ChargeSpot – the shared power bank rental service from Japan and the world’s first transnational power bank sharing service provider – has expanded its reach with the recent launch of its service in Thailand. The perfect solution to local users and travellers who need to add some juice to their mobile phones and other electronic devices on the go, it allows users pick up a power bank at a ChargeSpot station and can return it at any station in the countries where it has a presence.

ChargeSpot currently has more than 5,000 power bank rental stations in Hong Kong in collaboration with 7-Eleven, Hong Kong Trade Development Council and New World First Ferry. There are over 17,000 stations at leading shopping malls and convenience stores in Japan, such as Lawson, Aeon Japan, and Shibuya 109, and more than 10,000 stations in Taiwan.

Here, the company has entered into partnerships with Siam Piwat, operator of Siam Paragon, Siam Center, Siam Discovery and Iconsiam, Kerry Express, Baiyoke Hotel Group and Vana Nava Water Jungle as well as Kasikorn Bank. By the end of 2019, the number of power bank rental stations in Bangkok should reach 5,000 and top 35,000 stations across Asia.

“Thailand – one of the top tourist global destinations – is a hub of internet connectivity, and also a centre of startup investment in Asean. ChargeSpot on-the-go power bank rental service has received an overwhelmingly positive response in Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan, and we also expect the same in Thailand. ChargeSpot machines allow users, both locals and tourists, to be more carefree with their mobile phone’s battery. The advantage to this is, our users can rent in one country and return in another. This allows a level of freedom to travel and recharge no other service can currently provide,” chief executive Tomson Chiu said during the recent launch at Siam Paragon.

“Our aim is to become an icon of the innovative lifestyle and to help customers enjoy hassle-free shopping experience while remaining connected. OneSiam Group shopping malls that gives one hour of free use until June 27,” added Naratipe Ruttapradid, senior executive vice president of Siam Piwat’s operations.

“Kasikorn Bank is the leading digital banking platform, and has the largest volume of debit card and credit usage. We aim to enhance our services and online banking transaction to ensure maximum benefits for customers. Through our partnership with ChargeSpot, we believe we can accommodate our customers to process online payment via both Kasikorn Bank debit and credit cards efficiently. We have a special deal to get ChargeSpot at no cost for one hour for anyone using the deposit payment or topping up via Kasikorn Bank debit and credit cards on the ChargeSpot mobile application from today to August 31,” says Worasa Koravignarin, first vice president of the bank’s cards and personal loan product management department.

To make use of the service, download ChargeSpot mobile application or access it via WeChat or Line to search for the nearest ChargeSpot station. Then scan the QR code to simply rent the power bank. Rental stations are located in Siam Paragon, Siam Center, Siam Discovery, Iconsiam and all Baiyokegroup of hotels. The rental service rate starts at Bt15 per hour for the first 3 hours (flat rate) and comes at no additional charge for the first 24 hours. Additional fee for additional days is Bt30 per day.

However, users need to pay a deposit of Bt450, which will be returned to them when they return the power bank.

ChargeSpot power bank is available in a portable compact size at 7 x 1.5 x 14.5 centimetres with a capacity of 5000 mAh, and it is compatible with all Android and iOS smartphones with micro-USB, Type-C and Lightning charging port. The power bank is protected by 8 safety systems, namely output voltage protection, output current protection, heat control protection, overcharge Protection, energy release protection, short circuit protection, surge protection, and antiripple system.

To find out more about ChargeSpot, go to http://ChargeSpot.net.

I’m quite sure I’m not the only member of a dance audience who’s not really fond of dance gala programmes. Especially in classical ballet presentation, this usually means a mere showcase of dance skills and the focus is more on whether or not each individual principal dancer can perfect the familiar choreography, after having watched them in a few full-length ballets.

