HBA National Winner · 2026
Hair Extensions Specialist of the Year
The Hair and Beauty Awards · AO Arena, Manchester
HBA National Winner · 2026
Officially the UK's best
On Saturday 15 August 2026, FAKE founder Kylie Hammond was named Hair Extensions Specialist of the Year at the The Hair and Beauty Awards, presented by Jake Quickenden at the AO Arena in Manchester.
Kylie was ranked first in the national top 100 published for her category, competing against thousands of entries from across the UK in her first year of trading in North Yorkshire.
Entries are submitted anonymously and assessed by a panel of three independent judges, each with at least ten years' experience in the field.
“Winning this after only a year of trading feels like an incredible achievement, but I've been working towards it a lot longer than that. I spent years in some of the best hair extensions salons in London, and after developing my own style of hair extensions, we decided we wanted to come back to North Yorkshire with the goal of building the number one hair extensions salon in the UK. Being crowned the UK's number one hair extensions specialist is just the start for us, but it's an incredible reward for the work we've put in over the last 12 months of trading.”
Kylie Hammond · Founder, FAKE
On the Night
Twenty years in the making
Kylie comes to the award with more than 20 years in the hair industry, including 13 years in stylist and management roles at London salons specialising in hair extensions and hair loss. Her clients included film and television actors, professional models and content creators.
She returned to North Yorkshire two years ago and set about creating a brand new way to make and fit hair extensions. Twelve months later she opened her studio at Crakehall, where she is constantly developing the technique further and now serves hundreds of clients from across the UK.
The Hair and Beauty Awards
The trophy sits in the salon
At FAKE we always held the belief that the art of hair extensions wasn't just taking hair from a packet and attaching it to someone's head. We like to think this award proves we were right.
This award represents not just a win for FAKE but a win for the UK's hair extension industry, by pushing the boundaries of what's possible with our tailor-made hair extensions.