Hey, everyone. I go by the name of Adrian Daniels. Welcome to the Sound

of Accra Podcast. If this is your first time listening, this is the show when

we speak with top Ghanaian founders, entrepreneurs, and creators

worldwide with the aim of leaving behind your meaningful takeaways

that you can apply in your life, business, and career. For

today's show notes, I would like you to head over to the thesoundofacra.com/andisbaber. That's

thesoundofaccra.com/andisbarber.

That's a n d I s

b a r b e r. Alright? If you're watching

our YouTube, leave us a comment below. Hit the like button and subscribe. If

this is a spot spot on a local podcast, a 5 star view is very

much appreciated. I'd love to welcome Andrew, Asari, and

his Baba. Yes, boss. Yes, boss. Thank you very much. Legendary

barber, multi award winning barber. Yes, sir. Under 40 awards.

Yes, sir. But he's he's contributed so much to to the

violin barbelline industry, and he's well known by, you

know, so many of my favorite music music artists as well. And it's it's a

pleasure to meet you. Thank you all about me. I've seen you. Yeah. I've never

had an interview before, but I think your work, not just your

portrait work there. I mean, I know you got some work for, like, Memphis and

Pye, Wieux, Chantelle Almay, some nice portrait artwork. I

mean, I think you're an artist by heart, right? Yes, please. I mean, it's grace.

Yeah. So, Hamlet, just tell let's let's talk just tell the

audience that don't know about you, maybe less than, what, 60 seconds,

just tell them a little bit about yourself. Okay. So my job is already

from, you know, Ghana, and now we're from a young boy

from in the in the in the small town,

and we're trying to make a difference here in Ghana. We're trying to make difference

in the sector. We're trying to make difference in the lives of the people

here in Ghana, for myself and for my people too as well. So

what we're doing is we're using to change lives. That's what

we're doing. Once at a time and changing life at a time. That's that's

incredible. And you mentioned you're changing the barbering

one one haircut at a time. Yes. Talk me through the

I know you're CEO of the Gone Active Partners Foundation.

Yes. Yes. And we give a percentage of your profits to, you know,

to shareholders. Yes, please. So so that's what we mostly

do. What every 1% of headcount that comes to us

goes to the financial ones. Yes. Yeah. So we we actually

champion a place, called a football school for the brand

that we usually have to go there for, donate to

them. So on 14th, we are coming this 14th Mhmm. On the buzz

day, we are going there. Showing

up. Wow. Yeah. We're gonna meet the students, give them

haircut. Yeah. Give them donations, you know,

gifts, and anything that makes their lives better. That's what we've done fantastic

for. You know? It's not every day you hear barbers doing this kind of

thing. Ladies and gentlemen, this is what your average barber. This is and this

buyer. It's the Ashura Surry for sure. Doing fantastic amazing things.

Andrew, I know you picked up some awards. So talk Australia when you picked the

40 and 40 awards. Yeah. Was that how is that how is that feeling? Yeah.

The 40 and 40 is, like, amazing. It wasn't a splint in it. I'm

tall and tall. And what makes it so amazing is is a

honorary award. It's not just a normal casting me award

because I was in the casting game and I told her, with the statue of

the people in it, go. I'm not going where is ours.

I was so down on it that day, so but I wanted

to go there and then network work with the people there. So, I actually

went there, went down, no reservation, but I'm gonna wait. I won't bother. I went

to network. So the very the first I started to mention

names, and they start mentioning my profile. Yeah. They

start mentioning what I do, what the test that I've been doing,

and then hearing, I'm just I'm sorry.

I was like, 40 and 40 and I was like, wow.

