The Collinge & Co. salon on Castle Street is something of a Liverpool institution. Attracting a loyal client list that includes celebrities and business leaders, it’s long been known as the place in the city to go for great hair days alongside a spot of people watching.
His & Hers first visited the salon more than a decade ago and we’ve been returning ever since. So an invitation to the Castle Street reopening, showcasing the salon’s chic new look was a red letter day.
Our verdict? For those who loved the simple, elegant design prior to the rebrand, there are no changes so startling that you’ll feel less at home here. However, while keeping the uncluttered elegance of the original interior design scheme, the team at Collinge & Co. have opted for a full modernisation of the salon, which you’ll notice at every step – from the chic reception area to the new display area for products (which we don’t mind admitting has the same effect as a high-end beauty hall in igniting our desire to shop!) As you’d expect from the Collinges, the design is impactful and modern and yet, like their hairdressing, you suspect that it’ll date really well.
About the rebrand:
Andrew Collinge, the hairdressing group with five salons: Castle Street, Liverpool; Bold Street, Liverpool; Heswall, Wirral; Ormskirk, Lancashire; Selfridges Trafford Centre, Manchester, is now known as Collinge & Co. The training division, which provides hairdressing apprenticeships to salons throughout the North West, is now called Collinge & Co Training.
With the new name comes a striking new brand identity which celebrates the Collinge & Co teams who maintain and enhance the company’s reputation for first class hairdressing, customer care and training, as well as all the clients who make the business possible.
The genesis of Collinge & Co dates back to 1940 when Wilfred and Molly Collinge opened a hairdressing salon and barbers called Collinge’s on Muirhead Avenue in West Derby, Liverpool.
14 years later, their son Peter started his own business on Church Street, a salon in which he could delight clients with the skills and artistry which had made him one of Britain’s top competition hairdressers.
In 1985 the family business grew when Andrew and Liz Collinge opened their own salon in Heswall, Wirral. Andrew had trained at top London hairdressers, Michaeljohn, and would go on to be twice named British Hairdresser of the Year, while Liz was a leading make-up artist. Together they became familiar faces on ITV’s This Morning when it was broadcast from Liverpool’s Albert Dock, giving lucky viewers great makeovers on a weekly basis. As Andrew’s profile grew in the 1990s, the salons were renamed Andrew Collinge.
The company today is now managed by Andrew & Liz’s son, Charlie.
Says Charlie: “We’re really excited to start this new chapter as Collinge & Co. We’ve always recognised the important contributions our employees have made to the company and the time feels right for them to also be represented within an inclusive name.
“We have changed name and evolved before, but through all the years the teams have always cared about delivering amazing customer service and hairdressing artistry.”
As part of the rebrand, the company’s flagship salon on Castle Street has undergone a complete and exciting revamp. Andrew says: “We have always taken great pride in creating beautiful salons for our clients to visit and for our hairdressing teams to enjoy working in.
The new look Collinge & Co flagship salon is a great success in achieving everything we stand for. The decor is warm and inviting, it includes two private salons and with its use of technology, it’s very much a salon of our time.”
Much thought went into the salon concept. Says Liz Collinge: “As a make-up artist, I’ve always enjoyed working with the hairdressing team to create beautiful imagery. The new salon design provides exciting opportunities, with its photogenic backdrops and video wall, we can photograph, film and showcase our creative work, providing content for our website and social platforms.”
The future also means digital, and Collinge & Co has enhanced its online offer in order to seamlessly interact with customers.
Charlie Collinge says: “We have recently invested in our platforms so that our clients have more choice than ever in communicating with us, whether it is over the phone, through social media, via SMS or making appointments online. Our new website is the starting point for all these conversations, welcoming, friendly and full of news and inspiration.”
A final word on the dawn of this new era from Andrew: “I’m delighted with the changes we are making. With the excellent teams we have, under the direction of Charlie, Collinge & Co has a very bright future.”
From the archives: Andrew Collinge receives royal recognition for inspirational commitment to learning.
