By Bae Keun-min
Staff Reporter
Salesman Choi Sung-ho, 34, remembered a weird experience at a barbershop in Kuro-gu, Seoul a few days ago.
When he entered the shop to get a haircut on his way back to his office around noon, he sensed a strange atmosphere, different from the shops he used to frequent. It was dark with dim pink lighting and a young female staff in a micro miniskirt and tight shirt escorted him to a chair separate from other chairs with curtain.
Choi felt a little nervous. When he asked the barber to cut his hair, the barber called out to his staff : “Hey, where are my scissors and clippers?” as if he didn’t expect it.
Choi had accidentally ventured into one of the barbershops seen as a growing problem in Korea as they provide more than just haircuts, but also sexual services. Many of these illegal service providers such as male-only skincare and massage shops put out three-colored barbershop poles, which mislead customers. These barbershops usually put up jointed two poles and are located underground so that “real customers” don’t miss the sign.
The illegitimate services have resulted in incidents that cannot be laughed off.
Earlier this month, a 45-year-old drunken man was arrested in Sangye-dong, northern Seoul. He hit the owner and a staff member at a barbershop after they refused to provide the sexual services he desired in the middle of day.
The “different” barbershops first appeared in the nation in the late 1970s and early 1980s during a time when men were becoming more conscious about their hairdos and styles.
The trend contributed to the sagging business of barbershops.
Kim Dong-hee, a barber in Yongdungpo-gu, said his business drastically turned downward in the late 1980s, saying “I only have some 10 customers per day these days. I can’t save any money and barely make ends meet.”
“I feel my heart break whenever someone asks me my income,” said Park Jin-ho, 76, a barber in Seoul. The 51-year veteran barber said that he rarely has a chance to show off his haircutting skills. “I don’t have to pay rent because I own this house. I do it to pass the time, as I grow old and have nothing to do. You can’t keep doing it when you think of income.”
The number of barbershops totaled 25,566 nationwide last year, down 9.7 percent from 28,298 in 1985, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare. In contrast, beauty salons doubled from 42,081 to 81,585 in the same period.
“I can’t get the style that I want at barbershops. They don’t keep up with the new styles,” said Lee Seung-ryong, 33-year-old businessman who stopped going to barbershops after he graduated from high school.
However, the new trend was not the major factor that put the shops in the doldrums and forced them to provide illegal services.
“Hair fashion and men’s growing interest in looks and fashion definitely contribute to the growth of beauty parlors and the diminishing of barbershops. But the bigger factor is the sex services provided at some of the barbershops,” Oh Woon-sung, an official at the Public Sanitation Division at the ministry, told The Korea Times.
“As some barbershops began offering illegal sexual services to break through the slump, the image of the industry was severely tarnished,” Oh said. “As the news about the services went around, wives banned their husbands from going to barbers.”
Since then, the vicious circle started: The bad reputation put regular barbershops into more financial trouble, resulting in more barbers to search for lucrative new ways such as sexual services to enhance business. Therefore, the ill repute remains and the vicious cycle has exacerbated the financial health and reputation of both proper and improper barbershops.
Moreover, the bad reputation has kept potential newcomers from entering the business. As a result, barbers have aged, making it more difficult for them to keep up with the lucrative trendy styles.
By contrast, beauty salons have been infused with young blood as those who majored in hairdressing and skincare at junior colleges enter the business. A total of 160 junior colleges across the nation run such programs. The major was first established in 1986, while no barber-related collegiate education exists.
There are two different types of licenses for haircutting in the nation - one for barbers and the other for hairdressers. Both licenses can be acquired through national exams after months of education at private institutes, although hairdressing licenses are automatically granted to people who study at junior colleges.
“We have tried hard to reverse the decline through self-cleaning action and promotion, and refurbishment. We estimate that the improper barbershops now account for some 3 percent, down from 30 percent,” said Bong Jae-hyu, secretary general of the Korea Barbers Center Association. “But we are still struggling, financially and against the bad reputation.”