KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 16 ― Barber shops and hair salons. They were among one of the last sectors allowed to reopen during the first movement control order (MCO) last year.

And it looks like that may be happening again.

MCO 2.0, as many are referring to this new lockdown, sees goldsmiths, jewellery shops and even shops selling beauty products allowed to operate.

To make things worse, the government  announced yesterday that opticians and optical shops have been classified as essential services and are now allowed to operate during the MCO. But not barbers and hairdressers.

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Malaysian Bumiputera Barber Association (MBBA) president TN Winda Mohd Tahir finds himself in a familiar situation again ― pleading with the government to reconsider allowing haircut services to operate during the MCO.

He justified this by highlighting how there had been no reported barber/hairdresser clusters since they were allowed to resume operations last year.

“Please try to be fair. While many other sectors have been allowed to operate, what about us… please don’t neglect us.

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“We need to fill our rice bowls too... we have responsibilities, families, rents and salaries to pay as well,” he said.

TN Winda pointed out how it has been almost a year since the start of the  Covid-19 pandemic and since then, there have been no breaches of SOPs reported at barbers or hairdressers.

“We are begging and urging the government to relook their decision to not allow the hair services sector to operate during MCO 2.0,” he said.

Arvind Raj, the owner of Melawati Kutz, said the second MCO was already bad enough but the government’s decision to overlook the sector and instead allow opticians to open made little sense to him.

“These are the SOPs that don’t make sense. If an optical shop and optometrist can run, why can’t a barber shop operate according to strict SOP?

“The government should rethink this,” he told Malay Mail.

Arvind on Wednesday even took to social media to try and reach out to Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, pleading for the sector not to be overlooked.

At the time of writing, his tweet has garnered over 4,600 retweets and 6,900 likes.

 

Sad reality

John Llyod, the owner of Chop Cut and Color Specialists, said the second MCO is just the hard reality he and his peers are forced to face and go through, reiterating how many in the business who have barely recovered from the downturn were caught off guard with the latest round of restrictions.

Llyod admitted the restrictions appear to be necessary with the rising number of new cases but said it’s hard when businesses like his are forced to grind to a halt.

“Operating has its costs and when we don’t get enough people in, we risk closing down. As a hair studio, we make money by seeing clients, and without that, it’s zero.

“It’s definitely going to hurt us further but with the rise in cases, I personally feel like it’s necessary. We do need to live with Covid-19 but it’s also tough with the numbers and lives at stake,” he said.

For Arvind, who made ends meet as a musician and digital marketer before spending his savings to open his barber shop in Taman Melawati last year, the announcement of MCO 2.0 could very well cause the premature closure of his six-month-old business.

“Melawati Kutz was opened in July 2020, and business was slowly picking up. Now with MCO 2.0, it means no business for me. It's frustrating!” he exclaimed.

Heading into MCO 2.0, Arvind said he assumed he would be able to transition his business to accommodate house calls, but later found out his staff was uncomfortable with the idea of private sessions for fear of being infected.

When the official announcement for the MCO was made by the prime minister on Monday, Arvind said he again tried to persuade his barbers to entertain house calls but they remained adamant against it.

He said without the house calls, business came to a complete halt, forcing him to let his barbers go, being unable to pay their salaries with no income.

“I was forced to let the people I loved working with go, and I can understand why they refused to do house calls, but I can’t afford to pay them if I have no clients,” he said.

MBBA’s TN Winda shared similar views, saying close to no preparation was made by the businesses to survive another MCO, and that immediate assistance should be rendered.

“Almost everyone thought this sector would be allowed to operate when MCO 2.0 was announced, and now we find ourselves paying rent for our premises that we cannot open for business.

“What would be appropriate is the government prepare specific types of aid to help small businesses and shops stay afloat, through their various agencies and NGOs, especially if this MCO is extended,” he said.

Remaining hopeful

The trio of stylists agreed that the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) should seriously consider allowing businesses like theirs to operate, albeit under strict SOPs and guidelines.

TN Winda suggested regulations that would see a limited amount of time allocated for each customer, or at least allow them to operate on an appointment basis.

He reiterated how the clean track record of no Covid-19 clusters emerging from barber shops and salons alike was a sign of their ability to comply with these SOPs.

“The economy can still operate and people should be able to access our services.

“Our hope is for MITI and the government to seriously consider drafting a set of SOPs that will allow small businesses like ours to at least make some money during these already hard times,” he added.

As for Llyod, he suggested the importance of staying positive, creative, and thinking outside the box to find solutions for their predicament.

He said during the last MCO, he started delivering to his clients their specially formulated hair dyes and treatment products, complete with necessary instructions as a temporary fix for both parties.

“We also sold and delivered hair care products to clients who needed replenishment. We even went ‘live’ coaching Jenn Chia to cut her boyfriend Jon Liddell’s hair,” he said.

Llyod was referring to Malaysian personalities Chia and Liddel, social media influencers and prominent local YouTubers, who were recently featured on local advertising campaigns for companies such as McDonald's and car maker BMW.