This is a country because yeah. A bar from, you

know, Kumasi, Fadawan, Zongo,

and now with with this beautiful platform, with this big big team, big names in

the industry. It's but, you know, it's it's it's it's it's a, a

dream come true. And the and our whole scheme is so transparent

because they don't actually watch my profile, and

then they picked me to found them in the in the that category. It

was a lifestyle and then beauty and lifestyle

category. And then we have 6 women ladies in it, and then we

have 2 males in it. So there's no way I'm in it. There's

no way because way high, high people when I talk, you

know, God make his best, and we we work a little bit, and then how

can it go is work. Amen. But he said, man, give

us that work. That's like work. That's also grateful. Also

grateful. Mister Richard, yeah, the 13 the team, I

was so grateful to them, mister Richard. They did a very transparent work, and I

was so happy for that. Yeah. It's okay. This war is my heart. Yeah. I

hear stories like this. Yeah. And I I don't think, you

know, your your work has gone unnoticed because the heart that you have is you're

giving back to people. Sure. Knowing you're giving back to people, you know, Ghana, you

know, barbers active. Yeah. You know, I mean, Ghana active. Well, this year.

You you also promoted other barbers as well. So you're You're very strong. Selfless.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That that's what we do, man. Yeah. Why are you from voting

on other barbers? Why can't you why are you just promoting yourself? So, I think

you can't do everything on your own, just by 1. You have to

actually open your arms, what you know, you teach other

people. Because mostly what I do is, we I have

friends from the US. They come here. We we actually train

them with their new techniques in their system in the US

so that they also learn. And when we have opportunity, we

just give them a chance to travel. It's not like when I get it, I

won't travel, but they will be going and now we hear. So so for

right now, we have, like, 10 people in Dubai who I

can through my heart that I've told them. You told

them that you've gone to Dubai. Yeah. Did you guys in Dubai, man? Some of

the barbers and restaurants. Yep. That's a lot of them. We have, like, 5 people

right now in South Africa. Just one one day a month

ago Mhmm. In South Africa and other people in Saudi

Arabia and London too. It's not like we get in. We don't like it,

but we have to give it time for them to go because they have the

opportunity. They are the youngsters. Yeah. So they have to go and make the fans

too. Alexis, you say raising on the young brothers who are showing more energy, showing

more vibratory can go out there. Yeah. And so there's a lot we can do.

There's a lot of people people out there that we can help.

Yeah. A lot of people, yeah, that you need our help. Oh, absolutely. And Gartner's

full of talented artists. It's quite I've been full of talented artists, whether it's

barbering, whether it's drawing, artists, music artists, so many artists. I

mean, I'm not sorry. You're sorry. This this this one your wife. Look. This one

your fortune is Amazing. This one I want to present.

The

And they actually feel to come and film me doing it. I

said, for 6 hours for drawing a light. Yeah. How was that? 6

hours, they owed me 6 hours. How did you not make a drawing like this?

So it was a beautiful thing how just I'm helping. You know,

I never been to, SHS before. That's a 10th. Wow. So when

I completed senior high school. No. No. No. So when I completed GHS and

SS, and my mom said, I don't have money to, you know,

you know, further move your education. So what you

do is you know how to draw. So let me give you,

length from the streets. So I just say, okay. Fine. So at

the moment, within 2 months that I started, I completed justice, I

started learning there answer on the website. The place called star

Star Arts, and the most was called somewhere at that time. Mhmm. And

once in a while, when I get my mind to something, I wanna be the

best in it. That's one thing I'm on. And then the bathroom wasn't

cut at all. So from 22,006

to 2 2010, I was doing the ads. And I was so

oh, I can that one, I can tell you I was perfect. I was so

perfect on the ad. I control, Like, when you see it,

bro, it's 0. So it happens, and the digital prints was

coming. You know, the the Chinese are bringing the guitar prints.

You know, you you guys see the billboards. They will go to some things, and

then they just do a bit more formula. It's simple. But that time, we're

earning money for ourselves with the arts. And we I realized that,

no, this time coming within 10 years to come, right, there's to come.

Everybody can walk in to a digital space, and

then they'll count it for them. So that that time, if you are not educated

with a computer and everything, you lose out. So I have to find something

that can feed me every day. Day, and I challenge so to the government. That's

brilliant. So you knew that maybe you had maybe you don't have an

advantage maybe in your mom. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. At school. Yes. So I

already attend my senior computer. From Harvard. And

I couldn't to do it. So I realized now how to learn something

with my hand. Yeah. And that one can feed me every single day as this.

I just popped into it 2011, and then I started.

