Grooming oneself can be a time-consuming process. It can also be an expensive endeavour. The options available in the market are varied but along certain expected lines. And yes, there is one common factor,the slightly prohibitive cost. Now everyone would like to look nice. Now what if someone came along and changed the rules that governed the game, he could be safely called a game changer.
In Vasco the establishment of Scissors and Razors is causing a flutter in the hair grooming business. It has changed the rules. Established by Faraz Sheikh, someone who has no experience in the world of business, he established the business because the existing outlets were not servicing someone like him who did not have money to splurge on grooming.
Sheikh said “I had visited a salon in Panjim and I needed a hair cut, some treatment for the hair and I was charged Rs 1800. It was a shock to me and I asked myself this very simple question as to how many people who just earned a salary could be able to afford such bills and I decided that something had to be done. I made some discreet enquiries as to the general cost for such treatments in Vasco and other places and was shocked. I also realised there was a market that was not tapped. Presently this segment was being serviced by outlets that were basically holes in the wall.”
Two months ago, the outlet Scissors and Razors opened and it seems to have touched a nerve in the local market. Establishments that did not think of charging Rs 150 for a hair cut now had to contend with an outlet that charged anywhere between Rs 60-80. Sheikh said the fact he had very good staff made his job easy.
He said “It is important to hire efficient staff. I hired quite a few from Delhi and others from local saloons. They are experienced, aware of the various styles and demands of the local market which is very important. It is not unusual for a young boy or man to walk in with a photograph of a popular footballer, Hollywood or Bollywood actor and request something similar. Our staff easily manages such demands.”
At the salon it is not unusual for a customer to come in for hair cut and then stay behind for a foot massage. What could cost around Rs 500 in other salons will cost them Rs 350 here. This pricing has evoked much anger and irritation in the local trade. Faraz believes it was bound to happen when someone new would come along and was challenging the existing system. There was he said a lot of negative chat but he said he did not really mind it.
As in any business there were challenges. It was not unusual for some customers having to wait as much as two hours after taking an appointment. Each customer would take around forty-five minutes for his staff to groom. It was not easy to get staff in this business especially in Goa. It was important to humour his staff and keep them happy. He said he had sources in Delhi who would get him new personnel if push came to shove but generally he enjoyed maintaining a tension free atmosphere. Requests for emergency leaves or monies were dealt with humanely but the demands of the business were not compromised. The business he revealed was generating a profit but the margins were not great. He however expressed his happiness at the state of affairs.
Like any ambitious businessman, he has plans to expand. He intends to open a new outlet in the north or the south. This could be a franchisee or if the standards were not met, he would have no qualms in stepping out on his own in these markets. In the next five years, he hopes to open two new outlets in the State.
The snip of a strand of hair can certainly lead to prosperity and that seems to be the case for Faraz Sheikh. Perhaps in time, people will look back and say this was the start of Goas reply to Jawed Habib.
