In the late 19th-century and early 20th-century, many German hairdressers found work in other European countries, and this led the German Union of Hairdressers and Assistants to build links with unions in those other nations.
In 1907, it organised a conference in Stuttgart, at which the International Union of Hairdressers was founded.
[1] The headquarters of the international trade secretariat were initially in Hamburg, but moved to Berlin in 1908.
In 1933, its headquarters moved to Copenhagen, and by 1935 it had affiliates in Czechoslovakia, Denmark, France, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden.
[1][2][3] The federation again became moribund during World War II, and after the war, unions of hairdressers instead joined the International Federation of Commercial, Clerical and Technical Employees.