It was quite a sunny afternoon when Kweku Ansah walked into the premises of Pulse Ghana. Wearing a jean trouser and a yellow T-shirt, the young man’s artistic aura was readily visible.
But if his dressing was a telling factor, the accessories he carried told a different story. Normally when people, dressed in the manner Ansah did, walk through the gates of Pulse Ghana, they are either celebrities coming for interviews or in-house staff moving to their desks.
Ansah was, however, none of the aforementioned. His shirt had a very catchy logo with a comb and pair of scissors neatly designed on it. Only that this was not a mere design, it was a logo communicating Ansah’s chosen craft – a barber!
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Born in Santasi in Kumasi in the Ashanti region, this bearded young man has always had the passion to style people’s hairs. His is a passion which was developed from childhood and it has since not waned.
“I started barbering when I was nine years and I developed the skill throughout my childhood,” Ansah tells Pulse Ghana. “I began barbering the hairs of people in my neighbourhood, but I wasn’t a professional yet. I was using just blade and comb to barber their hairs.”
Despite being a novice, his talent soon spread across the neighbourhood. From barbering the hairs of his just close friends, his customer base began to grow with time. By the time he reached teenage, everyone wanted their hair barbered by Ansah.
“And because I had the passion for this job, even was I was asleep and anyone woke me up to barber his hair, I never saw a problem with it. It was my passion and I was always ready to serve,” he articulated.
Currently, he is the owner of ‘Revolutionary Hairkutz’, a mobile barber shop business which he personally operates. Unlike most barbers, though, Ansah moves from house to house to deliver his services. You call him, he delivers and takes his money.
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“This concept started when I completed my national service,” he narrates. “I was previously working as barber but I did not have the necessary materials to accomplish what I wanted to do.
“So, during my service, I decided to save some money in order to buy the materials needed to start my barber business. When my savings were finally enough, I bought some stuff and later came up with this idea called ‘Revolutionary Hairkutz’”.
According to him, the name ‘Revolutionary Hairkutz’ was inspired by his zeal to change the perception about barbers and to serve people with his gift. For many who see him walking around with his gadgets, the perception is that he is an uneducated man.
How wrong such people are. In fact, Ansah is not just educated, he holds an HND in Marketing from the Accra Technical University. And it was after his tertiary education that he conceived the idea of going big on the barbering business.
Having done his National Service the Motor, Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) at Adenta, he proceeded to join a barber shop called Eternity Groom Center. It was there that he learned to become a professional barber.
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In just three months, he went from one who uses a comb and blade to barber hairs to one who knew how to use the electric clipper and every other sophisticated gadget in a modern barber shop.
That is when Ansah realised it was time to open his own business. ‘Revolutionary Hairkutz’ was subsequently birthed. But he wanted to be different from other regular barbers.
Rather than operate from a shop like many barbers do, Ansah prefers to operate from a virtual space. He believes no customers should be made to queue just to get a haircut. His philosophy is to save time and give his customers the most comfortable service.
“I currently do not have a shop. I intend to have one in future but not anytime soon,” Ansah iterated.
“I came up with a concept that will save customer’s their time and also give them comfort. For now, I’m concentrating on delivering a mobile service; coming to your home and giving you my service. The difference between me and other barbers in their shops is that, I save people’s money and time.”
How does he get his clients? This is what he had to say: “I get clients by asking my customers to refer me to other clients. If you refer two or three people to me, I give you a discount.”
And how much does he charge?
“I charge based on your location and the hours I spend on your hair. But on the average, I charged between GHc50 and GHc100,” he stated.
Ansah’s advise to the youth is to follow their passion and not focus too much on money in their formative years.
“Hard work pays, keep at it and your breakthrough will definitely come.”