American Crew Names All-Star Champion

ITALY: American Crew, a professional leader in men’s grooming, announced Sergiy Shapochka from Ukraine as the Champion of the 2014-2015 All-Star Challenge, an annual global competition to recognize the best men’s hair stylist in the world.

Thousands of stylists from 26 countries submitted their interpretation of the American Crew man: the personification of a brand whose roots were inspired by the classic men’s grooming and styling trends of the 1940s and 1950s. After preliminary events in their home countries, 15 finalists were flown to Rome, Italy, for a head to head competition. For the final round, each stylist was given 30 minutes to shoot and select a photo to represent their final cut to the judges.

“The American Crew man is one who modernizes the classic looks that inspired the creation of our brand.,” insisted Paul Wilson, artistic director, American Crew. “That’s what Sergiy accomplished today. Sergiy’s winning look is a unique representation of the groomed pompadour.”

Finalists who made the final cut by flying to Rome included: David Andreas Kyrkiris, Canada; Kevin Birk, Denmark; Guillaume Fort, France; Marcel Kuchenbrod, Germany; Zsanett Fabian, Hungary; Sergio Criscino, Italy; Armando Rivas De La Cruz, Mexico; Inger Lise Moa, Norway; Jaime Ruiz Tello, Peru; Krzysztof Chodorski, Poland; Raul Santana, Spain; Homan Taghizadeh, Sweden; Leonard Cakolli, Switzerland; Sergiy Shapochka, Ukraine; and Alyssa Brasket, US.

“Since its inception 20 years ago, American Crew has been committed to supporting stylists,” said David Raccuglia, founder of American Crew. “The All-Star Challenge provides the ultimate platform to highlight the incredible talents of these artists who set the trends for men’s grooming and style across the world.”