POWER RANGER

By Rex A.C. Silver

Anthony Nafatali is a dedicated and driven young barber who has proved that with determination and hard work, you can achieve your goals sooner than you think if you open your mind to the possibilities.

He is a National Educator for Barber Temple, on the Wahl National Education Team Member and the owner of Our Way Studio.

THIS IS ANTZ THE BARBER…

Growing up as a shy kid in Inala my main interests were sports and athletics with rugby league being my first dream, but it was so hard to chase as my dad didn’t let me play because I was a fragile skinny kid. When my dreams of being a rugby player were crushed, I then wanted to be something more realistic such as a Power Ranger ha-ha!

I was a reserved kid who would always keep to myself and spent a lot of time playing the Xbox 360 in my room. I was brought up in a Samoan family where culture and family are very important. I watched my dad work very hard to provide for my mum, me and my four siblings. So, these are strong values I strive for as an adult now from being embedded as a child.

THE HAIR JOURNEY

I was in a job where I was unhappy and knew I needed to do something different. I always had an interest in haircut transformations and found myself indulging in haircut videos and tutorials on YouTube.

I then reached out to a friend Elijah Peleti, owner of Prophet Cutz who took me under his wing. Still working a 9 to 5 job, after work, I would drive 45 minutes to his shop to learn. I started practising clipper movements on a piece of paper with printed guidelines, shortly after moving on to a live model. Elijah bought me my first clippers which were the Wahl 5 Star Cordless Senior Clipper. Taking in the knowledge I was learning each weekend I would practise on family and friends.

About 6 months into training, I was so eager and applied at a few barbershops but got knocked back for lack of experience. I then applied at Tommy Guns, Garden City where they took me on as an apprentice.

I was confident in my skill but knew I still had so much to learn; my biggest weakness was scissor work (it didn’t help that I had budget scissors), but wanted to get a stronger understanding of sectioning patterns, constantly educating myself by watching videos to help further my knowledge. Discovering Josh Lamonaca early was a big pivoting point in my career watching him push boundaries and having no limits to creativity was something I wanted to step into.

Into a year of barbering my progression and passion were growing rapidly and the thought of passing on the little knowledge I had to up-and-coming barbers was something I wanted to pursue. A good friend of mine Philip Binuya and I held a fade workshop at Always Will Be Coffee Barbershop. After this workshop, I knew education was my next goal and what I needed to work towards.

8 months later I was presented with a huge opportunity to be a full-time Educator for Barber Temple. I questioned myself as to why I was chosen to become an Educator in such a short time frame, but I strongly believe my passion and drive for the industry made me stand out.

Starting at Barber Temple I was able to travel all over Australia to barbershops and salons, upskilling apprentices and sharpening the skills of qualified barbers and hairdressers.

A huge milestone in my career was joining the iCandy Scissors All-Star education team alongside some huge names in our industry. Shortly after this I participated in an intensive training session with Wahl Australia’s Global artistic director, Simon Shaw and was then offered to be part of the national Wahl Australia education team.

One of my biggest highlights so far was being on the main stage at the New Zealand Hair and Beauty Expo and touring around New Zealand.

OUR WAY BARBER STUDIO

Our Way Barber Studio officially opened its doors on the 8th of July 2023. Our team consists of Philip Binya, an ambitious barber who is always happy to take constructive criticism and upskill himself, as well as myself. We are focused on growing the studio and will be expanding our team shortly in the future.

Our space is calm, collective, and welcoming to a diverse clientele. It is a place where you won’t be rushed, and your wants and needs are listened to whilst experiencing a high-end service.

The meaning behind the name is that we are doing things differently (Our Way). We take pride in delivering quality customer service, haircuts, and overall experience. We are not the standard barbershop we allow lengthy appointments and extra inclusions such as complimentary hair wash and scalp massage, free drink, hot towel, cold towel, neck shave and a spritz of a high-end cologne to finish off the service.

TOOL TALK

My scissors of choice are iCandy Scissors Australia and I am blessed to have the entire range. For precise cutting, I use an All-Star 5.5 inch. The sleek handling allows me to have full control over my scissor cuts. Also being lightweight allows for such amazing dexterity.

For scissor-over comb, I use the Sword Pro 6.1 inches. Having a bigger scissor covering more ground allows me to move around the head more efficiently and with the scissors being Japanese VG10 stainless steel they have no trouble getting through any type of hair.

Wahl has been in my tool kit since I first picked up a set of clippers. You can’t go wrong with any of the Wahl professional range and my go-to’s are my cordless Super Tapers, Cordless Detailer Li trimmers and the 5 Star Finale Foil Shaver. Super tapers pack a punch for such a lightweight clipper, the taper blade works well with all types of hair giving you the ease to scoop out and eliminate fade lines. I also use the Super Taper for clipper over comb, free handing and sculpting which is why I love them because the Super Tapers are so versatile.

HAIR CARE AND STYLING

For styling, I’ve been loving dry textured finishes and for pre-styling, I use The Bearded Chap Sea salt spray. I love the grit that it gives also the scent is so refreshing. Another favourite I’ve been using is Uppercut Clay applied to damp hair and then blow drying it in it to give a stronghold with a nice dry finish. Also, the Club Dark Texture Powder is a game changer for people with finer hair filing in light spots and adding a crazy amount of texture.

Lastly can’t forget beard grooming products from The Bearded Chap. My personal favourite is starting off with the Rugged beard wash and then finishing off with the Tobacco and Vanilla beard oil, I love the masculine and fresh scent this gives off while also moisturising the skin. All products are huge sellers in my studio.

SHARING PASSION AND KNOWLEDGE

My first official educational workshop for Barber Temple was at Bundaberg TAFE with Kayne Thomas also known as Clipper Kayne. This workshop consisted of a look-and-learn component, followed up with a hands-on session where the attendees were able to put what they had learnt into action.

Being a part of the Barber Temple education team opened the door for two companies in our industry to notice me and take me in to be a part of their teams. I still remember it like it was yesterday talking to Mark and Vicky Conrad from iCandy and receiving my first scissor kit from them, It was such an amazing feeling. Last year I was able to present the new sword collection on stage at the Elevate event held at Barber Temple with over 150 barber and hairdresser attendees, What an eventful night to be able to educate for the iCandy All-Star team. I felt like I was in my element showcasing my creative side using the new Sword Pro Scissors.

To be part of the Wahl National Education Team we had to complete an intensive train-the-trainer program learning about product knowledge, and also picking up new skills on how to educate from the other educators on the team. Having the Global Artistic Director of Wahl Simon Shaw attend, was such an inspiration After the training we held the launch of the new Cordless Legend Clipper.

I have facilitated many apprentice bootcamps with one of my most memorable being a 10-day bootcamp for Legends Barbershop. All attendees were beginners with no barbering skills and at the end of the 10 days, they had the knowledge and skills to be on the floor. And I am proud to say all are still current apprentices with Legends who I continue to visit and educate regularly.

The satisfaction of seeing people learn and take in knowledge even if it is just one thing makes educating so rewarding. Experiencing the educational side of our industry in such an early stage of my career, the amount of information I was constantly taking in felt like a sponge as I was still learning along the way.

FUTURE NEWS AND PLANS

I am always striving for more and have many more goals to accomplish. So, keep an eye out for Our Way studios planning to open soon and we are planning to get a team together for Our Way Education, to bring the education standard to the next level.

@ourwaybarberstudio

@barbertempleaus

@antzthebarber

@wahlproaus