Barber shops see good footfall as schools, colleges reopen

Coimbatore: Barber shops in the city are busy catering to school and college students who have started attending offline classes.

Parents want their wards to look good as they step into educational institutions after several months and insist that they get a haircut.

Barbers, who had lost their livelihood for months together due to the pandemic, expect to have busy days ahead if more classes are started. “We are getting 20% more customers since offline classes were announced. We mostly get school and college students in the morning hours,” said a barber on the Huzur Road here. “I expect more customers during the weekend as the uncertainty period has ended. Teachers expect students to have a clean, neat appearance.”

But there is only a marginal increase in the footfall, said S Saravanakumar, secretary of the Coimbatore North District Barbers Association. “Barbers struggled for months due to the strict Covid-19 regulations. Many could not pay rent for shops and many struggled to even feed their families. We expected more patronage when reopening of schools and colleges was announced. But people still hesitate to visit barber shops due to fear of getting infected,” he told TOI.