9 minute read
BEARDS FOR PURPOSE
W/ JIMMY NIGGLES
If you haven’t heard of Jimmy Niggles then you’d most likely know his face - or more accurately - the heroic mane growing from it.
Advertisement
“David saw one of my very first portraits, by a photographer named Mr. Elbank”, Jimmy, real name Scott Maggs, explains. “It kinda went viral - people were getting tattoos of it and all sorts. Anyways, David did a little digging and found out why I’d grown it and asked me if I’d be interested in flying over to LA to take some snaps. I, of course, said yes.” Lost in the corridors of LA’s Milk Studios, Maggs was fortunate enough to witness Katy Perry dancing around with cupcakes on her breasts. Unfortunately, David eventually found him, and he was dragged into an adjacent studio somewhat begrudgingly. His experience with the photographer, who he describes as a cross between ”Andy Warhol and your best mate’s dad”, was, and still is underpinned by an intent to spread awareness for a deeper cause beyond capturing a very photogenic beard.
“Our mate Wes was killed by melanoma - the most deadly form of skin cancer,” he tells us, munching on a Manoush (which we’ll get to later). “He had a suss looking spot on his neck that he didn’t know was bad until it was too late. He was only 26 and it really shook us up. At his wake we decided to do something in his honour. A few schooners and some hearty chat later, we drilled down on skin checks.” Him and his mates got to researching and found that the most pressing issue was that no one was telling young blokes to get checked, a fact Niggles found astounding considering more than 95% of skin cancers can be successfully treated with early detection. More research found that 69% of Australia’s melanoma deaths are men, and, it’s the biggest cancer killer of young people. A few more pints and a chance encounter with a majestically bearded man, saw the inception of Beard Season, an organisation that asks men to grow their beards as life saving conversation starters, challenging everyone who asks about them to get a skin check. From having to be strong-armed by his girlfriend into investing in his first tub of AC Matte Clay because he “didn’t have much to splash at the time”, the now CEO is an inspiring professional and human we truly admire, both for his attention to his appearance and his selfless approach to life. Border bound by the unyielding pandemic, we caught up with him over the phone for a quick man-to-man.
Yo Jimmy, thanks so much for chatting to us. What’s happening?
G’day and thanks so much for the chat. I’m currently in Lakemba snacking on a Manoush in honour of our mate Dan Hutton. He passed away about this time last year from cancer and was one of the co-founders of Beard Season.
Dan put together a beautiful guide to living which was read out at his funeral and one of the points was “travel, even if it’s to Lakemba for some Manoush”. And here we are...
I didn’t even plan to be here which is even spookier… My beautiful old Range Rover caught on fire a couple of days ago - in the middle of the national park - which scared the bejesus out of me. Thankfully, my water bottle was full and I managed to put it out.
Anyways, it ended up being towed out here and I’m about to go pick it up from a lovely bloke called Ahmed who is hopefully fixing it as we speak. Guess how much it’s going to cost too? A grand total of $150. Yep. Lucky I got onto it early or it could have been a real catastrophe.
He actually couldn’t grow a beard so I reckon he’d think it was hilarious. At college together in Canberra we used to always have some kind of g-up happening to keep us entertained. That’s probably how the idea bubbled up. We had something called Wig-Off which would dovetail into end of year exams. Basically, you had to wear a ridiculous wig for as long as you could and if you caught someone else without it you ‘dewigged’ them. It helped ease the stress levels a bit and Wes was always a keen contender. He loved a gag and was always up for adventure. Smart, big hearted and warm. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer bloke. A country boy like me. We’re damn lucky to have known him but it’s horrible not having him around anymore. Although, there has been so many moments since he was taken from us that I swear he’s still around.
He sounds pretty wonderful, and you’re no stranger to meeting all kinds of brilliant people. What are some of the lessons you’ve learned over the years?
Hmm. One of my favourite lessons is ‘never be afraid to ask questions’. Absolute gold. Not only of others but yourself, too. It has kept me on track for a while now. Not only is it a great way of getting clarity it’s a great mantra to meet people.
Ever since we started Beard Season I set myself a challenge to meet someone new every day (which kind of led onto the growth of our Instagram). Asking them a question or two and challenging them to get checked. Try it! You’ll be surprised how much it expands things.
I met Sir Richard Branson in a Sydney hotel lobby because of it. Later that year he invited me to Necker Island for a week! Same thing happened with Chris Hemsworth. I saw that he was going to shave off his director’s beard so I reached out to the director and asked if he could do a shout out for Beard Season. Next thing, Hemsy is telling his 43+million fans on Insta to get a skin check which saved tonnes of lives.
