Andrea Martinelli answers

Moved from overseas to make your mark as a super stylist here on the shores of Blighty? RADAR has all the answers…

By Kara Dolman

VITAL STATS Name: Andrea Martinelli Position: Artistic Team member and educator extraordinaire, HOB Salons Age: 27 Hair: Darkest brown and close cut (so now, so dreamy) Likes: Riding his Fixie bike Dislikes: Chicken shops! Relationship status: Attached. Sadly. Cue hearts breaking the hairy world over…

Dear Andrea, like you, I’m a hair stylist from Italy and after recently doing

some work in London I’m now thinking about moving here permanently. Why did you move – has it helped your career?

ANDREA: I’m originally from near Venice and – after moving around – I settled in Milan where I was doing a lot of session styling, which I love. Working with makeup artists, designers and photographers from a range of different countries meant everyone communicated in English. I realised if I wanted to continue working in that environment in the future, and do well at it, I had to improve my English. So I decided to escape to London for six months to learn the language properly. I really enjoyed it here; I discovered a whole new way of working and loved the education available in the UK industry and the opportunities, so I just decided to stay. It’s been brilliant for me and my career.

Andrea, where did you train originally and have you found that any training

or qualifi cations you’d already done translated once you’d moved to the UK?

This month’s agony uncle...

So Andrea, as an Italian hottie whose scissor skills have seen you hop the globe before rising through the ranks at HOB Salons, you’ve

been picked as this month’s RADAR agony uncle. Our dedicated army of readers has been busy sending in questions for your expert musings. They want to get the low down on your know-how and more importantly how to make a mark on our hairtastic industry…

ANDREA: All my family are in the hairdressing business; they have a small company in Italy, so I’ve literally grown up learning about hair. As well as Italy I’ve also worked in Spain and Berlin. I actually started a degree in Mechanical Engineering when I was younger, before realising it just wasn’t for me! Hairdressing is in my blood. I’ve always learned on the job wherever I’ve gone and taken advantage of the knowledge and experience of those around me. When you’ve done that your skills will translate anywhere. Just remember, if you have talent and are willing to work hard, you can take yourself anywhere.

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