Kind-hearted Walthamstow barber is doing charity hair cuts for Ramadan

A Walthamstow barber is donating 50% of his profits to charity during the upcoming celebration of Ramadan.

Zain Iqbal, 21, from Waltham Forest, who learned his trade through Instagram and YouTube videos over lockdown, says he wanted to use his skills as a barber for a good cause.

“Helping the poor is an integral part of what we do as Muslims so I thought that instead of donating individually as we usually do, I’ll use my barber skills,” he told LondonWorld.

“I thought that by getting my business involved I could get my clients involved in donating to charity too.”

This year Ramadan is expected to start on Saturday April 2, although it could come a day later if the crescent moon isn’t sighted.

It is a 30-day period in which Muslims abstain from food and drink, including water, during daylight hours, as a means of celebrating and reflecting on their faith.

It is also a time when the Muslim community raises money for charity.

“There’s so many ways to raise money during Ramadan and this is just another great way to do it,” the Barber Beardz founder continued.

Zain started honing his skills before the second lockdown at the end of October 2020, just before his 20th birthday.

“It started off as just a bit of an interest, I’ve always had an interest in cutting hair because I used to see lots of videos on Instagram,” he said.

“I slowly started moving onto YouTube and as I started watching YouTube videos I really wanted to try it out.

“I practiced on my friends and family, although they were reluctant to let me cut their hair as I had no experience.

“I really ended up enjoying it so I decided to set up a little studio.

“Ever since I’ve just been enjoying it and taking it easy.

The young barber now has his own studio in Walthamstow and runs his business through his social media accounts.

You can follow Barber Beardz on Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok.