After an almost ten-year journey with their beards, Ashwin Bosman, Garrick Williams, and Thato Mahapa showed their commitment to joining a community that promotes dialogues about how facial hair has become a part of their identities and how they would feel without it.
Their unique bushy beards, their take on grooming habits, and interesting personalities made them excellent candidates for the campaign. They each shared why they have been growing beards for so long and explained how it had become part of their signature looks.
The men and their stories
Ashwin is a previous South African men’s netball player and a creative director. During his youth, he was bullied and, as a coping mechanism, decided to change his outward appearance so that people could take him more seriously.
“As I grew up, I thought that maybe they won’t bother the one with the moustache. I decided to grow facial hair. During my professional career, people started taking me more seriously.
His career then took him in a different direction when he became a flight attendant for a period, which meant he had to do away with his distinguished beard. “This brought a different element of respect, as people look at you differently if you’re well-groomed and when you’re considered ‘neat’.”
Garrick, a music talent manager, says he always had facial hair coupled with long dreads. To prepare himself for cutting off the dreads he had for 15 years, he let his beard grow longer and shaved his head completely bald.
“The dreads became heavy, and it was time to cut them off. I worried about who I would be without dreads as I became known as the guy with long dreads. The beard was something I needed to compensate for not having the dreads. The collaboration with BIC® Flex is a test to see if anyone would recognise me without the beard”, says Garrick.
Thato, an influencer and a lawyer, says grooming was something he had to do because he had “a face full of pimples”. Thus, grooming his beard became a ritual for him.
“People used to tell me the beard made me look a bit older. I became more confident with a beard because it covered much of what was underneath it. The people I looked up to with beards appeared very comfortable, and it looked like they had mastered their look. Having a beard comes with responsibility – you have to take care of it, then comes in the element of self-care. It’s a powerful process, which gave birth to my blog, The Bearded Muse, that focuses on giving grooming tips to men.” added Thato.
Mastering their look (and perceptions) with BIC® Flex razors
After discussing their beards, and the reasons for growing and maintaining them for so long, each of the three men shaved their beards completely!
BIC® Flex wanted to see if they would still identify with themselves without their signature stubbles. Following their transformations, Ashwin said he felt empowered and like a new person.
Garrick felt that the experience was quite overwhelming for him. “My beard was a massive statement for me. At the end of the day, the only person I’ve tried to impress in my life was me. How I master my look is making sure I’m happy.”
Thato felt his experience has made him feel liberated. “Now that it’s all gone, I feel like a new person. The next big thing that I’m mastering is my move into my legal career – you never know what works for you until you try it.”
Is it time to switch up your look? Get flawless grooming results and master your look with a BIC® Flex shavers.
To view Ashwin, Garrick, and Thato’s respective transformation videos, go to https://www.facebook.com/BicSAShavers/ or https://www.instagram.com/bic_sa/?hl=en
