JEDDAH: Turkish barber Sherwan Ahmed is busy as Eid Al-Fitr approaches, his shop abuzz with customers waiting to be groomed for the annual festival.
“We have 30 customers a day normally; for Eid Al-Fitr we get 70 customers or more. We stay open all night before Eid and take a well-deserved break on Eid,” said the 32-year-old Ahmed, who works at Capio saloon in Jeddah.
It is the season for barbers in the Kingdom, with most saloons witnessing a 150 percent increase in customers.
Ahmed said Eid Al-Fitr is the peak season for them and most customers want to get a haircut and groom themselves to look neater. “Many people come to the shop two days before Eid, and this continues until the middle of the first day of Eid. We don’t get the chance to go home at night, we stay up to serve customers 24 hours,” Sherwan said.
His colleague, Osman Hadji, said: “Booking for the last two days of Ramadan already completed a week ago. We are not accepting customers without a booking.”
Prices for haircuts and hairstyling surges during the last three days of Ramadan, especially the night before Eid. Barbershops at this time of the year employ additional workers to accommodate the demand and are open for long hours.
Ibrahim Al-Maghrabi, a barber working at Al-Mazioun shop in Al-Zahra district, said: “It is obvious prices will go up because it is a season for us and everyone in the family wants to look good and they will pay anything for that.
“Sometimes customers pay way more from their own generosity, we raise our charges little bit during the Eid rush. If our customers are happy, we’re happy too,” he added.
A number of customers said they are not surprised by the high haircut prices before Eid.
Fahad Al-Zahrani, 29, told Arab News going to the barbershop before Eid has been a significant part of preparations for the celebrations because Eid is the right time for many to look good.
“It is as important as buying new clothes, shoes and other things. Normally, I pay around SR35 ($9.33) for a haircut, but these days they charge me around SR55. This is good chance for them to earn more, especially as they are devoting their day and nights to meet such a big demand,” Al-Zahrani said.
Jordanian national Abdul Wahab Bin Naser said it is part of his Eid ritual to visit the barbershop. “My friends and I go to the barber as late as possible in the night. We get a service number because of the long queue and go to a nearby shop to wait for our turn.
“Queues are endless but the wait is definitely worth it once you see yourself looking sharp and ready for Eid celebration.”
His friend, Hamza Al-Salahi, said: “I do not go to the barber throughout Ramadan due to time constraints, and like many people I also do not care about how I look during Ramadan but when it comes to Eid we have to look our best.”
Asked about prices, Al-Salahi responded: “Definitely prices went up and I feel barbers try to take advantage of this demand but customers will pay anything to look good on Eid.”
Saudi national Bader Al-Harithi said a normal visit to barbershops costs him SR90 for all sorts of beauty treatments, but during Eid it rises up to SR200 for the same services. “I normally do not mind paying them extra since they are doing a perfect job.”
