With salons shut, demand surges for DIY hair clippers, trimmers, shavers
‘Do It Yourself’ haircut becoming popular among residents, families
The demand for hair clippers, trimmers and shavers continue to surge as many residents are resorting to ‘Do It Yourself (DIY)’ haircut while staying or working at home amid the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. Such items, where prices range between QR35 and QR849 or higher, depending on the brand and quality, have become difficult to find in several stores in Doha, it is learnt.
Online searches on a number of hypermarkets also showed that sought-after brands for hair trimming are out of stock while available items, however, seemed to be too expensive for some customers. LuLu Group International
regional manager Shanavas P M told Gulf Times that the demand for these hair grooming kits started to increase after barbershops and salons were temporarily closed as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
He said many customers have been looking for hair clippers, multi-trimmers and beard shavers in their stores for the past weeks. Shavanas P M noted that new supplies are expected to be delivered next week as they already placed orders from Wahl and Philips. It is learnt that other hypermarkets also witnessed several customers who bought and are still ordering clippers and other trimming machines, which were only previously popular with barbers.
Apart from ‘DIY’, many parents also find it practical to own hair clippers and other accessories for family use, either for themselves or for their children.
“It’s a good skill to learn, it’s very useful because you not only save time and money, more importantly, it’s an enjoyable way to bond with your family,” said Lebanese expatriate Abbas Moussa, as he encouraged others to try it. He recently gave a hair cut to his two sons.
Filipino expatriate Dondie G, meanwhile, failed to find a clipper in a visit to a store and was contented using an ordinary scissor to do the ‘DIY’ haircut saying there is no need to make it as good as his barber does. However, he said he felt that an electric hair clipper can do the job efficiently and faster, especially “when doing it only by yourself.”
“I hope everything goes back to normal so I can see my barber but if this kind of situation will be the new normal then I think I will be needing a good machine and my wife has to learn hair cutting too,” Dondie said.
Some of the items posted online include Philips 13 in 1 multi trimmer for QR249, Babyliss 10 in 1 trimmer for QR149, Geepas hair clipper with five position attachment combs for QR35, Wahl all in one rechargeable grooming kit, and Wahl clipper for QR849, among others.