Key Takeaways: As a barber, you will occasionally help a client with neck acne. Knowing how to safely perform your barbering services and how to help manage their acne can elevate your barber business and benefit your clients.
As a barber, you do everything you can to help your clients look and feel their best. From making their dream aesthetic a reality to educating them on how to care for their skin, your work covers a lot of territory, making you a valuable asset not only for your clients but also your community.
While you are not a medical expert and shouldn’t provide medical advice, there are times when you may encounter conditions you have to address and potentially can help. Neck acne is an excellent example of such a case.
Knowing not only how to barber with a client with neck acne in your chair, but also how to help them manage that acne can differentiate you from other barbers and help your client live a happier, healthier life.
How Barbers Care for Clients with Neck Acne
Before we dive into how you can help your clients treat their neck acne, it’s important to consider how you can perform your barber services without causing additional harm or making their acne worse. Thankfully, this should be an easy-to-achieve proposition for skilled barbers.
Start with Sanitation and Hygiene
If you want to answer the question, “Do barbers care about neck acne?” simply look at their hygiene habits. Barbers who understand the importance of sanitary practices care about all of their clients and their potential health concerns, including acne.
Barbers should maintain an environment of cleanliness, including sterilizing their equipment and tools. Because open wounds can accompany acne, these steps help prevent infection that could lead to skin irritation, more acne, or even dangerous infections.
Cater to Client Comfort
Anyone who has suffered from acne knows that it can be quite painful and easily irritated. Accounting for and adjusting to this discomfort when a client has neck acne can improve the experience for everyone involved.
This is especially true of shaving, which can cause significant pain and lead to scarring. In addition to being cautious and gentle, employing specific techniques and using acne-friendly tools can be helpful.
Opting for shaving products that are specifically designed to be gentle to sensitive skin is a good start. Try to avoid active acne, and don’t forget to use a disposable neck strip to help limit irritation. Once finished, consider applying a soothing skincare product that helps further reduce irritation and inflammation.
"Knowing not only how to barber with a client with neck acne in your chair, but also how to help them treat that acne can differentiate you from other barbers and help your client live a happier, healthier life."
Talk to Your Client About Hairstyles
If your client has severe neck acne, you may want to have a consultation with them where you can openly discuss their desired haircut and how it might work with their condition. This will allow you to talk about options that might work best to reduce irritation and limit the possibility of making their neck acne worse.
A longer hairstyle is worth considering, as it can remove the need to shave around the affected area. By working with your client’s unique situation rather than trying to execute a hairstyle that will cause further irritation, you can avoid making their acne worse.
How Can a Barber Help Their Client Manage Acne?
What you do during a haircut is only part of the positive effect you can have on your clients with neck acne. While you are not a doctor and can’t offer medical advice, you can help them with practical approaches to managing their acne.
Education is key. Helping your clients understand what causes razor bumps and other forms of irritation can work wonders for their neck acne. You can also give them practical shaving tips, such as shaving with the hair grain, using clean shaving tools, being gentle, and using light pressure. Clients with neck acne might want to shave less frequently, too, to allow their affected skin to heal between shaves.
When it comes to product recommendations, your clients with neck acne will likely be better off using clippers rather than razors. They should also opt for gentle hair and skin care products that do not contribute to irritation and don’t clog pores. Harsh products are a big no-no for acne-prone individuals.
As a barber, you can provide barber facials that can help reduce acne. Exfoliation, cleansers, facial massages, and more can all be beneficial.
Finally, and most importantly, don’t hesitate to refer your clients to a dermatologist. Clients with severe neck acne should see a professional where they can receive an expert diagnosis and experience the guidance and care needed to heal properly.
Having the knowledge and skill necessary to work with a variety of clients is a defining characteristic of a successful barber. Learning how to help clients with neck acne when they’re in your chair and when they leave it is an excellent example of how you should be able to adapt to different circumstances and provide people with the service they need.
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