A man's touch
Angela Osborne
Stabroek News
November 17, 2003
Take a walk along lower Robb street and you will see a man doing women's nails, just inside the front door of Touch of Class salon. There must be many passers-by who have pondered this unusual arrangement, and so Sunday Stabroek decided to interview the cosmetologist concerned - Rudolph Williams - to find out how he came to be working in a field which traditionally has been monopolised by women.
Williams said that he was initiated into the world of cosmetology while living in New York some seventeen years ago, when he cut men and women's hair. After he returned to Guyana, he jumped at the opportunity to run Fantasy Nails, a salon belonging to his sister, Pamela Dillon, as she was leaving the country and wanted someone to take care of her business. He remained there and got the training he needed to be a qualified cosmetologist.
But why would a man want to be a cosmetologist? His reply was unhesitating: "It is the best business for a man to get into. And besides, I love making women look good!"
Williams stayed at Fantasy Nails for nearly six years and then took off on his own, opening 'Touch of Class.'
He said he has been able to satisfy his clients who average about twelve per day, because he set about to prove them wrong.
"Most of them came in first place to see if it is possible for a man to do the job as well as a woman." As is clear from the numbers, they have been convinced.
Williams's business has grown substantially, and from operating it all by himself, he now manages a staff of six. Located at the corner of Robb and Alexander streets, Touch of Class has an unassuming exterior, but the interior is neat and has a warm aura.
Williams does not believe in confining himself to administrative duties, but is still hands-on when it comes to his clientele. He said he did everything: "... the works - manicure, pedicure, facials, the three types of body massage, skin care. If you have something wrong with your skin, I can help you take care of it, tell you what to use and so on; chemical work, air-brushing, cutting and styling."
He insisted that his clientele was average, but that he hoped to expand his business in the not-so-distant future. "The time has come for me to take my business more seriously; I want to start doing body therapy and massages on a larger scale."
Williams has come a long way from the little boy who grew up in New Market Street, Cummingsburg. He is divorced and is the father of two children, a boy and a girl. Five years from now he sees himself retired and smiling, satisfied that he has passed on his knowledge to the many he has taught over the years.