Ted Gibson and Jason Backe, founder of the Worth-Up movement were awarded the inaugural Dream Capital awards during the 11th annual Beauty Changes Lives Experience last month. Sabra Clark, founder of the SoCal Lady Barbers event, owner of Straight to the Cut barbering studio and an educator at Bellus Academy was presented with a $10,000 check onstage by Gibson and Backe.
Finalists were invited to Chicago to participate in a pitch competition with Gibson and Backe heading the judging panel. While winning the award was a dream come true for Clark, an even bigger dream was meeting celebrity hairstylist Ted Gibson. “Watching 'What Not to Wear' I was mesmerized by Ted’s consultations with clients— how he cared for each and every person who sat in his chair and I wanted to be just like him when I ‘grew up’,” said Clark. “Meeting Ted Gibson was like meeting Elton John, Aretha Franklin or Whitney Houston—like them, he’s someone who changed the game. And Ted and Jason together are the perfect sushi roll of sparkle and awesome!”
The Beauty Changes Lives Experience has emerged as a platform for empowering next gen talent and spotlighting beauty as a first-choice career. “When I started barbering 17 years ago, there were no scholarships and the mentorship, support and esteem for this career just weren’t there,” said Sabra. “Today, barbering and hairstyling are first choice careers and we’re more than people who cut hair. We’re therapists, coaches, and changers of lives.”
Gibson and Backe founded Worth Up in 2021 to help beauty and wellness professionals “worth up” in their industry. Gibson, a star on the Blowing LA series, noted, “Equipping and empowering future hairstylists to own their worth is at the heart of what Jason and I seek to achieve with Worth-Up and is the mission of Beauty Changes Lives, so it was a natural fit.”
Sabra will invest the Dream Capital to elevate SoCal Lady Barber events. “I want to help lady barbers level up and take their place in the industry,” she said.