THE INTERVIEW

IN THIS ISSUE’S THE INTERVIEW, SIAN JONES SPEAKS TO RHYS WHITEHOUSE ABOUT WHAT DRIVES HIM AND LEARNING TO LIVE IN THE MOMENT

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE RHYS BEFORE YOUR INDUSTRY SUCCESS?

I started barbering in 2016 and stumbled into it. I was jumping between different careers and was a musician for most of my early twenties. I eventually decided to leave the record label that I was with and move back home with my parents. I put my CV on Indeed and got a call from a local salon asking if I wanted an apprenticeship. I was 24 so I was quite an old apprentice and when the laws changed the salon couldn’t afford to keep me. I started working about 12 miles up the road at a walk-in barbershop. It was an hourly rate, and I was aware that I wasn’t up to standard.

WHAT WAS DRIVING YOU AT THE TIME?

I was adamant I wanted that qualification and if I’m perfectly honest with you, the driving force was that I was 24 and I didn’t want to waste any more time. I didn’t want to have spent all that time in the salon and then be forced out of it and feel like I’ve wasted a year. I was still with Wolverhampton College and in the new shop I did a year’s worth of work because the salon I was with previously didn’t sign off on any of my practical assessments. What I ended up doing was sitting down for four hours to get it done... I don’t like starting something and not finishing it. I wanted to be just as good as my boss and I wanted to be in demand. I was there from 2017 to 2020 and eventually became the manager of the shop before connecting with Dale Hince who had just moved into a new shop called Hinces in Shrewsbury and I’m still there now. We have a nice relationship and push each other to go higher and higher.

CAN YOU REMEMBER A POINT WHERE YOU REALISED YOUR PASSION FOR BARBERING?

There’s been a few moments. To articulate to your friends and family that aren’t involved in this industry what cutting hair means is not something that I can do... I’d say it was a long time ago, a multitude of small moments, like when a technique clicks, and it feels like you put the last piece in a jigsaw puzzle. I learned a lot from winning Wahl Barber of the Year 2021 because I was so fixated on winning. My lounge looked like a conspiracy theorist’s front room. There were Post-It notes everywhere covering past winners, what haircuts won, the strengths of the finalists that I was competing with. In my head there was no other alternative other than walking away with that trophy. It wasn’t confidence but thinking “I’ve got a job to do here, so I’m gonna do that job”. When I won I didn’t feel like celebrating. It was only when I got home that I thought, “Did I just take that for granted? Did I not live in the moment there?” Now I try to take in the gravitas of the moment.

DID YOUR WIN CHANGE YOU AS A BARBER?

One of the things I’ve had to work on is my ego. When you go on stage you have to have a level of arrogance, because there’s no way in hell you’re going to stand on a stage and not be confident. There’s a very fine line between confidence and arrogance, so I use the word arrogance very lightly. I’ve also noticed people are scared to give credit where credit’s due, maybe because they’re concerned about what it takes away from them. When I give people compliments, I want to give credit and I want to give thanks. I know the position that I’m in. I know where I’m at with my career.

WHO INSPIRES YOU IN THE INDUSTRY?

Dean Gleeson. We were coming up at the same time and I always like to think of myself as quite driven, but I cannot keep up with that guy. I always feel like whenever I’m on stage with Mic Damiano, he brings the energy right up. You’ve either got to match him or you’re lagging behind. There’s people like Trevor Moots (Tailorfade), one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met in my life; the humility that he has is unbelievable. When I first joined Wahl, Sam Campagna was Head of Education for the UK and he was such an inspiration, he’s an incredible guy. When we all first sat down for a meeting, he conducted himself in such a way that I looked at him and thought, “I could follow you”. I prefer working by myself, but when I saw him and how the team worked it was amazing. There are so many people that you can look to and go, hey, do you know what? They’re absolutely killing it.