Steve Jobs once said that starting a successful business begins with changing with the times and understanding your craft.
“Making an insanely great product has a lot to do with the process of making the product, how you learn things and adopt new ideas and throw out old ideas,” the college-dropout-turned-billionaire said.
The 10,000-Hour Rule is discussed in Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Outliers: The Story of Success,” which examines the idea that the key to achievement in any field is simply a matter of practicing a specific task for a long time. The 10,000-Hour Rule can be completed in ten years by working 20 hours per week, and once one has reached that 10,000-hour milestone, they are an expert in their craft and field.
Rashad Frizzell didn’t specifically point to these two people as role models for his Dallas-based mobile barber business, his Mobile Barber app, or his J. Savage hair care products, but the similarities are undeniable.
Four years ago, in 2017, Frizzell decided to move to Dallas from Orange County, CA, and start what he calls a “mobile concierge barber” service. His business comes complete with an app that takes the sometimes-worrisome task of getting haircuts out of the hands of his clients and streamlines the entire process to make the job effortless.
Gregory Pizarro Jr. is one of Frizzell’s customers and has been for four years. He is a corporate strategy exec, entrepreneur, and U.S. Army Veteran (also still serving in the National Guard). Pizarro said it was during his time in the military that he started getting his hair cut every week, which has carried over to his civilian life. Because Pizarro is a man of so many hats, his time is significant to him, and he doesn’t like wasting his time with regular barbers or salons.
“I really enjoy convenience, and of course, the experience,” he said. “I don’t like going to the barbershop, and even if you have an appointment, you’re waiting, you know, an hour, 30 minutes to an hour before they get to your appointment. With Rashad, I know what I am going to get and when. There is no ambiguity.”
Frizzell came to the offices of The Dallas Express on February 1, set up his mobile barbershop in minutes, and proceeded to be interviewed while cutting hair. He said that there is a wide variety of skills associated with being a top-notch barber, but added that maybe none are as important as knowing what the client needs.
“I can look at someone and quickly gather what hairstyle is going to fit someone best,” he said, in-between snips on a reporter from The Dallas Express. “I looked at you and said ‘James Bond.'” (Pizarro’s go-to is what Frizzell has dubbed “The Presidential Cut.”)
Once Frizzell knows what a client needs, the rest is smooth sailing.
Pizarro said that he is an avid user of the app Yelp, and it was on that platform he found Frizzell and the Mobile Barber app almost four years ago.
“I don’t even have to tell him what I want,” Pizarro said of Frizzell’s weekly visits. “Since the first day that I’ve met him, I sat down, and I never have to say anything. I just said every weekend I come out with the same haircut that I expected with the same experience I expect every time.”
It wasn’t long after Frizzell kicked off his business in Dallas that COVID-19 forced many into isolation and out of barbershops and salons. The lockdowns associated with COVID-19 gave Frizzell the opportunity to do what Steve Jobs previously referred to as ‘adopting new ideas and throwing out old ideas.’
He has also given so many haircuts that he has lost count of the total, but knows for sure he has reached the 10,000-Hour Rule that Gladwell spoke of, making him a master of his craft in theory; however, the proof is in the pudding.
“Once you find something that you like — and with his experience and its convenience — you never look back,” Pizarro said of Frizzell. “When you get to a certain level of life, and you start making a certain amount of money, your expectations are driven by that, so sure, I think that’s a part of his success, too.”
Business has taken off for Frizzell since the COVID-19 lockdowns, and he spends his days driving around downtown Dallas giving clients fresh business trims in their offices and at their leisure.
Though he specializes in upscale, businessman haircuts, Frizzell said he can cut hair for any gender or race – sometimes, he is called upon to cut an entire family’s hair in one stop.
But every once in a while, he is asked for a hairstyle that he would prefer not to give. “The mullet,” he said. “I used to have a customer that wore a mullet, and I am not a huge fan of that style.”
Frizzell comes by hairstyling naturally. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and his parents, Harun and Gwendolyn Doss, ran a salon. Frizzell said that he spent many hours in his parent’s business. Since starting his own in Dallas, Frizzell has hired more stylists and barbers for his company, and he often gives demonstrations and talks at beauty schools and barber colleges. He is currently setting up a Barber Scholarship program to help those who might want to get into the business but don’t have the financial means to do so.
Being able to read a room and understand that his clients are often busy, stressed, and overworked often comes into play with Frizzell’s clients. Ted Ehrhardt, one of the founders of an MMA team called Team Takedown and a manager of MMA fighters, is one of Frizzell’s happy, repeat customers.
“I love it,” he said. “I look forward to it each time. And Rashad is good at being able to tell if I’d rather talk or be silent during the cut. I really look forward to his visits. It’s kind of like getting a massage and seeing a therapist. He’s a pretty great guy, ex-military, works hard, and is really trustworthy and loyal. I mean, just a really good person.”
Though many of Frizzell’s clients are businessmen with little extra time, he hasn’t pigeonholed himself into a specific clientele. Instead, he styles hair for all types of people with all kinds of hair. From businessmen to authors, and people sick in the hospital to people having weddings on private islands, Frizzell has seen a lot and hopes to see even more.
“Everyone needs haircuts,” he said. “But not everyone is coming to your front door to give them to you.”
