The barbershop or hair-cutting business is known as a timeless trade,\nas the service remains a necessity for the public. However, a new\nphenomenon has recently emerged in the industry, closely linked to\nIndonesia\u2019s still-challenging economic conditions. Business owners\nacknowledge that whilst customers still come in daily, the numbers are\nunpredictable. They even admit that their shops are only busy during\ncertain moments, such as ahead of the Eid al-Fitr holiday and the new\nschool year.<\/p>\n
Diana Ganefa, owner of Gamma Barbershop, said she started her\nbusiness three years ago after seeing that opportunities in the\nhair-cutting business remained wide open. She also hopes that getting a\nhaircut can become a routine need for people. \u201cOpportunities in this\nbusiness are still open; the hope is that getting a haircut becomes a\nroutine need for the Indonesian people,\u201d she said when contacted by CNBC\nIndonesia on Tuesday (7\/7\/2026). However, the number of customers at her\nbarbershop in South Tangerang is currently still erratic. On a single\nday, the barbershop serves as few as around 2 people and as many as\nabout 15 people. Diana assesses that her barbershop tends to be busy\nonly at certain moments, such as weekends, ahead of Lebaran, and during\nthe new school year.<\/p>\n
Moving to the Mampang Prapatan area of South Jakarta, an employee and\nmanager of a barbershop, Ibrahim, also acknowledged that customers come\nevery day, but the numbers are inconsistent. His shop is usually busy on\nweekends or after working hours past 3 p.m. \u201cAlhamdulillah, there are\ncustomers every day, people come to get a haircut. We have had 20, but\nit\u2019s rare. On normal days, though, we get about 3 to 5 heads,\u201d he said.\nIbrahim explained that an adult haircut is priced at Rp35,000, a child\u2019s\ncut at Rp25,000, and a beard trim at Rp10,000. He noted that the\ncharacteristics of the barbering business are clearly different from\nfood businesses, which are a daily necessity. People\u2019s habits for going\nto the barber vary, although some feel the need to cut their hair every\nfew months. Moreover, rising prices of basic necessities have made many\npeople more cautious with their spending, including on haircuts. Ibrahim\nhopes economic conditions will stabilise so that everyone can meet their\nneeds, including getting a haircut. For now, he relies on customer\nloyalty and whoever needs a trim. \u201cJust normal, that\u2019s it. We are just\nordinary people, we don\u2019t ask for much. Just standard, normal prices,\u201d\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Moving to the Tebet area of South Jakarta, an employee of Asgar (Asli\nGarut) barbershop, Deni, admitted that a downward trend in customers is\nmore noticeable compared to last year. At certain operating hours, only\none customer might come in. \u201cWhen it\u2019s busy, we can get nine to 15\npeople. But when it\u2019s quiet, only three. Today alone, up to this hour,\nthere\u2019s only been one customer,\u201d he said. This is despite the relatively\ncheap rates offered, with adult haircuts priced at Rp20,000, children\u2019s\ncuts at Rp15,000, beard trims at Rp7,000, and hair colouring at\nRp50,000. According to Deni, the growing number of competitors has\nspread the customer base, affecting the number of visitors to his shop.\nAdditionally, some customers are now reluctant to queue and prefer to\nfind an empty barbershop. Deni also believes that weakening purchasing\npower has influenced customer numbers at his workplace. \u201cCompared to\nlast year, it feels like a decline. The economic situation has an effect\ntoo,\u201d he said. As a migrant from Garut, West Java, with school-age\nchildren, Deni hopes the economic situation in the country will improve\nsoon so that people have a greater capacity to spend, including on\nhaircuts.<\/p>\n
The stories from Diana, Ibrahim, and Deni show that barbershop\nbusinesses can still survive because they offer a service that people\nneed. However, the frequency of customer visits appears to be changing.\nWhere haircuts were previously done more routinely, some people are now\nholding back on visits as a way to adjust their daily spending. This\nsituation makes barbershop revenue increasingly dependent on seasonal\nmoments. Consequently, these barbers hope for economic stability so that\npeople no longer postpone their haircuts.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indonesian-barbershop-owners-face-new-phenomenon-as-conditions-shift-drastically-1783486303", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }