Comment by weisser | Hacker News Reader

Comment by weisser | Hacker News Reader

Curious how many men care about the relationship with their barber enough for this to not take off if done well.

There’s likely a sizable population that cares more about convenience, cost, and predictability of outcome.

Premium barbershops currently compete on experiences vs outcomes: giving you a glass of whiskey, providing great ambiance, etc. If robots become the default for basic haircuts it will make premium barbershops seems all the more luxurious because you have an actual person (an artist!) cutting your hair. Perhaps they'll be able to raise their prices even more.

1st Disclosure: I'm one of the co-founders of On Deck and the OP is in the On Deck Fellowship.

2nd Disclosure: I thought this idea was completely crazy when Manish first brought in that absurd mannequin with the replaceable beards. Now, the more I think about what he's building and the opportunity space the more I love it.

I am introverted enough that I despise going to a barber to get my beard trimmed (and it shows), and would gladly let a robot do it, if it did a good job. There is certainly a market for this.

That being said, when the first thing in the video was the robot jamming the clippers hard into the mannequin's jaw, I realized that while the idea is interesting, it not is not quite ready for prime time.

I think anyone who pays a lot for barber or hair stylist is paying for both the experience and the knowledge that they'll wind-up looking like all the other people who pay a lot and that others will know this.

I suspect that styles shift subtly over time and a person's stylist give advice about what might look best on a person. And you might even want to seen by or see other customers of given a stylist.

Which is to say, I'd say absolutely, relationship with stylist matters but that relationship isn't just an irrational attachment to chatting with the person - it can extend to the finished product, how one winds-up looking.

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