Barbers are a cut above!
TOWN BOOSTED BY MASSIVE SPIKE IN NEW SALONS - WITH MORE VARIETY THAN EVER
A HUGE influx of barbers over the last few years has seen the number in Huddersfield town centre swell to more than 40.
And there’s more variety than ever. Years ago there were only a handful and they were mainly staffed by white, middle-aged men but now the centre has developed a much more cosmopolitan feel with many Turkish and Kurdish young men offering everything from relaxing vibrating chairs to sophisticated shaves.
Daniel Cornea, 27, and his mother Camelia from Romania couldn’t have opened their Kamy’s hairdressing salon on Dundas Street at a worse time – December 2020 in the middle of the pandemic. But they have survived and have grown their workforce with five people now employed.
Daniel says: “It was very hard given the pandemic but we battled through it and it’s getting better and better with every passing day. I counted 42 salons the other day.”
Akam J, originally from Kurdistan who has been in this country for 20 years, and has worked at the Legends barbers on John William Street for several years, said: “It’s not a surprise in some ways, the market was there, it just needed to be exploited. It was very difficult during the pandemic and I don’t think it will ever go back to those prepandemic days.
“I think there are probably too many barbers in the town centre and I’m not sure they will all survive though I think there will be some more opening shortly.”
Alexa Marsden, 40, who has been involved in hairdressing since she was a teenager and who runs the upmarket Jon Laurence International Hair Design, in Brooks Yard, said: “It’s amazing, every time I walk around the town centre it seems another barbers has sprung up.
“I’m not sure how they all survive but they certainly have to work very hard as these guys are working seven days a week and often until the late evening.
“Nowadays it seems the centre is full of not much more than charity shops, nail bars, barbers and cafes.”
Huddersfield town centre analyst Stephen Knight said: “The recent explosion of barbers is a very interesting phenomenon.
“At one time there used to be only around three and going to have your hair cut was a major event with a cut-throat razor but they have grown out of all proportion.
“I guess men are a lot vainer these days and take grooming much more seriously. It’s funny that a lot of them seem to charge the same price for a haircut, £7.”