And here we have a base of water. What they're doing is a well. Before

these months Yeah. Just just some background. Just goes on with.

This tour is done a beauty

award. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Wow.

Yeah. Yeah. Wow. The adviser all the year 2020. Yeah. And then this all the

world will come here 2020. Okay? And this is the 14th.

Yeah. 4 this 14th of CEO, Global CEO Ralph,

and this so so, got SLS

person chose our walls, just one one up together, but

because I'm not

I like this one. Celebrity in bottle beer. Yeah. Tell us what you're saying.

Yeah. It's it's a lot. It's a lot of them. Some of your top of

them, some of them can't divide. So, we'll simple that we we'll say,

we'll say, we'll say, this man,

is Nigerian. You said you talk e I? You know,

I I a o e I. AI. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

So a lot of people don't it's just all being in the scene.

Yeah. Big big people. Yeah. You know? Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No. It's brilliant

what you're doing in just incredible curve of way. So, I mean,

how do you see in the industry, the Ghana, a, you know, barbering industry?

What what what challenges do you see happening? Yes.

I would say when, the challenges is number 1,

is that we're growing. That's what I see. We're growing as an

industry because, when everything else happening,

our charging the problem was recharging lesser Yeah.

And we're using the same equipment as the Western world. Yeah.

Because what everybody when a client's works in, he want his

haircut, and he have a picture from a Western Wall

trailer. I show him. It's showing. Yeah.

Yeah. Stuff and Yeah. And that he won't pay you

it's the same as equipment that is using there. Yeah. But we can't charge

the amount they charge. Yeah. So that was the that was the the

problem, but I think we can tell the people are trying to understand

that, you know, Baba needs to be paid right now. I think we can charge

the. Yeah. Why not? Yeah. For so so we We charge the

standard. Yeah. But it's not, like, out there, but it's

just a few people are charging. So we we pushing it

for a lot of bubbles to embrace it, and then you also can't enforce it

and also charge the hamster is hamster is like a momma, it's

dollars. Yes. Like a moment. Yeah. And the the standard that

we oh, I know is, like, my people in the giveaways,

my friends, my folks, I didn't know that I had how I can work. Yeah.

Charging $100. Of course. Yeah. That's other partners charge you way

more. Right. Way more moisture than you take on this, which way more. Way more.

Way more. So thousands of others. My people in the UK is like, you

charging up. Did you charge them more? They had to. Yeah.

Charging us Yeah. Yeah. It's not

bad. Yeah. And they'll be like, you're charging what? I'm

like, that is, like, you're running.

£1,010. So a week Yeah. And

and way more, £1,020 a week. Yeah.

That's the thing. And and and you said, you're

charging this? Yeah. Well, you're because he was learning from

me. He was, like, I I am learning from you. I'm studying you.

I'm picking stuff from you, and then, you know, it's where we're from, so they

just actually embracing and then view the artist and then make the people also

verbal. Absolutely. So that's what we're doing right now. Now we're trying our best to

invent it, and it's it's happening. It's happening. Yeah. Yeah. I'm just unable to understand

it a little bit. I mean, the rates are going up. I can just I

think you typically there's like a mash there's like a natural basic rate because I

but it's everybody can choose what they wanna pay is just willing to charge.

Yeah. Everyone got choose is one do wanna charge because, they don't

have a good relations that actually works with them. Mhmm.

They try to do it, but it'll be hard. Yeah. Yeah. It'll be hard because

this all feel like my area performer take the price. They would

leave me to Alibaba. You understand? Mhmm. People are

now turning, like, 26 people are doing Yeah. Yeah. That's crazy.

It's crazy. Yeah. Facilities also could be. Yeah.

AC, the team. Yeah. And the advice and what The attempt to stop.

Free. Yeah. Charge them more. Really? Yeah. Because maybe they

will, they will lose customers. So you're trying to encourage them

to charge more, learn more, do more with the skill so

that the people also respect what they do. Yeah. Because you hit the edge because

you are not doing more with your skill, And then you actually join

yourself. How can they come in and respect you? You understand?