Although “Lin Hwaimin: A Retrospective” was billed as such, what the audience recently witnessed over two-and-a-half hours at the Esplanade—Theatres on the Bay as part of its year-round “da:ns series” was considerably different from any dance gala seen before. Instead, it offered a chance to watch excerpts of works we had not seen before and may not have an opportunity to see again. With 11 scenes of various lengths and subject matters from 10 works, the keenly curated programme showed the company’s development under the artistic leadership of dance master Lin, from when they first caught global attention in the 1990s to the international super-stardom status achieved this decade.

Chou Chang-ning in “Cursive”

The curtain raiser was a riveting solo by Chou Changning who’s been a Cloud Gate member since the 1990s and is now the company’s rehearsal director. Portraying Character Yong from “Cursive” (2001), her performance not only showed the interrelationship between the movements and the Chinese calligraphy but also the knowledge and skills she’s accumulated through the decades. Putting this with the fresh faces and young bodies of some dancers in the latter scenes like the finale from “Pine Smoke” (2003), the depth of this ensemble underlines the company’s promising future, even though the founder, master Lin, is stepping down later this year.

While romantic relationships and nature were effectively reflected and tastefully choreographed in duets like “Autumn Path” from “Bamboo Dream” (2001) and “Pollen” from “Rice” (2013), the dance theatre group piece “White Dress” from “Portrait of the Families” (1997) showed how a political crisis affected families, and was a special treat in this retrospective. Voiceovers narrating true accounts of the 228 massacre in 1947 and its aftermath, the English translation of which we read in the house programme book, accompanied the dance movements and touched the audience’s hearts. Another delight was the three Mandopop songs, including Jay Chou’s “The Unspeakable Secret”, the joviality of which caught the audience by surprise after the intermission, as excerpts from “How Can I Live On Without You?” not only gave an opportunity for the younger members of the company to show their characterisation skills, but also reflected Lin’s social commentary as he used crossgender casting to hilarious effect.

While applause after each scene was loud and long, a slight letdown was the fact that, being a gala programme of course, some technical effects could not be recreated exactly as in the original productions, such as in “Moon Water” (1998), one of the company’s most popular and critically acclaimed works, and “Wind Shadow” (2006). In these cases, some audience members probably had to recall the visual images from the original productions and use their imagination to add them to the dancers’ performance, which was otherwise as sublime as the original.

Chen Mu-han, Fan Chia-hsuan, Ko Wan-chun, Su I-ping, Chen Lien-wei, Hou Tang-Li, Lin Hsin-fang and Wong Lap-cheong in “Pine Smoke.”

At the theatre entrance, autographed posters of Cloud Gate’s and Cloud Gate 2’s productions seen there in the past 17 years were on show, further proving the bond between the Taiwanese company and the Singapore audience and why this retrospective was necessary. Meanwhile, it’s been almost a decade since the company performed “Moon Water” in Thailand. Isn’t it about time they came back?

Another Dance Titan

– Esplanade’s da:ns series continues with Paris Opera Ballet who will perform a contemporary programme including William Forsythe’s “Blake Works”, Jerome Robbins’ “In the Night” and Crystal Pite’s “The Seasons’ Canon” from June 21 to 23 at the Esplanade Theatre. Tickets are from SGD 60 (Bt1,380) to 180 (SGD 45 and 60 for students) at http://www.esplanade.com/dans. More info is also at Facebook.com/dansfestival.

– For more on Cloud Gate, visit http://www.CloudGate.org.tw.

The play, written especially in celebration of the 500th anniversary of the First Pact of Friendship and Trade between Portugal and Thailand, explores the theme of family, generation, and of course the famous Thong Yip, a recipe from the Portuguese legacy.

Pattarasuda Anuman Rajadhon directs a cast led by James Laver, Nalinee Sitasuwan, Pariya Wongrabieb and Nualpanod Nat Khianpukdee with a special guest, Dr Kevin Colleary.

Tickets cost Bt500 available at (052) 081 737, or (081) 852 1641 or by emailing info@maiiam.com. Students and MAIIAM members get in for free.

