It’s been said that the art of the barber is slowly being lost,but that isn’t necessarily so. These gentle men have stepped up to lead the way by keeping the skills alive. Enter Schorem: The Scumbag Barbers of Rotterdam.
Words by Vanessa Morgan Photographs by Jelle Mollem
Schorem founders, Bertus and Leen, opened their shop in 2011, their business plan scribbled on beer mats. Looking to change the wayward and depressing state of men’s grooming in Holland they’ve gone on to spread the love of the sharp-looking man farther abroad. Bertus recently brought his brand of scumbag to our shores. And we’ve noticed there have been many more suave looking men around ever since. We caught up with the man himself, Bertus.
INKED: How did you get started as a barber?
Bertus: I was pretty much a punk rock fuck up in high school; I just wanted to smoke weed and ride my skateboard. One night one of my buddies asked if I wanted to shave him a Mohican. My dad owned a pair of clippers, the rest is pretty much history. I loved those days – buds coming by with record sleeves asking me to copy the haircuts of their (anti) heroes.
Schorem seems to focus on the craftsmanship, instead of just getting through customers? Yeah, we have a huge passion for classic haircuts and the cuts worn by different musical subcultures and we want to do the best job possible creating those cuts. In the end it’s always about the patron, of course. Although barbering is not hard to learn, it takes a lifetime to master, like any true craft. I also love, love the fact that handcrafted work doesn’t lie; what you see is what you get, [you] can’t cheat on quality.
And we hear free beer is involved in the shop? HELL YEAH… Beers ’n’ banter is the heart of any true men’s sanctuary. Loosen the lips a bit, reinventing the art of having a conversation with a total stranger in a world gone (anti) social media crazy…
What products do you suggest men use on their beards? You’ve got all sorts of balms, oils and pomades. We love the fact that a lot of really small companies produce quality products for facial hair, but in the end, just choose a product that you like and your bird finds good smelling. We are working on some high-class beard grooming products for our barbering product line called Reuzel.
No bullshit is something Australians find appealing, how does that play out in the shop? We cut all the crap, we just cut ’n’ shave and that’s all there is to it. We do love bullshit though, it’s hard to come by some good, decent bullshit nowadays and the barbershop is THE place to talk all the bullshit you want because you’re amongst peers dropping in for the same thing: a good time and a bloody good haircut.
What’s the area of Rotterdam like and what makes it the ideal location to operate? Rotterdam is, and has always been, a working class town. We’ve got a saying, “In Rotterdam the shirts in the windows have rolled up sleeves” and we think that’s the reason why our shop is doing good, hard decent work. Our shop is in an alternative part of town [where there are] lots of small shops providing personal services instead of big chains. I like that.
You’ve said you focus on style instead of fashion, can you tell us more about this please… Fashion fades and style is forever. We want to do haircuts you want to show your grandchildren – think ole pappy looked COOL instead of the holder pads and bleached mops we sported in the ‘80s [Laughs]. Look at James Dean, Elvis Aaron Presley, Marlon Brando, Humphrey Bogart, 100 years from now these guys will still be icons.
What was your trip to Australia and New Zealand like? Is there hope for men’s grooming down here? Australia and New Zealand have been freakin’ AWESOME. I want to move to Melbourne, no joke, there’s a huge buzz going on everywhere we went. All the people we met are really into the things they’re doing, whether it’s art, music, crafts, cars… And people looked GOOD, having their own style. I think we can learn from you guys. So many great barbershops, the laid back mentality – we fell in love with Down Under (but man, those snakes ‘n’ spiders…).
What does “Schorem” mean? And how did the shop come about? It pretty much translates as “Scumbags” but it’s also a little wordplay in Dutch. It’s the past tense of “I shaved him”, but it’s a really bad word. When I called my mum and told her the name of the shop was going to be Schorem, she cried a little, because she didn’t want anybody to call her son “schorem”. I replied: “Mum, they’ve been doing that for years”.
There seem to be many “characters” working in the shop. Can you tell us about some of the people you work with? [Laughs] Freaks, vagabonds and scoundrels! We pretty much pick guys from the street. They have to know what’s going on in life. W don’t really care about what schooling they did or their backgrounds, as long as the have passion for the job and a good sense of humour, combined with strong social capabilities, they have palace to work. They love their beers ’n’ banter, loud music and tattoos…
Who do you get tattooed by? Too many to mention but my favourite all time artist who has done most of my tattoos is my old friend Daan Verbruggen at Namakubi Tattoo and he’s the one who’s gonna finish my bodysuit. Another artist I highly appreciate is Errol at The Inkstitution who did my Elvis on my hand, Mary on my belly and, of course, the skull on skull and the rancid punk screaming in left ear. Robert Aalbers at Clean Solid Tattoos did the babe whispering sweet little lies into my right ear…
A little shout out to Mez Afram at Eureka Rebellion in Melbourne who did the snake on my leg when I was over.
How did your tattoo story start, what was your first piece and how did it come about? Oh, I knew I was gonna get tattooed from the first time I saw one. I’ve always been in love with punk rock, psychobilly and all other forms of dirty rock ’n’ roll and combined with skateboarding, it was just a matter of time. I fooled around on myself with needles and ink but got my first tattoo by Rinto Bekkema, a small cancer sign because of the girl I was dating at the time – cheesy! But the second one was a design by Keith Haring. I just went to a KH Exhibition with my 16-year-old daughter, which felt so very special because I was showing her the artist that made me fall in love with street art and she loved it, which kinda rounds the circle.
Barber shops and tattoos seem to have a strong link. Would you say this is something you’ve seen? Good question. Barbers used to be surgeons and did all the bloody chores, when the great explorers went on their journeys they always had barber(s) on board. When they discovered islands like Tahiti and Samoa it was the barbers who took interest in the native art of tattooing and started practising on the sailors on board, who wanted to have souvenirs of their long journeys, and took it back with them to the west where they taught their brothers of the smock the ins and outs. A lot of the first (illegal) tattoo parlours were actually in the back rooms of the barbershops where the barbers would work. It’s even related to the shaving process where barbers have to stretch the skin to work. That’s why barbering and tattooing have always been closely connected. Ninety-nine per cent of the barbers will have a work related tattoo: clippers, razors, barber poles etc.
What’s the feel of the shop like? No word, it’s a shave haven for the tired and the weary… We like to call barbering the “second oldest profession in the world”, which is a story about the chicken and the egg because when you got outta the mines, the fields or the ship you were sailing on, a visit to the barbershop would give you a better treatment at “the oldest profession in the world”. I love my shop, it’s a melting pot of cultures and a place where everybody knows your name, but don’t give a fuck where you come from or how much money you make.
Who are your customers? They used to be rockabillies, psychobillies, gentlemen, vagabonds, punks, ruffians, freaks, artists, brothers of the smock, rockers, bikers, greasers, scumbags, speedfreax, greasers, pomade pomping bastards, vintage lovers, jazzers, billies, inkslingers, bastards, lowlifes, sick boys… Oh wait, they still are.
Tips for Aussie men on looking after their hair and beards? Keep your country beautiful, visit your local barbershop and pick up a can of the dutch gravy called Reuzel pomade and life will treat you good.
Is a barbershop the men’s place to relax and unwind and share their stories and worries? The only place…
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