And pay you that much in reserve. Yeah. They won't pay you because, you know,

you don't want any respect for you to be paid a hundred

cities. It's true. We see where I am, it's a crime, but

people will come in and they'll pay. Yeah. I mean, look. If you earn these

awards, I think you've earned us the right to charge. Yeah. You know what I

mean? More. You can charge more. Way more. So

you, the person, have to, you know, you know,

grow yourself, develop yourself in that sense,

learn things, and then educate yourself as well so that you can

also elevate to charge a lot that you want to charge. Excellent.

That's that's the goal then. Excellent. I think that's the goal to be I said

it would work then. Yeah. Okay. So I mean, charge is just like charging charging

right around. Yes. You have to innovate before you can't, you know, pull in a

mind. Yeah. Yeah. Chander, how do you overcome it

when you know, I mean, the figures one time I was getting a haircut and

got it and then the lights went off. I

said, Have you had those challenges in the past with them? Yeah. In the past,

in the past, well, I I'd say I want 2013,

2014. You have this turn just down there, only

using, cord to burst. Yeah. Cord

rhinol, not clippers are cordless. So that's a to to that's a whole of mind

about. Yeah. And it doesn't like virtual because and just right now, this

age, a lot of people are still using the cord. Yes. And so

when you have lights out, there's some problem. Yeah. You understand? Yeah. But when I'm

using the cordless, when it's light out, I just have to on the phone or

if I don't have a generator, I'll just on the phone lights, and then I

work on it. When is it? Yeah. Yeah. Because you've already got USB power banks,

all the stuff. So you can make things work more than like That's the education

we do. The solar technology, all this stuff. That's the innovation. That's the

innovation. So, like, the Baba had to constantly elevate

himself before Mhmm. He can also become working

on to become. It's to be honest and then charge the money that you don't

wanna charge. Got it. Excellent. That's how it works. What do you think

the future is in the industry? Where where do you think you're coming? Where do

you see yourself going? Yeah. The future here in Ghana is

beautiful because it's a developing country. Yeah. And it's so beautiful for

people who wanna invest and then, for the for the people

who want to see us. We need the status here is very beautiful for

us if we wanna invest here in Ghana, in every

sector, not just the southern sector, every sector because it's a

developing country, and help people to

develop it. So we need investors. And what what

I actually saying is that people here don't actually

understand, franchising. So I I

always educate them on that because people are coming these are

coming to overtake all of that. And the and the and the

country people wanna benefit anything because they don't wanna

understand the 5th session because the growth is coming, but they

don't wanna embrace it. Mhmm. So people who know about the

growth will come and take it. Yeah. If we

go we watch in the shower and we show you This is how

it works. Yeah. We are not telling you for that because in the US, when

someone is saying, come and take a franchise or do a franchise, it's like a

whole opportunity for because you are going to pay a huge amount to

get a franchise from a company that have a name. Yeah. But here in the

case, we are giving you a franchise for free to work with you with your

name because you have some money to invest. And then so that

we, ourselves, can also develop, but you don't know anything about

it, so you don't wanna do it. Mhmm. Because you don't you you feel like

you can't cheat us. Yeah. You see the whole point? See, because they

are cheating the other, but that's what they wanna open a

small space for them, and then they cheat them. Yeah. This is strange. You get

it. It's a strange. Yeah. So instead of coming to the

people who know the work and then take a franchise and everything

will work for you in smoke to a way, then I wanna do it do

it that way that I think is right by the experience. Different mindset, different system,

different culture, and then they actually come to people like yourself. And then

I just came down on them. We are the kids in our life. We are

the kids on the east side. I got a little bit for people to know,

but then Yeah. They don't want to buy into it. Yeah. Yeah. Because, you

know, cheap term. Yeah. Labor, cheap labor. That's

the whole thing of people here. So, we just pray that

they they they know and then dedicate themselves because the future is

back with the industry, with this, that isn't gonna

happen. Yeah. It was people who are coming

in the notice, and you'll see organizers coming

here, meeting your old folks here, old old friends

from maybe London, someone from America, he meet his friend.

Yeah. And he did love the world now. I

caught 1 one guy who's like, bro, I'm never getting a better

haircut like this in my whole life. No. No. If you can never

get a better haircut in your

He's our event organizer. He he came to organizing Benio.

