Ichiro Shears: Professional Scissors Designed for Daily Salon Work
Ichiro Shears is designed around one clear goal: a scissor that performs reliably through a full day’s professional use, day after day. The range is built for stylists who cut frequently, who value consistency over novelty, and who want their tools to keep up with them. Production finishes in Saitama, Japan.
Built Around Professional Reality
Most professional stylists cut 8–12 clients a day. Over a working week, that’s 50–70 sets of cuts — thousands of snips. A scissor that performs well for the first 100 clients but starts to drag at 500 is not a professional scissor. Ichiro is designed with that daily reality in mind.
The range uses VG10 (V-Gold 10) cobalt-enhanced steel across its core models — the same steel grade as the Mina Shears premium range. Durability and edge retention are not compromised to hit a lower price point.
The Ichiro Range
Ichiro Classic
The flagship model. An offset handle and convex edge in VG10 steel — a combination that suits the widest range of cutting techniques and stylist preferences. Available in 5.0 to 6.5 inches.
The Classic is the natural starting point for a stylist new to Ichiro and works equally well as a long-term daily tool for experienced professionals.
Ichiro Slide
Ichiro’s specialist slide cutting scissor. Where the Classic uses a convex edge, the Slide uses a flat edge (sasa blade) — a deliberate choice. The flat geometry gives the blade a different resistance profile that works with the slide cutting motion rather than against it.
Slide cutting (also called stroke cutting or slithering) involves drawing the blade along the hair shaft to create texture, graduation, and blended ends. The flat edge allows this movement to be controlled and consistent.
For stylists who do significant volumes of slide cutting, a dedicated flat-edge scissor makes a noticeable difference.
Ichiro Thinning
The thinning scissor in the Ichiro range. 28-tooth design with a removal rate of 25–30% — effective for natural-looking volume reduction and blending.
The tooth count and spacing are optimised to leave clean, even results. The cut marks from a 28-tooth thinning scissor are harder to detect than from coarser designs, which is particularly important for fine or colour-treated hair.
Ichiro Apprentice
An entry-level scissor specifically designed for stylists early in their careers. The Apprentice uses 440C steel — a step below VG10, but still a professional-grade stainless with solid performance. The same quality inspection and tension adjustment process applies.
The logic: a student or new stylist is developing their cutting technique, sharpening frequently, and doesn’t need the edge retention of VG10 yet. The Apprentice provides a properly made professional scissor at a price appropriate to that career stage.
Why the Range Works as a Set
One practical advantage of the Ichiro lineup is completeness. A working stylist can equip a full set — cut, slide, thinning — from the same brand, at the same quality standard, with the same blade geometry and handling characteristics.
When all three scissors feel consistent in the hand, switching between them during a service becomes intuitive.
Finding Ichiro Shears
Ichiro Shears is available through Scissor Lab’s certified distributor network across more than 18 countries. Visit the Global Network page to find a stockist near you.
Distributors interested in carrying Ichiro Shears can reach us through the Partner page or contact form.