Barbers aim to cut way to record
Auckland men have the chance to be part of history, by signing up for a free haircut. Brendan Blake, better known as Bundy the Barber, is taking a run at the Guinness World Record for the most haircuts given in eight hours, as part of his fundraising efforts for Movember.
Blake, who owns the Boar and Blade Barbershops in Auckland and Wellington and has been barbering for 18 years, is assembling a team of his staff to achieve the world record for the most haircuts given by a team of 10 barbers in eight hours.
He has been given the thumbs up from Guinness World Records to try to beat the previous record of 375 haircuts. Bundy said the team are aiming for 400.
“I’ve got Movember backing me.”
Cancer prevention and mental health are issues close to Blake’s heart — he launched his barbershop in Ponsonby in 2012 and was diagnosed with testicular cancer in March 2013.
“I was diagnosed on the Monday and the doctor got me into surgery on Friday,” he said.
Having trained as a master barber in London, he had started his barbershop on “no budget”, had only one chair, and was desperately trying to keep it afloat during his recovery.
“I managed to keep the business going and keep surviving,” he said. His barbershop is now thriving. Blake is passionate about raising awareness for men’s health, including mental health awareness. His world record attempt will raise funds and awareness for the Movember Foundation, which tackles men’s health issues including cancer and mental health issues.
The team will hold the haircut day at the Britomart Country Club on November 18. They are currently recruiting men to book in for haircuts.
While they do cut women’s hair, they are aiming to keep haircuts to 10 minutes each, which may not be enough time for a woman’s haircut.
“You won’t get a good haircut in 10 minutes . . . you’ll probably be crying at the end of it.”
They will have special judges to make sure the haircuts are to a certain standard, and the team will be up on a stage where members of the public can watch them perform the challenge. Aside from two-minute breaks between each haircut, the team will keep going non-stop for eight hours.
Blake’s own record is 48 haircuts in one day of work.
“If we get the record we’ll be partying pretty hard.”
To donate to Blake’s fundraising cause, head to the Movember website, hit donate, and type in Bundy the Barber. People wanting to book in for a free haircut on the day can contact Blake through the Movember website or through his social media pages.
The event starts at 8.30am and finishes at 4.30pm.