A call to the stage

Bangkok Community Theatre is inviting budding actors and actresses to take part in auditions for “Shipwrecked” this Saturday and Sunday at Bistro 33 on Sukhumvit Soi 33 from 1-5pm.

Actors must be aged 17+, any nationality and able to communicate in English. Performances will be staged the last weekend of September and the first weekend of October. Auditionees will be asked to try a couple of scenes with script in hand with a few other people.

Email shipwrecked.bct.2019@gmail.com for an audition application form, show information and audition scenes.

Beefed up for jazz

Tuck into a sizzling BBQ this weekend at Coast Beach Club & Bistro as the restaurant serves to two spectacular dinner buffets to make the Hua Hin International Jazz Festival 2019 taste even better.

Tomorrow night from 7, you can enjoy Reef & Beef buffet of appetisers, fresh fish, seafood and prime quality meats while on Saturday night, it’s time for Surf & Turf.

Both buffet dinners are priced at Bt1,200plus.  Book a table at (035) 512 021,

Japanese by design

Having finished its successful run in Bangkok, the “Japanese Design Today 100” exhibition moves up to Chiang Mai this weekend and will be show in the Northern city’s Thailand Creative & Design Centre branch from Saturday until June 30.

The exhibition features 100 finest examples of Japanese design with a focus on everyday products and combines superbly designed products of recent years with a group of classic and modern designs.

Find out more by calling (052) 080 500 extension 1 or visit Facebook.com/TCDCChiangMai.

All rapped out

DJ Bomber Selecta, the two-time Thailand National Red Bull 3Style Champion, will be supplying a history of hip hop and playing the biggest hits from Old School to Golden Age at a hiphop night, Urban Takeover, at Revolucion Cocktail Bangkok on Sathorn Soi 10 on June 20.

The event will be a warmup showcase of DJ DaddyRock and BBoy show by 360ARTz Entertainment.

Admission is free.

Having been watched by more than 9 million people all in more than 250 cities around the world, the production will visit Impact Arena, Muang Thong Thani from September 12 to 15. Ticket sales start on June 15 at all ThaiTicketMajor outlets and http://www.ThaiTicketMajor.com.

“Dinosaurs”, which kicked off its world tour last July, features updated, state of the art technology, underlining its position as the biggest and best dinosaur show in the world.

This updated production showcases spectacular and colourful changes to the dinosaurs based on the latest scientific research including the likely feathering of some species. The one-hour, 40 minute show depicts the dinosaurs’ evolution with almost cinematic realism. “Walking With Dinosaurs – The Arena Spectacular” has scenes of the interactions between dinosaurs, how carnivorous dinosaurs evolved to walk on two legs, and how the herbivores fended off their more agile predators.

Nine species are represented from the entire 200-million-year reign of the dinosaurs. The show includes the Tyrannosaurus Rex, the terror of the ancient terrain, as well as the Plateosaurus and Liliensternus from the Triassic period, the Stegosaurus and Allosaurus from the Jurassic period and Torosaurus and Utahraptor from the Cretaceous period. The largest of them, the Brachiosaurus, is 11 metres tall and 17 metres from nose to tail. It took a team of 50 – including engineers, fabricators, skin makers, artists, painters and animatronic experts a year to build the production.

The history of the world is played out with the splitting of the earth’s continents, and the transition from the arid desert of the Triassic period is given over to the lush green prairies and forces of the later Jurassic. Oceans form, volcanoes erupt, a forest catches fire – all leading to the impact of the massive comet, which struck the earth, and forced the extinction of the dinosaurs.

Ticket prices start at Bt600. The show starts on September 12 at 6.30pm and then from September 1315 at 10.30am, 2.30pm and 6.30pm.

