Umberto Lehmann
Since 1989, he has won more than 400 international grooming competitions as a judge and has given grooming demonstrations at more than 450 seminars in the U.S. and other countries such as Ukraine, Russia, Taiwan, India, Brazil, Japan and China. In 1987, he received the Cardinal Crystal Grooming Achievement Award in the International Groomer of the Year category.
He opened his first grooming salon in Milan in 1985 after working in dog breeding, shows and training. He began teaching training and specialization courses at his grooming school and has trained more than 500 students. Between 1985 and 2001 he won several gold and silver medals in the USA, Europe and Canada in the disciplines of Poodle, Handstripping, Purebred Scissoring and Spaniel. He was a member of the Italian team that came third in the 1996 World Team Championships in Intergroom, USA. In 2001 he was part of the European team that came second in the World Team Championships in Canada.
In 2018, he received the "Shirlee Kalstone Global Achievement" award from Groom Team USA, which recognized his extraordinary efforts in connecting grooming competitions and educational programs on an international level, bringing the World Team Championships to Olympic proportions.
He has judged the Easter Tournament of Champions four times: 1997 in New York, 1999 in France, and 2005 in Germany. In 2008, in Las Vegas.
He has also received two Lifetime Achievement Awards, one from England (Liz Paul Award at the Master Groom Show) and the other from Spain (at the Artero Grand Slam).
Chiara Piccionetti
She is a spokesperson for the most prestigious companies in the sector, also abroad, and a judge in all categories of the EGA (European Grooming Association). She was a judge at the 2015 World Grooming Championships, was voted the best judge of 2014 by Italian groomers and, together with Simona Chelli, is the creator and organiser of Romeo Grooming, an interactive grooming competition whose proceeds go entirely to charity.
She has held seminars in various countries around the world, including Belgium, Spain, Russia, Korea, Malaysia, Ukraine and Sweden. Over the years, Chiara has trained several groomers who have excelled in their skills and abilities, winning several grooming competitions. She is a founding member and President of the F.N.T. (Federazione Nazionale Toelettatori) and has actively worked for the recognition of the grooming category. Chiara is also the owner of the grooming salon "Eur Toelettatura", founded in 2001.
Romana Kania
She has won several gold, silver and bronze medals as well as Best in Show and Best All-round Groomer awards in both Europe and America. In 2005, she won the Oster Invitational Tournament of Champions in Germany with a Bichon Frise.
She has also published many articles on dog grooming in Czech Doggies magazines. As a poodle lover, she enjoys agility and dog shows. Her medium sized poodle became Best of Breed, World Winner and was nominated for Group IX at the World Dog Show in Helsinki, Finland in 2014.
Romana is one of the founders of the Czech Association of Dog Groomers. She is also a member and judge of the E.G.A. (European Grooming Association).
She also owns a highly successful grooming salon in Prague, Czech Republic.
Daniela Duarte
Daniela Duarte, from Portugal, has been a grooming professional for 15 years and is also a breeder of Poodles.
She teaches numerous seminars specializing in grooming techniques, has placed on the podium at several international grooming competitions, and holds several national and international champion titles in beauty dog shows.
She also has her own grooming salon in Portugal where she spends most of her time.
Irina Lobach
Irina Lobach, of Russian origin, lives and works in Aveiro, Portugal. She has participated in numerous championships in Portugal, France, Belgium, Spain, England and Russia. She has won several podiums in various championship categories and has given seminars in various countries such as Portugal, Spain, Russia, Colombia and Mexico.
She started her career in grooming in 2014 and has since opened her own grooming salon.
In 2016, she won the Top Groomer Portugal award and the following year she was a member of the Portuguese team at the World Cup.
In 2017, she joined the Artero creative team and has been Artero's brand ambassador since 2023.
For Irina, grooming is an art and an animal is a work of art. A dog before grooming is a blank canvas on which she feels ready to create a true masterpiece, using scissors as a paintbrush.