Hairdresser’s quest to break down barriers with inclusive app dubbed ‘Uber for haircuts’

A Bristol hairdresser is hoping to thwart the sexism that can sometimes go hand-in-hand with cutting hair by launching an inclusive new app dubbed the ‘Uber for haircuts’.

Dooo aims to make ‘ordering a haircut as easy as ordering a pizza’ while breaking down barriers in the hairdressing industry.

The app is the brainchild of Jess Palfrey who wanted to create a mobile hairdressing platform for all.

She came up with the idea during the pandemic when she dropped renting an expensive chair in a salon in favour of offering mobile haircuts, whizzing around the city on her scooter with her kit on her back.

Jess said: “I found there was a huge market for mobile haircuts at that time, but they just weren’t accessible.

“You have to go through the whole rigmaroll of googling a stylist, calling them up and not knowing who they are or if they can come out to you.

“I was explaining this to a client and it just so happened he was an app designer.

“He said, this is a great idea, you’re onto something here. That’s how it began.”

There are often huge discrepancies in how much men and women are charged for haircuts, and this was something Jess wanted to erase from the off.

“The connection between gender and hair can be quite ridiculous,” she said.

“I myself have been rejected from barbershops in the past because I’m not a man, even though I wanted a man’s cut, which is outright sexism.

“It’s not about gender but the individual and what they want from the haircut.

“Of course if you’re wanting a fancy blow-dry and a load of layers you’ll probably be charged more because of the time it takes, but why should I charge a woman who wants a trim more because of her gender?

“By the same token, if a man with long hair wants a cut, he should be charged the same as a woman who has long hair.

“Changing that is my biggest drive, but I also wanted the app to be socially accessible.

“As well as increase in people working from home, there are many who have a lot of anxiety about going to a salon.

“Or they might be disabled and travel is difficult for them.

“The apps make it easy. Someone can come out to you and you don’t have to worry.”

Jess said the app had been greeted with an ‘amazing response’ with 300 downloads in its first week.

It is currently available on iOS and should be launched on Android in the new year.

But Jess has even bigger plans for the future.

“I don’t want this to come off as something big and corporate,” Jess added. “I want to change things.

“For instance I work with a lot of homeless people at the moment and that’s something I really want to extend with a charity version of the app called Dooo Good.

“I actually discovered my love for hairdressing when I was travelling the world and had to come up with a way of making money.

“I met people from all walks of life, so the real vision for the app is that anyone can access a haircut no matter who they are.”

For more information and to download the app, visit https://dooo.co.uk/