Phil Yates, 63, never cut hair before retraining as a barber at 60. He left a marketing executive role to pursue barbering, a decision that brought him closer to his father. Yates recalls his father's mantra: 'Get a trade! Don't leave a job unless you've got another job lined up!' Expecting disapproval, Yates was stunned when his father responded, 'That's fantastic. Life's so short.' Yates says, 'It almost made me cry.' His father, a former fishmonger and factory worker who lived on the streets as a child, dropping his emphasis on security was huge.
From Marketing to Barbering
Yates grew up in London, then moved to New Zealand in 1973. As a teenager, he bleached and dyed his hair orange, asking his mother, a former hairdresser, to style it like David Bowie's Starman. Despite this, he never cut friends' hair. After resigning from his software company marketing job, he enrolled in a full-time level 4 barbering certification. Most classmates were 16. 'I think there was a bit of: Holy shit, who's this old man?' Yates says.
Finding a Place at Hava & Co
Near the end of his course, Yates walked into Hava & Co, a high-end Auckland barbershop, asking for a position. The owner visited his barber school the next day and offered him a Christmas trial sweeping floors. Yates has stayed ever since. 'I love to cut hair,' he says. He still sweeps floors, adding, 'Because, hey, I'm here to work. Don't want to sit on my arse looking at a mobile phone.'
The Rocking Barber
Yates calls himself 'the rocking barber,' inspired by his trademark pompadour hairstyle and love of rockabilly music. He owns a 1957 jukebox and hosts an internet radio show, Grits and Grease. He curates cutting playlists. 'Music is kind of everything,' he says. Rockabilly's 'raw, primal energy' and style appeal to him. He cuts all styles; only two clients have pompadours. On busy days, he sees 16-17 clients in half-hour slots, leaving 22 minutes for cutting after washing and booking.
Energy and Satisfaction
Yates believes he likely has ADHD, and the constant movement—scissors, chatting, shifting—suits him. 'I bring this energy to it,' he says. 'Even a buzz cut can make me feel good. Because every single cut has to be your absolute best.' He compares the satisfaction to potters or musicians who wait days for completion: 'But I get that 16 or 17 times a day.' He hopes to travel and barber along the way. Becoming a barber 'has brought so much inner happiness. There's a vibrancy in my life that was lacking. An incredible satisfaction. With scissors, you can create something magnificent.'
