Co-Founder / Celal Girisken

Hair Garage is more than just a place for a great haircut and good vibes, but a story for me. 

I can pinpoint the exact moment I wanted to be a hairdresser - the time I got my first ‘American Cut’. I was 11 and finally made the transition from my mum's hairdressing salon to my dad's barbershop. I walked into a tiny two chair barbershop, the floor thinly layered with talc and dust, the walls covered in old photos of boxing legends, the chairs were held together with duct tape and the air smelled of old spice. I can’t explain why, even now, but I knew this was the environment I was going to grow up and age in. 

At the age of 14 my schooling was going nowhere, I hated school and it just wasn’t my style of learning but I couldn’t just leave school with nowhere to go; my parents wouldn’t have any of it. It was my dad who called me to ask if I wanted to study or start to work in a profession that I loved - and I did just that. 

On Monday I had my first trial as a barber. With a full day of no sitting, I got to know my new best friend, the broom, and was surprised as to how much coffee an adult can consume in a day.

Somehow I impressed the owners of the barbershop for which I was trialing for. 

They asked me to start the next day.

And 15 years later, I’m still behind the chair.

Like everything else in this profession, you never stop learning. I was 22 when I first opened The Hair Garage in Dubai, and a lot has changed for the better. Building a barber team is like building a family from the ground up, and having fun along the way.

Say you have a 6 chair shop; that’s 5 other barbers excluding myself. These personalities, cutting styles and lives that are growing with you and your shop are what make it come to life. 

I’m currently building my own Harley Davidson as a Custom Motorcycle - I’ve always loved Choppers and Cafe Racers.

This is my passion, my ever growing dream, and with The Hair Garage & Store, I hope to share the joys of a finely crafted hairstyle and sharp beard with every man wanting to become who they truly are - from traditional looks to motorcycle fanatics like me.