Gentlemen Barber Academy, Kielce

Gentlemen Barber Academy is the training arm of the Gentlemen Barber Shop chain, and it runs from five branches: Kielce, Rzeszów, Katowice, Wrocław and Łódź. A correction worth making plainly, since older directory data recorded otherwise. There is no Warsaw branch.

Five programmes are offered. The beginner intensive, From Zero to Barber, is priced at 12,000 zł, the highest beginner fee among the Polish providers listed here. Alongside it run Science of Long Trim, covering precision cutting and longer styles; Art of Coloring, covering men’s colour from classic to modern; Salon Simulate, covering client service, organising the working day and teamwork in a simulated salon; and bespoke individual training. Course durations are not published and no dated intake calendar is available, so contact your nearest branch. Graduates receive the academy’s own certificate together with employment recommendations; there is no RIS registration.

On credentials in Poland: barbering is not a regulated profession, so almost every academy issues its own certificate. Two things do carry weight, entry in the Rejestr Instytucji Szkoleniowych (RIS), which opens up publicly funded routes through Urząd Pracy, KFS and BUR, and registration as a Niepubliczna Placówka Kształcenia Ustawicznego. Be sceptical of ISO numbers presented as accreditation: ISO 9001 and ISO 21001 are management-system certifications bought privately, not educational credentials.