Photo courtesy of Daniel Oines.
The London-based shop, Barberette, recently got a bump in publicity for being a “gender-neutral barbershop,” meaning they charge by hair length and desired style. There’s no cheaper option for Men’s Haircut. It’s all just hair on heads.
Even though this is a UK business, it’s a direct response to a problem we have here in the states. When it comes to beauty related products and services, women pay more than men. It’s easy to justify the price gap by saying that women generally expect more when they get a haircut. They want shampoo and conditioner and blowouts and a host of other chemical treatments that can add up in product cost pretty quickly. But suppose there are a men who want that same treatment and either don’t get it because you assume they don’t want it, or don’t pay full price for it because you’ve established on your services menu that men pay less?
It Devalues the Service
When you charge less for a man's haircut you implicitly suggest that there is less value in the service. Whether this makes male customers feel as if their haircuts aren't as important, or the people who provide those haircuts are less valuable, it is a subtly destructive practice to continue.
Men Will Pay the Price
The idea of charging men less than women is partially based on an assumption that men don't care as much about their appearance and therefore aren't willing to spend as much on a haircut as women. It seems to be a necessity of the business to treat genders differently. Perhaps that was a safe assumption a few decades ago (although you could argue the slicked-back greaser craze of the 50's was a pretty clear indication that men were very concerned with their appearance). But there's a thriving industry of upscale barbershops that proves men will pay a premium for quality grooming. It's been increasingly common to see men investing a great deal of time and money into their hair. It might not be the majority yet, but the number is growing, and in the meantime you're losing money by charging haircuts based on gender instead of hair length and style.
It Hinders Creativity
It creates a separation between people who style for men and people who style for women, which in turn continues the idea that men must keep styling their hair the way other men do, and women the same, so you are limiting all your clients to traditional forms of expression, meaning you're limiting the hair stylists. While artistry is not a sound business model, it is the reason many stylists do what they do, and it’s damaging to them when they are systemically limited in their craft from providing a style for fear of judgement.
Man or Woman, It's all Style
There is a difference between a shop plush with barber chairs and shaving cream and a beauty salon lined to the roof with hair color products, but it's a superficial difference. In both cases you have people who want to look and feel good. One of the best things about many new barbers and stylists is their dedication to providing clients with niche styles that fit their personality. If that personality includes styling their hair in a short side part or a long, flowing balayage, why should their gender factor into the price they pay?