Like, before I went towards more academic pursuits my entire career goal had been to become an esthetician of sorts. I helped friends study for their cosmetology licenses, I took every art class available including multiple portraiture classes, I studied fashion and design, history of fashion, and anatomy. Because I have this weird thing where I don’t think any human being is physically ugly. I think there are many people in this world who lack either the skills or means to present themselves to their fullest potential.
And maybe that potential isn’t to fit classical molds of beauty. There was a semester where I drew nothing but alternative body types and tried to design fashion focused on the differently-abled or body types whose needs are pretty much never met by mainstream designers. But I digress.
The way you look ties significantly to self-esteem, most everyone can agree to that on some level, even if it’s only that feeling clean and well-groomed makes you feel good. But all of the aesthetic services that a person requires are usually in separate facilities. You go to a barber, you buy your grooming products yourself and hope that they work properly in tandem, and frankly, many people spend ridiculous amounts per year on cheap clothing with no vision or direction in mind that could be better spent on multi-purpose pieces that create a clear and concise personal style and vision. Like the person who has twenty novelty tees and ten pairs of basketball shorts, but only a handful of fitted garments that only match up with one other item that they own. I feel like a lot of people would save a lot more money and have better experiences if they had honest critique and assistance while they developed their initial style or made significant changes to their look.
If you had a style consultant who was in contact with your barber and a personal grooming specialist (and other specialists on a case by case basis) people would be better able to develop a look at their price point (no matter how low) all housed in one facility it would drastically change the self-confidence of many individuals.
Someone who you would go to and describe what you want, and would create what is essentially a caseload to see it through successfully. You would discuss a budget and options. You either bring in the clothing yourself, they assist you in ordering clothing, or for a small nominal fee they assist you in actual brick and mortar store shopping to ensure your clothing experience goes smoothly. Once clothing is acquired, and in-salon tailor assists in getting clothing fitted to best display the traits an individual possesses to their best ability (and don’t say that that is a luxury, tailors are available at every price point, my grandfather was dirt poor and still had the money to afford the same tailor for his work shirts, formal attire, and even his union suits, and that guy cost about the same as a laundromat fluff and fold service). And they would help you create an upkeep regimen to ensure that your clothes are well taken care of, and that you’re using the best combination of grooming products you can afford. At higher end facilities you would also be able to get standard salon services such as brow shaping, facials, manicures, waxing, etc.
In an ideal world, I feel it would not be impossible to create salon-type centers that help people who are developing their personal look or style to meet their fullest potential at multiple price points. They could be something you do before you start a new job, or when you enter the job market, or something you gift someone as a birthday surprise. There have been television shows that work on this premise, but why should it only be a televised experience? This could be a whole market that would employ multiple individuals and create an ergonomic and economically sound new job market, and help individuals whose appearances suffer because they don’t learn how to take care of themselves or don’t want to learn how to take care of themselves.
As long as the concept was marketed in a way that appealed to men as a time-saving and “masculine” endeavor, I think we would enter a new age of well-dressed and nice smelling straight men.