And it was so uncertain how they actually appreciated what we are,

because we're there, and when we we actually turn on the prize, you're

like, wow. What? Yeah. You try you do this. You challenge us.

It's crazy. It's crazy. Yeah. So It's crazy. We are doing the best

work here, and then we are squaring our people very quickly.

But you have you have afraid that they're open. So it's it's it's it's a

happy future. It's a happy future. That's what I see. It's like very happy and

bright future. I'm excited. Very excited for you and and the industry.

Yes. So is that so any thoughts about maybe going at the moment and trying

things or yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So is

is the you know, every time you have to educate yourself and then,

go places to, you know, and that's work and then as well because, you

know, you may be here and you say, what it best, but when I was

like, so always, I feel like I'm

learning. I feel like I have to learn more, how to do nurse, and then

I defeat myself more. So that's what I actually wanna do. I it's

like UK, Canada, and the US, We try and put things

together and then move to that place, and then learn for 6 months, and then

put the whole thing inside of our people, educate them on that because we

try and do master class with toilet already, and then we come back and do

a master class, tell them, show them how to, you know, cut and

look and wipe hair, cut white people hair, you know, all

these techniques that I booked and so amazing. We we we were fine and we

were fine. Yeah. And it's good. So we're trying to run buses here. We're still

on buses. That's incredible. There's so much growth that Yeah. Had

an idea. It's the you're going to avoid what can you tell you

fit. And new new terms. New terms. New terms. New terms. New strategies there. Yeah.

I've really enjoyed this conversation like this. Is there any final

thoughts, any announcements you wanna make to the audience before you kinda

position? So I would say,

but whatever you do, what you think is possible. And

doing it doing is never done. You have to

keep doing it. You have to keep doing. Doing is never done. You have to

keep doing. You have to keep doing. Do it and do it and do it

till they will know that you that was.

Yeah. So do this. You just have to keep going and then keep

doing. That's yeah. So I will just encourage my my my my

people out here that you and the people watching, whatever you find

yourself is about, you know, is about

doing whatever you are doing. You have to take a step

and then go. That's what he said. He said he is on

the door. He said you haven't opened the door. He said he is at the

door. Or unless he opens, so that means you have to move and he

follows. So I tell him, whatever you are doing, how to take

a step, you have to take a step. That's right. That's why I'm. I said

faith for artworks is that. So, yeah, take this with your faith. Very still.

Yes. Very very, very gentle. Everything. Yeah. I really

enjoy the sense of you. And so why can't I find you I know I

can find you in Instagram for a very good, sweetheart one

there. Yeah. So on Instagram, I'm

Andis Baba 1, a n d I s, Baba, b

a r b e, and then one on Instagram,

all platforms. And then I'm located at Levon City

Mall inside, Levon. You know, right opposite

Lebanon campus, very simple and a very simple place, you

know, when you come, it's about luxury, and whatever you need

is done there. That's it. That is it. I mean, I've seen it all through

the types of craziest stuff, people have like Yeah. We're doing it.

Crazy, man. It is like a You can hear Yeah. And then look

with the with the rest of us, the the actual investment is there.

It's a simple thing there, but here, they are now in business. So, you

know, whatever you are, try to find

us. Yeah. You don't need to go to Turkey. You can come here. Yeah. Yeah.

You don't want that to. You say, hey. You don't need to go to Turkey.

Turkey. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We're doing it. Yeah. I'm doing it. Yeah. And it's

we've been Thank you very much for the time. Thank you very much. I'm looking

forward to, you know, catching up with you and getting my head come next week.

So being fresh, very fresh, I'm done, that's it. So there you have

it, guys. I'm Hamdish Baba aka Investor Andrew. Sorry. We're waiting

multiple or one minute of balaam. We're in the Sound of the Sound Accra

podcast. Once again, for today's show notes, links, key references,

links to social media, etcetera, will have it on the show notes. You can

head over to thesoundofaccra.com/andisbarber. That's a

n d i d s b a r b e r.

Alright. If you're watching YouTube, let us know what you think in the comments below.

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