It had never crossed Jumadi’s mind that he would one day cut the hair of the President of Indonesia, Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.

On one fine Saturday evening, the 28-year-old barber felt like he won a lottery when Jokowi and his video blogger (vlogger) son Kaesang Pangarep visited the barbershop where he worked, named Hunky Dory, located not far from the State Palace in Bogor, West Java, where the country’s number one figure asked him to “trim his hair”.

Jumadi said that he was extremely happy having the opportunity to trim the President’s hair, adding that the happiness was also shared by his parents and relatives in his hometown in Indramayu, West Java.

Kaesang recorded with his camera the moment Jokowi’s hair was trimmed by the barber and posted it on his vlog. The
video soon became viral both on social media networks and mainstream media.

“My relatives in Indramayu have called me ever since the video became viral. My parents are proud of me, saying they had never imagined their son could touch the President’s head,” the father of one told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Thanks to the President, the barbershop is now getting a growing number of customers.

Hunky Dory manager Dede Mulyana, 22, said the barbershop used to serve fewer than 30 customers a day, but after Jokowi’s visit, it sees up to 45 daily. One customer even came all the way from Jakarta on a weekday to get his hair cut at the barbershop. Jakartans usually go to the barbershop on weekends.

“The [Jakartan] customer took so many pictures of this place.
I guess he posted them later on his social media account,” Dede said.

He claimed that some celebrities, such as actors Stuart Collin and Ali Syakieb and heartthrob Adipati Dolken, also had their hair cut at the barbershop.

Hunky Dory itself is an upgrade on local barbershops, locally known as pangkas rambut, in which the customers can only get their hair cut and have their beards shaved. At a pangkas rambut, which is sometimes located under a tree with plastic chairs and mirrors, customers only need to pay about Rp 15,000 (US$1.12) to get their hair trimmed and
Rp 5,000 to get shaved.

At Hunky Dory, in contrast, customers are spoiled with its services and facilities, such as flat screen televisions, air conditioners and sofas. The barbershop not only offers haircuts, but also other services, such as hair coloring, hair tattoos and shaving to pamper its customers.

In terms of prices, Hunky Dory is relatively affordable. Customers only need to pay Rp 60,000 ($4.50) for a haircut.

For other services like shaving, hair coloring and hair tattoos, costumers have to pay Rp 40,000, Rp 100,000 and Rp 45,000, respectively.

A loyal costumer of Hunky Dory, Igor Christof, said the place was cozy and the service of the hairstylists was satisfying.

“Not many hairstylists can handle my curly hair, so I can say that this place has among the best ones in the city,” the 30-year-old radio announcer told the Post.

Customers can also request songs they would love to hear while getting pampered in the barbershop.

Jokowi, for instance, requested songs of the American heavy metal band Metallica and the legendary Indonesian rock band Slank during his visit, Dede said.

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