Young and aspiring barber Musa Ahmed went from cutting friends' hair at his house, to being recruited by a successful barber shop in the heart of Tower Hamlets where he now works hard to not only grow as a barber but equally to provide high quality "trims".
It all began in the summer of Year 9, with a conversation between friends in an overheating German classroom which expanded to after-school trips to his house and cutting hair in his living room.
"I started barbering for fun just to see if it was hard or easy.", says Musa
It was the excitement and daunting nature of this new venture that propelled his passion for barbering as, like all beginnings, his was not easy: "I didn’t get the gist of it at first and was giving people wonky fades left right centre", but with the support of his friends and his own networking, he persevered.
Over time his haircuts grew in quality and, by talking to new people and learning from them, he found new ways to improve his technique and his overall service.
Then came some of his best haircuts yet, which he made sure to capitalise on by advertising them on his social media and building a following.
With this, came the mounting pressure of GCSEs which resulted in an interlude before he picked up the clippers again upon the completion of his exams.
He wasted no time getting back into the flow of things and it wasn't long before he began producing an even better service with all his original clients returning to him, showing faith in his journey.
He was quickly recruited by an already successful barber shop in Whitechapel where he currently cuts hair alongside other young, and experienced barbers where he says he has "built up a customer base who I have perfected fades on" and is really channelling his passion, working long hours whilst also balancing sixth form.
His is a story of "passion, consistency and perseverance" laying the foundation of his growth and success.
He now continues to cut hair and is still growing his business and name in a supportive community.