For more information, visit http://www.Bectero.com or facebook: bectero  and http://www.DinosaurLive.com

Ready for her sex reassignment surgery, Mayuri travelled from Chiang Mai to Phuket to bail her son, who she didn’t know existed, out of jail. On the way back, the reunited biological father and son learned about each other’s trouble-filled past and present and explored possibilities of their new lives in a society not yet ready for the LGBTQ+ movement’s diversity.

If this remarkable plot sounds familiar, especially for film lovers, it’s because “TranS I-AM” is a Thai stage adaptation of the 2005 American film “Transamerica” starring Felicity Huffman. Much credit is due to the three-member script adaptation team, which also includes the play’s director Apirak Chaipanha, who made the script not only Thai but also contemporary. Even in the title, and usually I would doubt the artist’s language proficiency when a Thai work has only an English title – one cannot simply find a Thai equivalent of “TranS I-AM” – but have to commend, and smile at, the use of mixed lower and uppercased letters and a hyphen.

Further adaptations to this road movie script could have been made, though: some underdeveloped and somewhat cartoonish bit characters could have been easily cut, the play took place in too many locations, and there were too many scene changes, despite the set design allowing for this to very smooth, for the audience to be fully engaged in some scenes.

Casting is a critical part of the director’s job and having award-winning film-director-cum-trail-blazing-member-of-parliament Tanwarin Sukkhapisit in this pivotal role was Apirak’s job half done. The other half is their collaboration which resulted in her truthful performance, subtle yet arresting, making most members of the audience empathise with her and feel her troubles. The two directors made smart use of all members of the acting ensemble, a mix of veterans and newcomers and kept the play running at a good pace – two hours without an intermission didn’t feel like 120 minutes.

A scene when Mayuri returned home to borrow money from her mum and dad and had a heart-to-heart talk with her retired father was so touching that it brought tears to many audience members’ eyes, including mine. This was thanks to the sincere performance by both Tanwarin and seasoned stage actor Saifah Tantana. It also brought back the two promises an only child like me had made with, and kept, my dad – never ever taking drugs or becoming homosexual—but that was in the 1970s and here we are, six months before the end of the 2010s.

By press time, we don’t know yet whether Tanwarin and her few LGBTQ+ MP colleagues have, against all odds, made it into the new government so that they can push this significant advocacy forward. Here in the land of the free, we’ve been hearing about equal rights for many years – since our last democratic government to be precise – but nothing has concretely transitioned and Taiwan recently became the first Asian country to legalise same-sex marriage. Nevertheless, with “TranS I-AM” attracting near fullhouse audiences last, and very likely this, weekend, we’re reminded that theatre remains one of the most liberal media through which artists can express themselves freely in this supposedly democratic country, despite the fact that the numbers hearing their cases are much lower than those of others.

With this second work, Qrious Theatre has also lived up to their promise of being “a company of young theatre lovers who aim to present entertaining stage works that can be enjoyed by audiences of all ages and are a public platform for young people’s expression”. The essence of the drama here was in good balance with the entertainment, and not watered down. Many audience members, myself included, didn’t watch “#Mare 2018”, their debut last November at the Bangkok Theatre Festival. We won’t miss their third work.

Not All LGBTO People Think Alike

– Qrious Theatre’s “TranS I-AM” continues from tomorrow to Sunday at 8pm, plus 2pm shows on Saturday and Sunday at Saeng Arun Art and Culture Centre in Soi Sathorn 10 (a 5-minute walk from BTS Chong Nonsi, Exit 1).

– In Thai with no English translation. Tickets, now selling fast, cost Bt 700 and Bt 500, at http://www.facebook.com/ QriousTheatre.

Charun Poopat, vice president for marketing communications and corporate relations group of Seacon Square Shopping Centre on Srinakarin Road, revealed that Seacon is collaborating with Pepsi to organise the dance competition to give young street dancers a stage to show their skills creatively.

The competition is divided into two categories, Junior teams comprising 58 members under 16 years of age and Open teams comprising 58 dancers of any age.