And you met our very own David Raccuglia...
David is such a charismatic guy. Amazing hair, thick rimmed glasses and a well tailored suit. Confident. Full of energy and a razor sharp vision. He worked quick and smooth. A wonder to watch - let alone be part of. And still, those photos are in barbershops all around the world years and years later, hopefully spreading awareness about our cause and saving lives in the process.
2020 was a pretty tough year for most businesses. How has Beard Season fared?
Mate, the events of 2020 have thrown a massive spanner in the works. Around this time in 2019 we were just locking in our first big corporate partner. They funded over 1,000 skin checks over summer which helped us find 608 suspect lesions. A massive campaign which saved a LOT of lives. It really pushed us. We were on a roll attracting a lot of interest and potential partnerships. Then the bushfires hit, then the global pandemic. And now we’re in recession. It really derailed our plans.
But, our core supporters have been phenomenal. Particularly our board and our ambassadors. They’ve really risen to the challenge (grown some magnificent winter beards) and spread a lot of awareness about getting checked.
There’s a lot of uncertainty out there and charity is one of the first areas of the budget to be cut, so corporate donors are hard to keep on board. So, we’re focussing more on big, strategic funding sources.
We’re currently writing a grant application to get funding for an aspirational, BIG thinking initiative which we can’t wait to get up and running. Something we’ve been working on for more than ten years to bring to life.
And what about on a personal level?
Personally, the first few months of the pandemic were the toughest. But I love working from home so after we spent a bit of time recalibrating our strategy I just kept my head down. We also had a spectacular run of surf this season so that was a fine distraction. Plus, I just got married in March so the glow of that is still alive and well. Oh, and we got a pooch. A gorgeous little Groodle called Waggs (who is now humongous).
What are plans for Beard Season/yourself going forward?
Well, we’d love everyone who reads this to go and get a skin check with your GP / skin specialist. Just visit beardseason. com and hit ‘GET CHECKED’ to find your nearest clinic. And let us know how you go by sending a photo or video to @beardseason on Instagram. Then challenge at least five mates to do the same. It could save your lives.
For me, I’m locked in on this grant opportunity for the next little while, which would set us up for the next two to three years of pop-up skin check clinics around the country. Something which will hopefully give us the evidence we need to present a solid case in parliament for a federally funded national skin check program. Which would be a magnificent good to come from something so bad.
If you want to get involved please get in touch. The more great minds involved in this the better. Oh, and we also might have a more female focused campaign launching next year too. So hopefully we’ve got something for everyone under the sun.
Together, we can make melanoma… history.
BEACH TO BOARDROOM HOT-HITS
• The Stooges - I Wanna Be Your Dog • The Doors - Riders On The Storm
• Jungle - The Heat • DJ Kool - Let Me Clear My Throat (live) • Paul Kelly - From Little Things Big Things Grow
JIMMY’S
MILLION DOLLAR BEARD TIPS
1THE FIRST MONTH IS THE TOUGHEST. IT’LL BE ITCHY AND TAKE A LITTLE GETTING USED TO. JUST HOLD STRONG. THE REWARD IS WELL WORTH THE EFFORT. 21
2YOUR BEARD IS UNIQUE. DON’T BE WORRIED IF IT’S PATCHY, MULTI COLOURED OR RARE. IT’S YOURS. OWN IT.
3TREAT IT WELL. TAKE IT FOR A SWIM IN THE OCEAN EVERY NOW AND THEN, EAT WELL, EXERCISE, MAKE FRIENDS WITH YOUR BARBER AND USE QUALITY, NOURISHING BEARD OIL AND BALM.
4WEAR IT WITH PRIDE. BABIES MIGHT STARE. MEAT PIES, ICE CREAMS AND SOUP WILL NEVER BE EATEN THE SAME. BUT, IT’S A SYMBOL OF COMMITMENT. A BADGE OF HONOUR. DO NOT BE ASHAMED.
5MAKE SURE YOU’RE GROWING FOR GOOD. SIGN UP AT BEARDSEASON.COM AS ONE OF OUR #BEARDSEASONAMBASSADORS… MAKE IT COUNT. USE YOUR BEARD AS A WALKING TALKING BILLBOARD FOR EARLY DETECTION, INSPIRING YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO GET A SKIN CHECK WHILE RAISING FUNDS FOR OUR NATIONAL SKIN CHECK PROGRAM WHICH WILL SERIOUSLY SAVE LIVES. NOW THAT’S PRICELESS.
