Toni&Guy's Toni Mascolo receives honorary OBE

Guiseppe Toni Mascolo, the ‘Toni’ half of the global hairdressing name, TONI&GUY, has been presented with an honorary OBE (Officer of the British Empire) by Culture Secretary Andy Burnham, in recognition of his services to the British hairdressing industry. Together with his father and brother Guy, Toni Mascolo launched the international hairdressing company, Toni&Guy, in Clapham, South London in 1963. They were joined by their other brothers, and by the 1980s the company had grown from a single shop to thousands of salons in over 20 countries world-wide.

Driven by their philosophy of “pushing the boundaries of hairdressing and delivering creativity, quality and consistency to every client”, TONI&GUY opened their first franchised salon in Brighton in 1988. In 1997, Toni established a salon and beauty chain, Essensuals. Since launching Essensuals, Toni has also branched out into other industries including coffee shops, IT and financial services and other hair care products.

Andy Burnham said:

“I am very pleased to present Toni Mascolo with an honorary OBE. The TONI&GUY brand is a name synonymous with cutting edge style, progressive creativity and inspiration in the world of hairdressing. His emphasis on training and education has helped Britain’s hairdressing industry become a global leader in the cutting and styling of hair and shown the world the kind of creativity that this country can produce.”

Mr Mascolo said:

“I am thrilled to be awarded this honour by Her Majesty the Queen for my contributions to the hairdressing business in Britain. Although I was born in Italy, I came to Britain in the early 1960s, and have been very fortunate in my chosen craft. Starting from a small shop in South London to then move the business onto a worldwide stage makes me very proud.

“It is exciting to head a company that inspires hairdressers and each year our London Academy attracts thousands of oversees visitors. This coupled with our success in exporting both hairdressing education and our haircare ranges globally, has helped us to play a vital part in Britain’s outstanding contribution to the world of hairdressing.”