It will host exciting dance routines by more than 60 teams, both from Thailand and other countries, who will b e judged by four acclaimed dancers from the “Step Up” movie, namely Mari Koda, Boogie Frantick, La Jon Dantzler and J Smooth.

The winners from both of categories will also receive cash prizes totalling Bt420,000. For Junior category, the winner will receive trophy provided by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and Bt80,000 cash. The first runnerup will receive a trophy from the Minister of Tourism and Sports with Bt40,000. The second runnerup will take home a trophy from the minister and Bt30,000.

For Open category, the winter receives a trophy provided by HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and Bt150,000. The first runnerup takes home a trophy from the minister together with Bt70,000. The second runnerup will receive a trophy from the minister as well as Bt50,000. There are 30 teams from Thailand and eight teams from Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, and Myanmar.

The four judges will offer exclusive workshop for free today (June 6) from 10am to 3pm led by Koda, a locking dancer from Japan. Locking dance involves freezing from a fast movement and “locking” in a certain position, holding that position for a short while and then continuing at the same speed as before.

Frantick is a dancer from the US who is skilled in “Popping” dance, which relies heavily on controlling balance especially when performing “Fast & Slow”. Jon Dantzler is also a dancer from the US whose dance style is “street jazz”. For his part, Smooth is an expert in choreography, the art of designing dance routines with specific dance styles using imagination and individual technique to flow along the music.

Workshop attendance costs Bt500 and registration can be made at the venue.

For more information, call (02) 721 8888 or visit http://www.seaconsquare.com and http://www.facebook.com/SeaconSquareFanPage or follow @seaconsquare and seaconsquare on Instagram.

The Blur Expert incorporates cutting-edge “reflexshine” technology to give a powder-like compact texture combined with a melting gel formula. Velvety soft, ultralight and imperceptible, it coats the face in a veil that reflects and diffuses the light for an ultra-radiant matte result. Spherical polymers provide a smoothing effect to give a perfectly silky, flawless complexion while ultra-pure hydrophilic pigments complete the formula to even out the complexion, stabilise its colour and give perfect coverage.

Summer in Swarovski

Celebrating the glorious Mediterranean coastlines and capturing the picturesque Riviera styles from Portofino, Capri and Naxos down to the iconic Greek island of Mykonos, Swarovski Summer 2019 collection is a sparkling fantasy of glimmering crystals in vibrant shades. Presented by actress Nittha “Mew” Jirayungyurn, the new collection dubbed “No Regret” features figurative designs of ice cream cones, sorbets, banana splits and cocktails. “Ocean” brings to life lobster, crab, and seahorse motifs while “Oz” is a new line in chic emerald green crystal and “Only” boasts playful hoop earrings.

Check the new designs out at your nearest Swarovski counter.

Personalised palettes

Compose you own palette at the first Inglot Lab store at CentralWorld. Founded 36 years ago in Poland, Inglot has become one of the most popular make up brands in Europe thanks to its innovative “Freedom System”. This new flexible approach allows customers to create their own sets of personalised makeup palettes, with a wide colour range of over 1,500 shades and high-quality ingredients. The magnetic palettes can accommodate up to 40 shades.

Stick and stay

Schwarzkopf’s innovative unisex range from got2b enables you to create trendy hairstyles that reflect your personality. The styling and colouring products are ready to tackle unstylish hair with a non-sticky, non-flaky, superior hold while locking in moisture and boosting shine for the best finish.

The creamy-but-non-sticky got2b Glued Water Resistant Spiking Glue delivers a strong all-day hold, guaranteed with a wind-tunnel test, that leaves no flake residue and will rinse off easily. For an extra long-lasting hold, finish the style with a shot of got2b Glued Blasting Freeze Spray, which will stay in place until the next shampoo.

The colour meanwhile comes in a range of metallic radiance shades |such as Blue Mercury, Dark Ruby and Frosted Lila.

