Sitting pretty
Male beauty booms in Pakistan
● Nails are buffed, blackheads scrubbed and coffee sipped to the sound of clipping scissors at Men’s salon in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, where a growing number of male patrons are set on revamping their style.
Deeply conservative Pakistan has strict notions of masculinity; men are often expected to be austere, and flamboyant styling is to be avoided. But savvy entrepreneurs in urban centres have latched on to a new metrosexual trend: male beauty salons.
While women in urban Pakistan have long enjoyed access to beauticians and stylists, expensive facials and mani-pedis for men are becoming more common as disposable incomes grow — per capita income jumped by 6.4% last year.
A vibrant social media culture has also fuelled the desire to be selfie-ready at any time, with influencers such as actors Adnan Malik and Osman Khalid Butt attracting hundreds of thousands of followers online with their fashion-conscious posts.
At Men’s, owned by Tauseeq Haider, customers usually fork out a minimum of 1 400 rupees (R150) for a visit — about seven times what they would spend at traditional barber shops.
“Men have an equal right to be groomed and times have changed. It’s no more just getting your hair cut,” says Haider.
“Senior citizens, bureaucrats, they don’t feel ashamed of saying ‘I need a facial, massage, my nails need to be done, please suggest what should I get,’ ” he adds.
In rural Pakistan, men have traditionally taken their fashion tips from Islamic dictates, with the Koran specifying the length of beard and moustache along with hygiene guidelines.
And in the cities, Bollywood and Western entertainment have long driven fashion trends for conscientious groomers.
But times are changing fast in the rapidly developing South Asian nation, with social media setting and wrecking trends in urban centres at the speed of a swipe.
According to Lebanese salon owner Michael Kanaan, who has been based in Pakistan for more than a decade, rising wages and greater exposure to global culture are fanning the burgeoning demand.
“The Pakistani male is becoming more metrosexual. It is all due to the internet and the age of satellites and TVs,” says Kanaan.
Economist Minhajul Haque agrees, saying a slew of online advertising has reinforced the trend. “There is this whole lot of clever marketing of male beauty products which is spurring demand,” he says.
Humayun Khan, 49, says he is fine with spending more money to look good and his
The Pakistani male is becoming more metrosexual Michael Kanaan Salon owner
wife is supportive of the new passion.
“I . . . get my nails done, get my hair cut, get my facial and I am done for the day and after two weeks I come again,” he says.
“If I don’t look good, my wife wouldn’t like me,” he says, laughing.
Stylist Ghulfam Ghori says Pakistani men are also now more concerned with skincare, opting for blackhead removal, acne treatments and even the occasional brush with makeup before events such as weddings.
“Men are very conscious about their skin now . . . and consider it essential to get facials,” says Ghori.
But it’s not just the salons that are cashing in. Zafar Bakhtawari, chairman of the D Watson Group, one of Pakistan’s biggest pharmacy chains, explains: “There is a revolution in Pakistan in the male psyche that they are becoming very conscious about their beauty, about their face, about their hair, about their dress, and it’s a great revolution.” — AFP