You might also like: 8 fantastic travel podcasts to whisk you away. Like many young wanderers, Harry says his goal at the time was to escape the tourist traps and to experience genuine interaction with local communities. Harry filmed his first haircut video in on a bulky Canon XL1 camcorder in a small shop in Aurangabad , India. This was in the days before YouTube, and the point back then was to create a travel vlog.
While in India, he desperately needed a haircut and saw a barbershop on the side of the road. Harry had no idea at the time the barber would not only cut his hair, but also throw in a shave and a head and face massage. Read more: The best board games for travel lovers. He uploaded the Indian barbershop video to a fledgling YouTube in and soon found a small but dedicated following. Six years later, the couple formally launched Haircut Harry.
The idea has caught on in a big way. Haircut Harry now has some , subscribers and receives 4 million views a month. Harry says people visit the channel for many reasons: to relax, to be entertained or inspired, and even to learn some tips on barbering. The videos themselves run anywhere from 10 to 40 minutes and focus on one haircut at a time. Harry climbs into the seat, exchanges a few words with the barber and settles in for the cut.
The pay-off comes in the big reveal at the end. The barber swivels the chair toward the mirror and Harry is transformed, before our eyes, into a new man. You might also enjoy: The best Lonely Planet Spotify playlists for travellers pining for the road.
And what happens when things do go off the rails? Harry says bad haircuts are thankfully rare, though he does recall an uncomfortable moment in Bamako, Mali , when he stopped in for a cut and learned too late his barber had no formal training and had been on the job only a few weeks. Harry says the couple has learned a lot over the years as the channel has grown — both in terms of the technical expertise needed to produce professional-quality videos and the more workaday skills of running a small business.
