One of the most respected personalities in the global hairdressing community, Patrick Cameron, has been awarded an MBE in the Queen’s 2022 Birthday Honours List. Patrick will be given the honour for his service to the hairdressing industry with particular recognition for his extraordinary work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

With a career spanning over 40 years, Patrick is known throughout the hairdressing world for his exceptional long hair work and unique educational skills.

Since arriving in the UK from his native New Zealand in 1987 and as one of Wella’s global ambassadors, he has presented shows and educational seminars in every continent, sharing his long hair knowledge with eager students and always looking to the future of the industry.

Like many industries, hairdressing has suffered with the impact of Covid-19. As an early advocate of digital education with his ‘Access All Areas’ platform he quickly reacted to the situation and reached out to his peers on his social media channels. From his home studio Patrick set about producing free weekly online programmes making it his mission to keep an optimistic and upbeat spirit.

He inspired others to stay positive and use the time whilst forced to stay at home to increase their hairdressing knowledge and skills and encourage others to be the best they could.

Over 300K eager hairdressers tuned into ‘Education in Isolation’ and the programme even inspired many other would-be educators to start their own training platforms. During the lockdown he was invited as a guest on many live sessions and podcasts, entertaining and inspiring others. Realising the importance of self-care Patrick also presented a series of “Mindfulness” videos on You Tube.

“I am delighted to have been awarded such a prestigious honour especially in this Jubilee year,” said Patrick. “To be recognised for something that you love doing is the ultimate compliment”. “I’ve always believed that because hairdressers are creative, we have a secret power to make people feel better about themselves “.

“We have all been through a lot during the pandemic, this industry, like many others sectors, has been hit hard and it has been my pleasure to connect with hairdressers around the world and help to keep them motivated and inspired”. “I would like to dedicate my MBE to all the young people who were told they wouldn’t amount to much”.