A WIRRAL salon was the first in the borough to offer specialised precision cutting and blow styling when it first opened its doors 50 years ago.
Christopher Boyton, 78, from Prenton first started hairdressing when he was 17 years old and was training as an apprentice in Pride salon in Liverpool.
After working in multiple salons in the city, when he was 28, Christopher opened his first salon, Christopher Boyton Hair Salons, in Birkenhead.
Christopher told the Globe: “I never had ambitions to open my own place. When I worked in salons in Liverpool, I always saw my future being a manager of one of those.”
Three years later after the success of his first salon, Christopher was offered to opportunity to open a second base in Heswall.
He said: “By that time, after opening my first salon, we were really busy, and we had people visiting us from all over.
“We were offering cutting and blow drying which was a new thing back then and no other salons were doing it.
“A friend of mine had opened a sauna in Heswall which didn’t work out and he was selling the premises and offered it to me, so I thought I’d open a second salon.”
The Heswall salon opened on Pensby Road which has since moved to its current residence on Telegraph Road.
Christopher Boyton Salons celebrated its 50th year anniversary in February, an occasion Christopher said “amazes” him.
He said: “It feels like yesterday since we opened, I can’t believe how old I am.
“It amazes me when I look back and see how long it’s been.
“I remember years ago when I used to cut older client’s hair and they’d tell me they don’t feel old and now that’s how I feel.”
Since starting hairdressing 60 years ago, Christopher has noticed all the latest styles come and go from short crops to long waves.
He said: “When I first started hairdressing that was the beginning of cutting shapes into the hair.
“People stopped having their hair styled like the Queen or Margaret Thatcher and started getting modern hairstyles which were done using rollers or blown dry.
“Lots of young people had short styles back then whereas now there aren’t as many young people with short hair.
“Colour is also a much bigger thing now than it was. It’s not very common to see a young person who hasn’t coloured their hair now.”
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