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Meet the cutting edge Aberdeen barber providing headspace for men to offload

Calum McGowan isn't only a supremely talented barber, he's also a very good listener and advocate for men's mental health.

A cut above: Calum McGowan has opened his own barbers within The Aberdeen Altens Hotel. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson
A cut above: Calum McGowan has opened his own barbers within The Aberdeen Altens Hotel. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

When a young man opened up about his mental health struggles while sitting in the barber’s chair, Calum McGowan made a simple suggestion that proved to be transformative.

“The young man had been struggling with sleeping and felt like every time he went to go to sleep, his brain was mulling over all these different thoughts all the time,” says Calum.

“I asked him if he had ever done journalling and he said no, hinting that he thought it was more of a female thing to do.

Calum McGowan.
Sharp and with a steely focus, Calum McGowan followed his lifelong dream of becoming a barber. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

“I told him I journalled quite regularly, I call it brain dumping as if you have a million things going round your head putting it down on paper can help you to prioritise and rationalise your thoughts and almost have it as a check-list of things to address or deal with.

“It turned out that he went away and bought a journal and from what I know, it seems to have worked quite nicely for him.”

Men’s mental health

So much more than just a barber, Calum, 33, is a listening ear for every client who walks through the door of Below Decks, the barbering business he has launched at The Aberdeen Altens Hotel.

And to see men leaving his studio with a fresh haircut, a weight off their shoulders and a new-found confidence is what Calum loves about his vocation.

“Because it’s a one-to-one experience, there’s that ability to open up so I’ve had various circumstances when men have opened up to me about situations they’re going through or anxiety and depression,” says Calum.

Calum McGowan outside The Aberdeen Altens Hotel.
Calum has transformed a storage cupboard into a cutting edge barbers at The Aberdeen Altens Hotel. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

“Listen I’m in no way qualified to help these people but I think the ability to sit and have a confidential chat is a huge help for them.

“I’m a listening ear for them to off-load so they walk out the shop with a fresh haircut and feel that little bit better.”

Stigma

Growing up in an era where the hair industry was viewed upon as being more of a female profession, Calum instead pursued his dream of becoming a pro golfer.

Calum in his shop, Below Decks.
Calum reflects on how far he has come over the years. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

“Hair was always something that interested me but I suppose back in the early nineties there was a stigma about men working within the hair industry and it was enough to put me off,” says Calum.

“That creativeness stayed in my own head, I didn’t do anything with it and I started a career in the golfing industry instead.”

Eating, sleeping and playing golf became the norm for Calum who hails from a golfing family.

“I grew up with golf, my mum was a golfer’s widow as me and my dad were never in the house, we were always playing golf,” says Calum.

“My dream and aspiration in life was to play golf professionally.

“It didn’t quite work out that way, the competitiveness of the sport and the lack of funding in Scotland in terms of sponsorship made it hard.

“That was purely my focus for years but my circumstances changed and I decided that the best idea would be to leave the industry.”

Stress and pressure

Shifting his energy and focus into a career in the sales industry, Calum excelled.

But with success came stress, pressure and a toxic target driven culture.

Interior of Below Decks barbers in Aberdeen.
Calum says the support he has received has been unbelievable after opening his own barber studio in March. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

“I started off enjoying it but as things progressed I found it was quite a toxic culture and very cut-throat,” says Calum, who is a devoted husband to Lisa and his two children.

“As much as you were making good money and you were living a reasonably comfy life, it took a big toll on my mental health and put a lot of pressure on me.”

Taking back control

The pressure cooker type environment soon consumed Calum to the point where he knew something had to change.

“Every morning I was waking up and the first thing that would go through your head was, I have a target to hit, how am I going to hit it, how am I going to make money,” says Calum.

“I was self-employed so if I didn’t sell, I didn’t get paid.

“Like any sales job you go through peaks and troughs of selling really well and making lots of money but then you go through times where suddenly you’ve gone a week without selling and you’ve got bills coming in and you have to make sure they’re paid.”

It was this experience that inspired Calum to finally follow his dream of becoming a barber.

Five years on as a barber and Calum is more fulfilled than ever before after transforming a storage cupboard at Aberdeen Altens Hotel into a trendy barber studio.

Calum's grooming products.
Calum also sells his own grooming products. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

“For me it was a case of, I wanted to wake up every morning and have that passion to get out of bed and go off and do something that I love,” says Calum.

“It’s true what they say, if you do what you love then you’ll never work another day in your life.”

For Calum, the most rewarding part of his job is seeing the difference in men when they leave after a hair cut.

“The rewarding part for me is seeing the difference in a man’s confidence when he gets a professional hair cut,” says Calum.

“You see the shoulders drop, the confidence comes out and they almost walk out with their chest puffed out.

“That in itself is enough for me to know that the job has been done.”

For more information on Below Decks, check out the website belowdecksco.com, Facebook @BelowDecksco.

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