,” he said.
He has been forced to raise his prices owing to rising costs, but time is also a factor.
“Clients are more demanding, they know what they’re after. They’re not bringing in a picture of a footballer like they did a long time ago. They’ve seen stuff on Instagram and the cuts people want now take a long time to do. It’s not a five-minute job, they take 40 to 45 minutes to do, maybe even an hour,” he said.
With longer styles booming in popularity, Fella has introduced a “back and sides” option to entice those who don’t want to pay full whack for a touch-up.
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“It’s been quite popular,” he said. “We felt that with the way styles are changing, people don’t necessarily want a full haircut and they find the back and sides to be the problem areas.”
Richard Scorer, the creative director of the women’s salon chain Haringtons, said people were “having higher-value services left less often”. He has seen a similar surge in demand for balayage treatments.
“Time is a big issue for people. People used to come in every week and have a blow dry. Now, they’re coming in less regularly, so they want services that last,” he said.
Scorer said his salons, located around the Thames Valley, are at the “higher end of the market” for the area. Despite this, he has seen new customers expecting to level up their treatments, especially as prices in less-luxury hairdressers have also risen.
“People want experiences now, having a haircut here is a lovely experience,” he said. “Beware of false economies. If you come to a salon like ours, the initial price might be more, but we do things like fringe trims for free for three months.”
Our experts’ top tips for long-lasting hairstyles
For men
Taper fade For those who still want a bit of tightness in their cut, the taper fade offers a good balance between some shortness on the sides while retaining some volumising length on top. Because it’s left longer towards the blended top of the head, when it grows out it still retains a good shape, which means less frequent visits to the barber.
Mod cut This longer, textured trim will give your mop some flexibility. You can leave it soft and unkempt and still look fresh or apply some product for a more defined look. The fringe also gives you some hair to play with, which can be slightly parted or left to sit on your forehead. This cut can be done every four to six weeks.
For women
Forward graduation This layered, textured cut will give your long, luscious locks some bounce and make your facial features pop. It involves cutting shorter layers in the front and longer layers in the back, which will make it grow out more evenly. It is a particularly good style if you want to add some shape, volume and bounce to long, flowing hair.
Square layered haircut This boxy cut, which involves cutting layers at a 90-degree angle to the head shape, will give your hair a neat but bouncy look. Like the forward graduation, the layered cuts mean it will grow out more evenly and is fairly maintenance-free.