Pak Wan's barbershop draws customers with low price

KANGAR, Dec 13 (Bernama) -- Pak Wan's barbershop in Titi Tampang near here may be just another traditional hairdresser to most people, but for its regular customers the unbelievably low prices are a reason to keep coming back for a hair fix.

While most barbers have succumbed to the rising price of goods and petrol by charging RM7 and RM10 per head, Ibrahim Hassan, 55, fondly known as Pak Wan, charges a fee of RM3 for adults and RM2 for children, which would have been normal in the 1970s.

"I am comfortable charging customers these prices, even though other barbershops have doubled theirs. My low prices get me many customers, including those from outside the area and Arau," he said.

A visit by Bernama at the zinc-walled shop revealed customers still having their hair trimmed although it was almost midnight.

When asked why he retained the RM3 and RM2 charges, Ibrahim said it symbolises the date he opened his business to the public on Feb 3, 2000; RM3 is for the date and RM2 represents February.

Ibrahim said he currently has no plans to increase his prices, but hopes to make the shop more comfortable for patrons in the future by doing away with regular chairs fixed onto a base made of old car tyres filled with cement.

The former military police lance corporal, who acquired hairdressing skills as a kid and then from a course organised by Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), said his shop is not air conditioned, as the natural breeze is cooling to customers.

One customer, Shaifuddin Ibrahim, 43, said he and his children have been regulars at Pak Wan's barbershop for more than a year because of the low prices and the shop's proximity to their home.

Another customer, Sulaiman Saad, 49, said he would look for Ibrahim at home if the shop was closed because not only is the service good and cheap, it is also offered until late night.

Retired civil servant Abdul Hadi Abu Hassan, 59, said the barbershop is in dire need of a makeover, especially as it is located near the Bukit Jernih recreational area.

He added that visitors to Bukit Jernih would be shocked to not only see the rundown condition of the shop but also the prices displayed for a haircut.

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