Correspondence from Upper East

28-year-old Paul Azoo, a native of Dangweo in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region, is a zealous man, who defied all odds to ensure that his dream of becoming a hairstylist came to light.

His passion drove him from Bolgatanga, his original dwelling place, all the way to Accra to learn the skill, after which he came back and established himself.

He shared his unique experience with GhanaWeb's Upper East Regional Correspondent, Sarah Dubure.

Mr. Azoo, a barber turned unisex hair stylist, started his barbering career in Bolgatanga in 2012.

In the year 2013, however, he saw a male hair stylist on television working on a woman's hair. This marked a turning point in his career.

"When I saw the man doing a woman's hair on TV, I said, l want to also do this. I just liked it and wanted to be like him. I said I would be like this man," he told GhanaWeb.

The mere sight of this instantly stirred up a passion in him to do the same, and he took a bold step towards that.

He said he immediately started surfing the internet in search of places he could enroll as an apprentice.

"I started searching on the internet to search for a place where I could learn the work," he intimated.

According to him, he wanted a place that was far from home to elude critics about his intended move, as it was widely known as a vocation for females.

"Because I am a man, I didn't want to learn it here because people would talk about it," He said.

He added that he eventually had a place in Accra. He pointed out that he settled for Accra because he had an uncle there whom he stayed with.

He further added that when he enrolled for the apprenticeship, he had some support from his family.

He however added that life was quite a challenge in his new environment, which propelled him to make some adjustments to enable him to fit in.




He indicated that he had to adopt the lifestyle of eating twice a day instead of the usual three square meals he initially enjoyed when he was in Bolga.

"Life in Accra is not easy. You know, sometimes I used to manage because I would eat twice a day.

"Either morning and evening or afternoon and evening. I was not bothered because I was thinking about the future," he explained

Upon completion, Mr. Azoo went back to Bolgatanga, where he established his place and started operating.

The hairstylist recalled that when he started, he trended within Bolga as a male stylist.

He explained that people came from every nook and cranny just to have a glimpse of him, as they had heard that there was a male hairstylist in town.

They were exercising the popular saying that seeing is believing to satisfy their curiosity.

"Many people were coming to my shop to see me. They would come, and when they see me, they would just smile and go away," he said.

Mr. Azoo offers home services. He recently travelled to Burkina Faso to work on a customer's hair upon the recommendation of his colleague.

He is quite successful in his business and has over ten apprentices who work with him, including a male.

Mr. Azoo believes that in the quest to be successful, one should always overlook the challenges and discomfort that come along, and focus on the success ahead.

"I wasn't bothered about how difficult things were going. I wasn't bothered by the hunger. I was thinking about the future. That was what helped me focus on the work," he inspired.