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35 years: A man with his scissors

Rua da Praia do Manduco, Macao - Like most of the middle-aged men in Macao, he looks very casual and nothing special. Kin Wa Wong is standing behind a chair and holding a pair of scissors, chatting with a man who is sitting in a leather chair. He is a man with stories.

There is a small shop in the old alley, with moss on the wall. In front of the shop, a three-color barber pole in red, blue and white shines next to the door. Entering the shop, you can see posters of Japanese idols and fashion magazines pages pasted on the whole wall. And there is a leather barber chair placed in front of a rectangular mirror and next to the mirror there is an old, big TV. It is easy to see some hairs on the floor of vintage check tiles.

When people walk by the small shop, most of them will yell at the door, "Uncle Wa" or "Wa Dee". A deep voice replies from the inside, "Hey, good morning." Uncle Wa, 52, has small eyes and grey hair and around 5ft 9in tall. Wearing a T-shirt with a fisherman vest, shorts, and a pair of flip flops, Uncle Wa is the only man in the small shop, he is the owner of this salon, and he is a barber.

Born in 1967, he found his lifelong interest and occupation at the age of 17. He decided to become a barber because he was then attracted by the Japanese idols and Japanese fashion, he was fond of the hairstyles of those idols and decided to learn haircutting. In the beginning, he started as an apprentice in a barbershop in Macao. "At first, I was told to cut a wig," he said. He learned haircutting on wigs and tried to imitate other barbers' styles. He also needed to learn hair coloring and hair setting.

"I remember the price of a wig at that time was very expensive, almost equal my monthly salary....So every time I practised on a wig I needed to pay a lot of attention, avoid making mistakes, otherwise I had to pay a lot to buy a new wig," Uncle Wa recalled. He needed to work for 10 hours a day and to clean the shop and equipment after the salon was closed. He became a barber when he was 19. Uncle Wa worked with four barbers in a salon near San Malo in Macao. And he got many local customers during this period. He spent more than 10 years in that salon, and he considered that he had enough experience and knacks. Uncle Wa decided to take the next step of his career.

In 2000, one year after the handover of Macao, was a special year for Uncle Wa and his family. He talks about the peak of his life: He opened his own salon and at the same time his son was born. Uncle Wa decided to set up his own salon because he thought that he had enough customers and he didn't want to work too many hours a day. "I am a lazy person, but I am confident enough with my haircutting skills and I think I can attract local customers," said Uncle Wa. The rent was cheap at that time and there was no other salon in the region. Uncle Wa starts to work at 2 pm every day, sometimes he closes at 7 pm or 8 pm in the evening but sometimes opens again at 11 pm for friends only. He said he usually has 20 customers per day.

Every time one of us goes to Uncle Wa's salon, he likes to show off and introduces his new accessories. "Kid, although my salon is old, my scissors are good quality and they are made in Japan." He remains a Japanese fan. All the accessories are placed in a small trolley, such as scissors, razors, electric clippers and combs. When he is cutting hair, he likes to have a conversation with all of his customers, sometimes they talk about the news on TV, sometimes about their daily life. Although he has many customers, Uncle Wa said that his career is not as smooth as people think. His business was affected by the epidemic of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) in 2003. "At that time people didn't want to go out." Uncle Wa didn't have enough income to pay the rent. He thought to close his salon at that time, but his wife disagreed, "It just about three years, and this is what you say you like to do."

Uncle Wa then continued his business in the afternoon and became a part-time taxi driver at night during the SARS period. "It was difficult for me, I worked hard and didn't have enough time to spend with my three years old son," he said with a sigh. Thus he was able to overcome the difficulties and maintain his business till now. "I didn't increase the price since 2003," Uncle Wa said. This is his gratitude to his customers who supported him during his difficult time in 2003. He said that he set the price at $50 when he opened the salon and raised it to $70 in 2003, and the price remains unchanged till today. It is difficult to imagine how a small shop like his can keep its price and service quality unchanged for almost 16 years when prices of everything in the city have tripled or even quadrupled. Uncle Wa just said, "They are my neighbors and friends."

In recent years, Uncle Wa's salon is challenged by the new type of speed-cut salons in the area. The speed-cut salons usually charge $50 and finish a haircut within 15 minutes. Uncle Wa doesn't like those salons and feels a bit angry, "They are destroying the barber culture and they don't know what a haircut means," he said. Uncle Wa believes that a salon is not a place for haircuts only, it is also a place for people to relax and have a conversation, and the quality of haircut is important as he always emphasizes the layers of haircut.

Uncle Wa mentioned repeatedly that he has a very good relationship with all of his customers. "I only call them customers when they come to my salon the first time, the second time they come in, they are my friends." Almost all of the customers are male, the range is from teenagers to elders. Uncle Wa enjoys very much the time he spends with his customers and sharing their daily life with each other. Sometimes neighbors go to his salon not for a haircut but just to chat with him and have some drinks. Uncle Wa remembered that one customer surprised him. The man was around 30 years old and a bicycle lover. He told Uncle Wa that this would probably be his last time in his salon because he might die in his expedition as he would soon take on a bike ride from Zhuhai to Nepal alone. Uncle Wa said he saw that guy again one year later and he looked much thinner and darker. "I will never forget this crazy guy," he said.

Although Uncle Wa has a good relationship with his customers and neighbors, he said he doesn't have a good relationship with his son, because he has spent too much time in his salon. He mentioned that he doesn't have a lot of conversation with his son at home and he doesn't understand his son's mind. "Probably I am not a good father," Uncle Wa said in a deep voice.

Despite his enjoyment in haircutting, he sometimes still thinks to close the salon. "I am not young anymore, in the remaining time I want to try something new," he said. In recent years, Uncle Wa feels pain in his shoulders, fingers and legs. Being a barber, these kinds of pain cannot be avoided. But every time Uncle Wa thinks of closure, he thinks of his customers and neighbors, especially he has such good relationships with them. It is hard to leave as he has already spent 18 years in this small shop.

"I will probably continue to work as a barber until my body tells me to stop," said Uncle Wa.