All men know: There’s nothing in the world like a good shave. A good shave is like a fresh start. It’s the best start to your day, and it makes you feel like a million bucks.
Unfortunately for me, I hate shaving; my first love is for barbers. But a good barber is hard to find. In fact these days, any barber is hard to find. They’re like the dodo: we’ve seen them in Warner Brothers cartoons, but more likely than not, we don’t have one in our neighbourhood. I got curious this morning, so I went looking a bit and asked some questions.
Turns out, barbers had a huge drop in business because of the rise of HIV. In Canada, it’s the law for them to change their blades for every customer, so their costs increased along with that. I suspect this led to more barbers turning into hair salons, where profits were higher, especially when there’s customers galore. After all, people will never stop needing their hair cut.
Another factor is the increase in regulation, with them needing more complex licenses instead of the usual barbers’ ones. In Austin, Texas, where I lived for a while, a hairdresser needed to display their cosmetology license at all times while they were working, and there were random checks like at traffic lights. It seems absurd.
It’s likely the rise of the Gillette Generation had a lot to do with it too. It’s just cheaper and more convenient to do it at home, I’m guessing, and most people have no idea how great a good shave is. To me, it’s the ultimate luxury: the hot towel, the ability to just relax and let it happen. I think it makes me feel like a mob boss.
I got so desperate for a barber that I went to this place yesterday that once gave me a mullet by accident in 2005. This happened when he asked if I wanted the sideburns, which were long at the time. When I said no, he chopped them off from the top of the ear. I wore a hat for 2 months after that. But even he had stopped doing shaves– maybe I should be grateful.
Anyway, do you guys have barbershops in your towns? I know there’s one downtown here in Montreal, but I can’t think of any others. Maybe where I grew up in the suburbs, too, but I think they need a resurgence.
I’m hoping that the tough economy will lead barbershops back into it, trying to get business any way they can. Maybe it’ll happen. We’re going to need a bit of luxury in our lives.
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