June 1, 2020
Photos & Words by: Bryan van der Beek
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lsa Pang, 50; Hoo Ai Way, 42; Lee Chian Ping, 31; and Ang Sock Lian, 58, gear up. At the Red Leaf Hairdressing and Beauty Salon in Aljunied on Monday, the day before the easing of Singapore’s circuit breaker measures into phase one of re-opening, hairdressers help each other try on their newly collected face shields.
“Face mask is more comfortable lah,” quips Pang. “But with the face shield, customers will feel more comfortable so we just wear both.”
As the team meticulously wipes down stations after each customer leaves, I ask if the added workload of sanitising everything is wearing them out. “No lah, very important to keep everything clean!”
Members of the Hair & Cosmetology Association Singapore (HACOS) have started distributing some 60,000 face shields donated by the Temasek Foundation as part of their “Stay Prepared” programme, to hairdressers and barbers who are operating as essential services.
