Cultivating Community

INSIDE THE HEART OF BACKBONE BARBERSHOP’S UNIQUE CULTURE

BY LOUISE MAY

Sam Squires was inspired to change careers at 26 into the barber industry, after falling out of love with the corporate world. He studied business at university and worked in marketing for a number of years and was at a loss for passion, for the path he was on.

A friend was backpacking and so Sam decided to head out on a solo trip and discovered the bug for travel. Whilst in a hostel in the Atacama Desert, one of the people in his room asked if he would use his clippers and give him a haircut. Never one to turn down a challenge, he thought why not! The buzz that one haircut gave him to release his creative side, was enough to know that he had to explore the barbering industry. As soon as his now wife Loren and he returned to the UK, he began his training and hasn’t looked back since.

Editor of Barbershop mag – Louise May, recently caught up with Sam, to chat and find out more about his story.

What inspired you to open Backbone Barbers?

Anyone that knows me, knows that I don’t do things in halves. I always knew that the aim was to have my own business one day, not only to be my own boss, but also to allow me to create a community where I could teach and inspire other people to explore their passion for barbering. I opened our Currumbin store in 2018, with very little, but I knew that it was the right move for me. I worked in the shop alone for a while, building up a clientele and slowly attracted the right team to join and grow the business.

Starting with one store and now expanding to two locations in QLD, what challenges did you face in establishing and growing Backbone Barbers?

I expanded into a second location in the height of COVID taking on a larger space in an area with established barbers. The idea was to grow the shop and branch into an arm of some kind of barber education academy. I definitely bit off more than I could chew, and we also welcomed the birth of our daughter at that time which flipped our world and changed where I was able to put my energy.

We made the second location work for two years and made the decision to relocate to our Burleigh location which was the best move for our business. I learnt that in business you need to be prepared to pivot, I don’t see closing one store as a step back or a failure, I see it as huge growth for my personal development and for the business.

I was able to step back emotionally from the decision to relocate and look at it objectively. In hindsight, it has been the best decision, as the Burleigh location has allowed our community-based approach to continue. The location is down the road from my daughter’s kindy and my wife’s workplace, meaning I am now able to be a part of the drop offs and pick-ups, which is really important to me.

Launching a haircare range, Larrikin, is a significant step. Could you tell us more about the products in the Larrikin range and the inspiration behind their formulations?

Yes, it’s been something I’ve been toying with for years and developed from the early days of blending and formulating my own beard oils by hand, which became an absolute nightmare. I’ve always enjoyed exploring all aspects of the barbering industry and having multiple projects on the go at one time.

Larrikin has been an amazing creative outlet for me to explore. Styling hair is a huge part of the haircutting process and it’s really important to ensure you are working with products that aid you in creating the final look.

Larrikin has three products in the line so far.

Morning Glory Matte Paste

Unruly Pomade

Solt Texture Spray

Formulated in the Whitsundays, as an Australian-made product line, the brand concept is to bring the Larrikin out in all of us.

Our slogan is You’re a Maverick, You’re Wild, You cannot be tamed, Your Hair Can.

With an attempt to market the product to clients as easy to use and as low maintenance as possible that literally anyone can use Larrikin. Break free of the bravado and act up.

How do you manage to balance your personal and professional life, and what advice do you have for others in similar situations?

I’d feel a fraud giving advice on how to balance being a family man and owning businesses but can honestly say it’s become number one on my priority list in recent years. It’s safe to say you lose a little of your identity as you get older and have kids and it’s easy to mistake this amazing industry and being a barber/ business owner etc as your identity.

I’ve been working really hard to appreciate how fortunate I am and practice gratitude daily. It’s super easy to get caught up in the rat race and forget what truly matters. If my daughter asked me this exact question, I would tell her to remember that her identity is made up of lots of parts and it’s important to take the time for yourself, your family and to explore different creative outlets.

When you are fulfilled in all aspects of life, this overflows into your working environment and improves your standard of work and the experience you are providing to each of your clients.

The barbering industry is known for its unique culture and community. How has Backbone Barbers contributed to and embraced this culture, both within the team and in your relationship with clients?

Backbone has been at the forefront of growth and development in the barber community. We have made it a priority to get involved in all different types of education, barber events, aligning with products we love and taking any opportunity to learn, teach and inspire others and each other over the past 5 years.

We are lucky enough to have a team of people that originated from all over the world, so it’s become second nature to integrate a lot of the international barber styles and trends into our work.

For me personally, I get great joy out of exposing our apprentices to the industry and love seeing their passion sparked from the barbering community. Their excitement is contagious, and it allows the rest of the team to remind themselves of why they are in the industry, refine their skills and create outstanding cuts for our clients.

Within our local community we are looking to partner with more local businesses in this upcoming year, as we have noticed that not only do our clients come back for the great haircuts, but they want to be a part of the culture and community.

By always refining our skills, being active in the barbering work and creating a community within our business we have been able to retain our clientele, some of our clients I have watched graduate high school and start their adult lives, which is really special. I feel honoured to say that we have been able to build these relationships in our business.

In the competitive world of barbering, establishing a brand identity is crucial. How did you develop the distinctive personality of Backbone Barbers, and how do you maintain it across both locations?

A major focus of our branding was actually on the quality of service and accessibility/ convenience and approachability of the shops. We keep a succinct brand across two locations, but the new renovation has moved away from our original themes “Backbone Green” as I jokingly call it with my wife.

We’ve had great success recently in showing off our barbers personalities in the Backbone Barbershop spaces and portraying a community focused, quality service by barbers that are approachable and fun and friendly. Ultimately, we want it to be an environment that welcomes and delivers.

We believe that the brand is developed by the people, both barbers and clients. We are always looking to grow with likeminded people who are in the industry for passion. We are a team made up of barbers from all walks of life and we attract this in our clientele too.

If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be?

Potentially at the moment, I would change the narrative on the rush to get away from behind the chair. I’ve been guilty of it and realise the more time and energy you spend trying to move from behind the chair the lower the quality you deliver and potentially the longer you’ll be stuck doing something you don’t want to do! I feel like we should celebrate how fortunate we are to be in this amazing industry.

With the ever-evolving landscape of the industry, what future plans do you have for Backbone Barbershop and yourself personally?

I want to keep developing our barbers and junior barbers within Backbone and potentially grow to more locations with the right people involved. Personally, I will be continuing education and training new barbers, as it’s a passion of mine potentially exploring a different approach in the education space, looking at some business education from a super realistic day to day business owner approach.

We are getting trapped into believing everyone is making millions without being happy with our current accomplishments. Also, I want to grow the Larrikin Brand and get creative within that space. I’m looking forward to attending some amazing barber events this year and working with some awesome people and brands! Hopefully write a bit for you guys too.

@backbonebarbershopburleigh @backbonebarbershopcurrumbin Photography by Dylan Marks: @dylanmarks_