There will be board games, card games and miniature war games at the show and, for the first ever, the rare Dungeons & Dragons tabletop game is being featured at the event. The customers can also learn how to play games at the event for free.

Thai developers will also use the occasion to introduce their new board game, which was created by using world-class anime character like Conan. Workshops and mini talks are available and customers who like digital art will get to meet with Gomesh Karnchanapayap, an expert in character designing and modelling using virtual reality technology that makes the model look like real people. He will also share his knowledge about virtual reality modelling techniques and give a talk on “Digital Art and Table Top Game” at the show.

Additionally, visitors who like Diorama creation will get to meet with Narongkorn Wongwaen, one of the top experts in colour, design and the only Diorama military model designer in Thailand and Asia.

Different types of board game competitions are provided at the event with cash prizes of more than Bt85,000.

LIGHT, sleek and truly wireless, Apple’s second generation AirPods will deliver sweet music to your ears for hours on end – all on a single charge.

The AirPods come with an option of a wireless charging case, which makes charging is as simple as placing the case on a Qi-compatible charging mat.

The LED indicator on the front of the case lets you know that your AirPods are charging. Amber indicates that AirPods are charging or need charging while green indicates AirPods are fully charged and ready to use. And if you happen to be away from a charging mat, you can use the Lightning port to charge instead. The Wireless Charging Case works with the first and second generation of AirPods, and can be purchased separately. The new AirPods are also available with the standard Lightning charging case.

The Pods have an embedded Apple-designed H1 headphone chip that combines power-efficient wireless technology with optimised audio architecture. This allows them to deliver a faster and more stable wireless connection to your devices.

Powered by the new H1 chip, AirPods switch between active devices twice as fast as their predecessors and are 50-per-cent faster when transferring a call to your AirPods. The H1 chip also delivers up to 30-per-cent lower gaming latency. So whether you’re playing games, listening to music or enjoying podcasts, you’ll experience high-quality sound.

Best of all, the H1 chip also enables hands-free “Hey Siri” voice commands, so you can conveniently ask Siri to play a song, raise the volume, make a call, or give you directions.

I found during the test that the new AirPods are comfortable to wear and have good sound quality. The earpads are light and I felt like they were just resting in my ears without pressure. I could wear them for hours without feeling discomfort.

The earpads have good clarity with outstanding mids and highs and the bass is good enough if you wear the Pods at the right angle.

They are compatible with iPhone, iPad or iPod touch with iOS 12.2 or later, Apple Watch with watchOS 5.2 or later, Apple TV with tvOS 12.2 or later and Mac with macOS 10.14.4 or later.

Setting up the new AirPods for the first time with your iPhone is a breeze. You simply open the charging case with the AirPods inside and hold the case next to your iPhone. A set-up animation appears on your iPhone and you tap “Connect” then “Done” and they’re ready to use.

If you have already set up “Hey Siri” on your iPhone, then “Hey Siri” is ready to use with your AirPods. If you haven’t set up the command, you’ll be guided through the operation.

Likewise, if you’re signed in to iCloud, your AirPods are set up automatically with any of your supported devices that are signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID.

The new AirPods are smart thanks to the H1 chip. When you take your AirPods out of the charging case, they’re on and ready to use. When you put them in your ears, your AirPods automatically play the audio from your device. If you take an AirPod out of your ear, audio pauses. Take them both out and audio stops. If you’re listening with one AirPod and you take it out, the AirPod pauses. If you put it back in your ear within 15 seconds, the music resumes automatically.

The new AirPods are connected to your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time. Sound automatically switches between them.

You can use your AirPods to instruct Siri and control the playback of audio content. By default, you use Siri by saying “Hey Siri”. And when you double-tap an AirPod, you either play audio or skip forward.

You can set each AirPod to play and pause music; skip to the next track; go back to the previous track; and turn off your audio content. The tasks will be carried out when you double tap either the left or right earpad, depending on which you have pre set.

