WORLD BARBER CLASSIC 2026 holds its Grand Final on November 2, 2026.
Event flyer (courtesy of the organizer)
2025 GRAND FINAL
The Grand Final
- Event WORLD BARBER CLASSIC 2026 Grand Final
- Date Monday, November 2, 2026
- Time OPEN 10:00 – CLOSE 19:00 (provisional information from the organizer)
- Venue Korakuen Hall
- Admission Advance ¥4,500 / Door ¥5,000 / Students ¥3,500 / Free for high school students and younger (source: official event website)
- MC ATSUSHI KUNIMOTO (ENTRUST BARBER)
- Organizer ファイヤーワークス株式会社 ブロッシュ事業部
NK Supply will invite 10 people, chosen by lottery. The invitation is for one person (the entrant), and winners do not pay admission. Companions enter with a general admission ticket (prices as listed above; source: official event website). Entries close on Monday, October 19, 2026 (Japan time). Only winners will be contacted, at the email address provided.
Enter the WORLD BARBER CLASSIC 2026 invitation lottery
10 people will be invited by lottery
The finalists selected through preliminaries in 8 areas of Japan and 3 overseas:
- Tohoku 金子 俊也 (BARBER WAKATSUKI)
- Chubu BRUNO (SPINNER BARBEARIA)
- Chugoku-Shikoku 日野 周策 (HAIRS SHU)
- Kyushu 藤井 貴康 (BUDDIES CUT CLUB)
- Kansai CAPTAIN JUN (BarberStudio RAFTEL)
- Okinawa 尾崎ゆうと (B.B.cam's)
- Kanto MR. CLASSIC EIKI (MANCHIES BARBER CLUB)
- Hokkaido 松橋 彪太 (YUZEN BARBER)
- Taiwan PROFESSOR CHENG (PINANG BARBERSHOP)
- Malaysia AHMAD MANSOR (FLESH & BLOOD BARBER COMPANY)
- Korea GGAN (85s BARBERSHOP)
Coverage of each area preliminary (official event Instagram)
- Tohoku｜April 6 NIGHT CLUB 101 SENDAI
- Chubu｜May 4 とよはし産業人材育成センター (Toyohashi)
- Chugoku-Shikoku｜May 18 EIGHT
- Kyushu｜May 25 The Voodoo Lounge
- Kansai｜June 8 pure
- Okinawa｜June 15 1st hall
- Kanto｜July 6 PBOX-STND (Shibuya PARCO 10F)
- Hokkaido｜July 20 Sapporo Factory Hall
2025 GRAND FINAL
2025 GRAND FINAL (photo courtesy of the organizer)
2025 GRAND FINAL winner (photo courtesy of the organizer)
2025 GRAND FINAL audience (photo courtesy of the organizer)
Voices of the finalists
From each representative's own account, after the preliminaries.
Tohoku 金子 俊也 ── A photo with friends the day after his win. He has pinned this post to his profile.
Chubu SPINNER BARBEARIA ── “A view I could never have reached alone.” Last year's winner also came from the same shop. This, they say, is only a stepping stone.
Chugoku-Shikoku 日野 周策 ── His first try. He won an 18-barber battle, sticking with the pompadour all the way through. At 50 this year, he heads to the world stage representing all 18.
Kyushu 藤井 貴康 ── Took his “revenge for last time” and became Kyushu's representative
Kansai CAPTAIN JUN ── It all goes back to a crushing defeat at the first event seven years ago. An entry two days before the deadline, 20 mannequin heads, practice until late at night.
Okinawa 尾崎ゆうと ── Barber battles are the only place to cut in front of a big crowd. He will march into Korakuen Hall in geta, traditional wooden sandals.
Kanto MR. CLASSIC EIKI ── Two years after missing selection in 2024, he stayed true to the classics and rose to the top of a field of 12. He carries the hopes of the other 11 to the world stage.
Hokkaido 松橋 彪太 ── His profile displays his result: “2026 WORLD BARBER CLASSIC Hokkaido preliminary 🥇”
Taiwan PROFESSOR CHENG ── Posted a creative cut & fade he finished himself, as a behind-the-scenes shot from the competition
Malaysia AHMAD MANSOR ── Opening the prize sent by the organizer
Korea GGAN ── When he started modeling in his twenties, people asked him, “Can someone like you really become one?” When he started barbering, they asked, “What even is a barber?” He writes: “Just as iron becomes a hard blade by being struck again and again, the sweat shed unseen and the nights spent sharpening myself do not lie.” He closes with: “My next stage is already decided. I will do my best on the stage in Japan, too, and come home.”
About WBC
Its official name is Head 2 Head -WORLD BARBER CLASSIC-. The organizer describes the event as “the world's largest barber battle where skill, style, and culture collide.”
Judging is not limited to technique. The energy that draws in the crowd and the presence a barber commands on stage also count as part of the competition.
The first event, held in January 2020 at Osanbashi Hall in Yokohama, included “presentation time” among its judging criteria, something barber battles of the time did not have.
From Japan to the world, from the world to Japan. In addition to the preliminaries in 8 areas of Japan, this year representatives from Taiwan, Malaysia, and Korea also advance to the Grand Final.
In 2026, “Head 2 Head” was added to the event name. “Head” refers both to the barbers facing each other and to each head their hands touch — the hair itself. The name carries the meaning of a head-on contest with nowhere to hide.
Sources: Head 2 Head -WORLD BARBER CLASSIC- official website and the event's official Instagram (the name-change announcement of April 2, 2026)
NK Supply's sponsorship
-Background and reasons-
NK Supply has been involved in many events over the years as a sponsor, supplying capes.
The reason lies in the concept we have held since our founding: “liberating the identity of barbers.” That is because we believe it will take a decade or more for society to understand this way of thinking.
Making an original cape for each event has become an important part of shaping that event's branding. In the same way, the importance of branding tools for each shop should gradually come to be more widely understood as society changes.
Our more perceptive customers have already noticed how important this is. That is exactly why they adopt our capes without hesitation, even though they are expensive.
About 20 years ago, there was no such practice. Apart from a very small number of brands, even the word “branding” was not yet in common use.
Today, however, anyone who runs a business knows how important branding is.
What we should keep in mind is that, now that it has become this commonplace, branding alone no longer sets you apart from others.
That is exactly why NK Supply recommends CBC (Custom Barber Cape): so that each shop can express its own aesthetic through its capes, just as it does through its interior.
We hope to cover this on another occasion.
Inquiries about CBC are growing every year. Whether this assessment was right should become clear in anywhere from several years to a decade or more.
Looking back at 2024–25
2024, Kyushu area
2024, Hokuriku area
2024, Kyushu area
The 2026 cutting cape
The Head 2 Head -WORLD BARBER CLASSIC- 2026 cutting cape, made for the Grand Final.
2026 cape｜Full view
2026 cape｜Logo
2026 cape｜The “2026” lettering
2026 cape｜Folded
2026 cape｜Snaps and woven label
2026 cape｜Edge
Enter the WORLD BARBER CLASSIC 2026 invitation lottery
10 people will be invited by lottery
WORLD BARBER CLASSIC official Instagram
Organizer ファイヤーワークス株式会社 ブロッシュ事業部
Sponsor THE BARIKAN by Panasonic
In cooperation with BarBer & Apparel NK Supply (production and supply of cutting capes)
Photos: 2024 Kyushu and Hokuriku areas / 2025 GRAND FINAL (some courtesy of the organizer) / 2026 cape (NK Supply) / Flyer: courtesy of the organizer
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WORLD CUT JAM 2026 in 広島｜A cape drawn in one stroke