Hairstyles and shifting trends- The changing world of male grooming

 Men getting their hair done Photo: Courtesy

Recently, a family friend in his early 50s went to his barber for the usual haircut. On noticing the scattered grey hairs on his head, the enthusiastic barber suggested a "tint". My friend was a bit confused by the unusual offer.

"You mean apart from shaving you also provide tinting services"? he asked. "Yes we do, and it doesn't take long. We can make everything disappear," the barber answered.

My friend was even more startled.

After some time, it was obvious that the two were looking at the 'tint' issue from different perspectives. The barber wanted his client to consider colouring his hair and hiding the grey hairs that made him look older than he was.

On the other hand, my friend was thinking about his car parked outside the mall which already had tinted windows. He saw no need for further tinting.

Needless to say that the two had a good laugh.

 The trends are changing Photo: Courtesy

The above scenario illustrates the changing face of male grooming or 'manscaping' as one lifestyle blog calls it. The modern man is taking on beauty services that his older counterpart would have frowned upon. Just think of what the haircut entailed a few decades ago.

Back in the day, a man would go to the local barber, who would often be found under a tree near the shopping centre. Using an old manual clipper, or the good old pair of scissors, he would get on the job without even asking the client about his preferred style.

The client would check on the progress by looking in a mirror hung on the tree, which more often than not would give the wrong perspective owing to the vertical crack that divided it into two halves.

 The entire job – lasting ten minutes – would cost no more than 30 shillings.

That was then. Today, an average urban male needs no less than an hour and a half for his hair beauty regime. First comes a meticulous haircut that takes 40 minutes.

Then the ladies of the house take over and wash your head, thereafter applying all manner of disinfectants, oils and facial scrubs meant to remove dead facial skin.

 A gentle, light massage ends the treatment. For this, a man should be ready to part with a minimum of Sh500, depending on the barber shop and its location.

 Celebrities are setting the trends Photo: Courtesy

The new trends in male grooming have forced companies that make lifestyle products go back to the drawing board to innovate products that resonate with the modern man.

According to George Mudhune, general manager at Philips Personal Health division in East Africa, a lot of research has gone into developing products like clippers, stylers and trimmers that cut "hair and not skin" as was the case with previous technology.

"Men are beginning to take their grooming seriously. They now have choices and options on how to keep their hair and beard. Gone are the days of the rough looking man.

We are living in a fast moving, modern world where a well-groomed man oozes confidence and stays ahead of the pack," says Mudhune.

The company has been innovating male grooming products for the last century.

Just to show how serious the issue of male grooming has become, a plethora of websites now offer tips on how to shave, trim and manage head, facial and even chest hair. Click on 'male grooming' on Google and more than 13 million hits will pop up.

And with everything now going digital, there are programmes that can tell you exactly how you would look in a particular hairstyle.

Taking the cue is a new breed of young, suave barbers who have come up with all manner of hairstyles that leave some men looking more like walking billboards.

Among these is George Dufanda, a 20 year-old barber and winner of the inaugural Afro Hair Awards in the Barber of the Year category last year. Recently, I watched as he meticulously took the time to create a leaf pattern on a client's head.

 The ease with which he did it left no doubt as to why he is on top of his game.

Dufanda was inspired by his father, who was also a barber. By the age of 13, he had already mastered the art of grooming others. The rest is history. Among his clientele are notable public figures and celebrities in Kenya.

According to Dufanda, male grooming cannot be left in the same state it was decades ago when all a man needed was to cut or trim his hair.

"We are in a changing world in all fields. The music we listen to has changed, even the foods we eat have evolved. Now we have Chinese food in Africa, even Japanese cuisine. Our grooming too has to adapt to the changing world," says Dufanda.

During a recent event on male grooming held in a Nairobi hotel, image consultant Robert Burale said that male grooming goes beyond the feel good factor. He opined that it has everything to do with the way one is perceived in society.

"It is about confidence. A well-groomed man is confident while the same cannot be said of a badly groomed man. Don't be the man who appears in public looking like an apology.

 If you are a single man, the way you look can get you a wife or conversely, keep you in the singles stable for very long," he said.

But while men are basking in their newfound glory of enhanced grooming, ladies are keenly watching these developments as their space in hair salons shrinks by the day.

According to Miriam Njeri, a mother of one, there is little difference between ladies hair salons and men's barber shops. Today, both are found side by side. The services offered to either gender are getting more and more similar.

Women fear that their days of privacy at the salon, the only place they could exchange all the gossip, are coming to an end.

"I don't mind men looking good but I am not for the idea of a man watching as the beautician fixes my shaggy hair from a nearby seat," she says.

Well, space or no space in the salon, male grooming is here to stay. In the words of the Huffington Post, as men "we have a future where we can feel comfortable, and accepted, in the way we maintain our appearance."