The Beginning
Where do I start?
When I was 16 I had no idea what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I was more concerned about my friends and when the next college house party was. Doesn’t every kid? It all changed that summer. I applied to go to Eastleigh College to attend a Nursing course. My mum's always said I was ‘good with blood’ and that they were crying out for nurses, so of course, that meant I had to please my mum. But, deep down I always knew I was artistic. I could never concentrate when it came to the academic side of school. I failed maths and science with flying colours. But I had gained many awards for my artwork. I was a debatable, over-opinionated nightmare at school. But I was great at the topics that those credentials required.
So I went along to the Nursing course, sat down for 2 hours of constant theory, ball-point pens and paperwork. Of course, I ran out of the room screaming in terror. It was the complete opposite of what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. Sorry mum, I tried.
I went to the reception desk and asked if they could re-assign me to a different course. They literally had one placement left out of 250 students, and that was in Hairdressing. The artist in me jumped at the chance. I carried on to the end of the course and I breezed through it in 7 months. I won ‘Student of the Year’ and ‘Hairdresser of the Year’ awards at college and began a hairdressing job in a local salon.
I loved it, but I was definitely stronger at cutting hair than colouring. There was something about the science behind it that I just couldn’t grasp and I was losing interest quickly. My boss at the time sent me on some courses at the Goldwell Academy in Mayfair, London where we practised colouring techniques, foiling, the usual ladies hair mumbo jumbo. I was all about ready to give up on the idea of being a hair artist, when on one of the last days we practised men's hair. It'd never occurred to me to try it out. So, I gave it my best shot.
I remember the first time I picked up a pair of clippers and its hard to explain… it was like a duck to water. All that time trying to force myself to learn ladies hairdressing, when men's hair just came so naturally to me. I had found my niche in a matter of minutes. That natural direction I was searching for. It was surreal, to say the least.
I went home, found a barbershop in the yellow pages and quit the ladies salon the next day. I’ve been a self-taught barber ever since. 13 years on and I’ve worked in 8 different salons and barbershops around Hampshire and Wiltshire. From my experience over the years in multiple shops, I can safely say I was always rubbish at taking orders from people, much like my dad who’s always been self-employed. I always struggled to find my place. I could never really work for other people. I'd get bored taking orders from ungrateful, sexist, vulgar bosses that never took me seriously as an artist, and more importantly, I never felt valued. But the passion for the craft has never left me. I'd never let it. I'd plod along dreaming one-day I would have the freedom to cut hair in my own time and wouldn't be whipped into cutting hair too fast to make the boss rich and happy. I wanted a place I could call my own. Where I'd make sure my own staff felt appreciated every day, and encourage their brilliant work in their own time, much like I'd never had. Selfishly, I knew I wanted more for myself and there is nothing wrong with that.
Some people think I'm a bit sad, some think I'm OCD, and most of my friends and family will tell you I should take regular holidays just to switch my hair/business brain off. But actually, I love it this way. I can't stand behind a man in the queue at the bank, or the post office without subconsciously assessing his hair or beard. I can't come home after a 10-12hr day stood behind the chair without sitting at the laptop working on editing photos or general running of the business.
The thing is, I see this as a good thing. Any barber with passion for their work is exactly the same, just ask them. They can spot mistakes or stray hairs on a man's haircut a mile off. Not because we're rude, but because we've trained our brains this way. To spot the detail, because it matters. It matters almost too much. But, this is what keeps us going and keeps us appreciated by our customers. If you keep looking for those mistakes and details, inviting new ideas, looking for new inspirations, keeping up to date with the latest styles, tools and products, you're constantly training your brain and it shows in your work. I am my own worst critic.
Come the summer of 2015, I left the last Barbershop that would ever treat me like I didn’t matter, and that's when Cresswell Barber Co. was born. We're coming up to our 5th year open, and we've gone from a team of 2 to 7! Everyday we grow stronger as a team and we constantly push ourselves to do better. After all, you have to love your job, right? We spend most of our lives at work. Seems pointless going if you don't enjoy it!