Carl Edmond x Honest Al
Honest Al keeps it sharp
Fearless and frank, Honest Al is the old school barber who has no time for doubts or dull times. Coming for a girl’s love from Brussels to Sweden in the ‘90s, Al admits it was his passion for this place and for what he does that made him stay. When we meet him, he’s direct, he’s funky and he’s a lover of all things classic – just like us!
When we greet Al at this barbershop, it quickly becomes clear to us that this is the place he considers “home away from home”. And of course, it doesn’t come as a surprise that Al’s absolute favourite thing about humans is “that they have hair!” Furthermore, when it comes to a special time of day the barber enjoys, he shares with us that it must be the morning, when his head is clear.
Regardless of his easy-going persona, however, we’re also eager to know if there’s anything in the world that could possibly make Al afraid. “I fear no God” he proclaims, stating that even if he were destined to live just three more hours, he would simply live without caring if it’s more or less time that he has left. A bold character, no doubt, but the famed barber admits that it’s relaxing with his family that gives him that clear balance in life. “I’m also quite stubborn too, or at least that’s what I hear.”
Al is evidently motivated by both his close ones and by people’s hair, and we want to know how he evaluates his success in this restless and always evolving business. “No matter if you have a lot or a little, you need just enough – no more, no less – to be truly happy.”
And because his mastery is so involved with craftsmanship and creativity – two things that are always in our hearts – we ask him if he believes a “classic” can also be considered a “modern”. Without thinking twice, Al shares: “I do classic haircuts all day long, and it happens that this style is modern right now. So yes, I think you can have both at the same time. Should it stop being modern, I would still go for classic – ‘cause classic stays classic forever.”
