BLOG SPOT with Lance Liufau

A NEW ERA

Are we entering a new era of barbering?

As a seasoned barber that has been in the industry for almost 19 years now, I have noticed some things change and also some things that haven’t. I’ve also witnessed some things that have been good for the barbering industry and some things that weren’t so good. Among those years I to have experienced changes that has brought me both a lot of praise but also a lot of criticism and ridicule.

I think right now we are in the depths of change, because I have noticed so many different types of barbering environments, different styles of barbering and also a wide range of prices that is being charged for their services.

As we have come through the back end of the tunnel called Covid, it has become the new norm for so many to work from home. This is no different in the barbering industry. In this day and age, I have never seen so many home studios where a barber has converted their garage or a spare room in their house into a private studio.

Gone are the days that you are just cutting your mates hair on a stool with a towel wrapped around their back and we call them garage barbers. Some of these home studios are set up more professionally than some barbershops that I’ve seen. I also know a few barbers personally that work in a barbershop full time as well as have a home studio set up so they can also cut from home on the weekends.

Another work environment that I didn’t think I would ever see, is the fly in, fly out barbers. Who fly out to mining sites every week and have a barbershop setup on site, so they can provide a service for the workers. But there is a difference in the work that these barbers are doing, for it is not only to provide a barbering service/experience for these hard-working men and women.

But it is also to aid in the mental health of the mining workers also, because as we all know, speaking to our clients is just as important as the haircut itself. What these barbers have set up is called ‘Barber Share’ and I believe it was created by a gentleman by the name of Carlos Bishop, who started doing it on his own at first and now has a team of barbers that cover multiple mine sites.

This type of work is beautiful to see, because these barbers are doing work to help others through the skillsets that we use as barbers on a daily basis. Not saying that the rest of us aren’t doing the same, but for these barbers it is part of their objective and goals, that they make a conscious effort to focus on while they are providing their barbering experience.

There is one other area of the barbering industry that I have noticed change so much from when I first started barbering to now, that is the pricing of the services we provide. I have seen barbers that are staying conservative and affordable right up to barbers that are charging hundreds of dollars for their services and believe it or not, some of these barbers are doing it from the comfort of their own home studios.

So, my question is, what is the difference in what one is doing in comparison to the other. Because I am sure that if you were told today that you could put your price up to $150 per haircut and you only had to do four to six clients a day. I can guarantee that everyone would.

So, have we entered a new era of barbering? My question still stands.

Signing out like I usually do, Never stop learning, stay on your grind, and keep it TopShelf.

@lance_topshelfbarber