You must use the Bluetooth setting on your iOS device to set the AirPod double-tap functions by assigning each function to either left or right earpad.

By default, AirPods sense when they’re in your ear and receive the audio from your device. AirPods also pause and resume playback when you remove one of your AirPods, or stop playback – and won’t resume– when you remove both. When you have Automatic Ear Detection on and you’re not wearing your AirPods, audio plays through your device’s speakers. You can switch off Automatic Ear Detection to turn off these features.

Each AirPod is embedded with a microphone, so you can make phone calls and use Siri. By default, the microphone is set to Automatic, so that either of your AirPods can act as the microphone. You can also set Microphone to Always Left or Always Right.

The new AirPods have good battery life. On one full charge, the earpads deliver five hours of music listening time or three hours of talk time. The charging case provides battery for more than 24 hours of listening time. You can put the AirPods in the case for 15 minutes for three hours of listening time.

The AirPods 2nd generation with wireless charging case retail for Bt7,790 and the set with normal charging case sells for Bt6,500.

Key spec:

Connections: AirPods: Bluetooth 5.0 ; Case: Charges via wireless (Qicompatible) charging mat or Lightning connector

Sensors: Dual beamforming microphones , Dual optical sensors , Motiondetecting accelerometer, Speechdetecting accelerometer

Battery and power: More than 24 hours listening time, up to 18 hours talk time with charging case; Up to 5 hours listening time, up to 3 hours talk time per one charge; 15 minutes in the case equals 3 hours listening time10 or up to 2 hours talk time

Weight: AirPods (each): 4 g; Wireless Charging Case: 40 g

IN A QUIET street in south London’s trendy Brixton district, known for its ethnic diversity, 25-year-old Kristian Robertson parks his trailblazing mobile salon.

For a little over a year, he has worked for Trim-It – a start-up offering haircuts for people with Afro-Caribbean roots.

Opening the customised van’s sliding door reveals a silver barber’s chair, a large mirror, a hair dryer and drawers overflowing with scissors, clippers and hair products.

As he carefully prepares his equipment for the day’s first customer, the meticulously groomed Robertson says clients are “always amazed” when they see what is inside.

Fulltime barber, Kris Roberton (right) trims a client’s hair in the customised van of mobile barbershop, Trim-It, on the streets of south London. /AFP

“Appearance is important, whenever you wanna go somewhere or even if you just wanna feel better about yourself, you get a haircut and it changes your whole day, changes your whole week even,” says Micah Henry, 24, one of Robertson’s 10-odd daily customers.

Henry, who uses Trim-It about once a month, adds it’s the “most convenient” hairdresser he had come across.

Appointments are made via a mobile phone app, summoning a van to where the client is.

The start-up’s founder, 24-year-old Darren Tenkorang, says the intimate setting of a van helped forge close relationships between hairdressers and their clients.

“The relationship that you have with your barber is a very special one and I feel like this barber shop actually intensifies that because it’s so one-on-one so you can use your barber as a therapist,” he explains.

“You can talk to him about everything from your girlfriend issues to football to business.”

A customer books the services of mobile barbershop, Trim-It, on the app on his mobile phone./AFP

Born to Ghanaian parents, Tenkorang was accustomed as a boy to visiting Brixton’s barber shops regularly with his father.

He says the business idea came to him after enduring many long waits.

Tenkorang now wants to offer a faster service more adapted to the lifestyles of young people.

“We thought it was a good idea to put a barber shop in the back of a van and for an app to be able to book a barber shop to a location,” he says.

“For us, it’s all about making sure that the service is completely convenient and we sprinkle a little bit of premium (treatment) as well.”

The first van launched in February 2018 and the start-up now employs nine people and boasts five mobile salons covering most of London.

“I am just really surprised at how much it has actually taken off,” the young entrepreneur says.

“We’re definitely going to try to conquer London but our goal is to actually just take over the whole of the UK and thereafter, as everybody is saying, world domination!”