Male Barber of the Year Kealan Delaney from Arklow with Social Media Star awardee Jamie Duffy at the Irish Barber Awards 2025 at The Sugar Club in Dublin.
A 22-year-old Wicklow man has capped off a whirlwind year by being crowned Male Barber of the Year at the Irish Barber Awards, marking a major milestone on a journey that began cutting his brother’s hair during lockdown.
Still coming to terms with the massive industry nod he received at The Sugar Club, Arklow native Kealan Delaney could scarcely have imagined that a hobby born out of necessity at the height of Covid would lead to a job at a leading Galway barbershop, a sizeable social media following, and the validation of his peers.