HIDDEN away on a leafy A road in Hertfordshire lies a shabby-chic barbers where multi-millionaire footballers including Dele Alli go to get their freshest looks.
Justin Carr is the proud owner of That Feeling – and the England team’s unofficial hairdresser of choice.
5
5
It is an unassuming location for a ’boutique barbers’ and the interior a million miles from the kebab shops and takeaways that are nearby.
Here, handmade metal piping holds up the mirrors, shelves house his own branded T-shirts and hats and there’s just enough room for a customer to squeeze past one of the four barbers while they do their thing.
In the waiting area is a PlayStation – Fifa 19 included, of course – with the joysticks on the controllers battered from hours of use.
The TV shows Sky Sports but if there’s no game on then you can get on the retro Street Fighter arcade machine which has more than 800 games built in.
Oh, and there’s Pac-Man right next to it.
Less than a mile away is Potters Bar Town football club.
It is funny to think of the Ferraris and Lamborghinis owned by Premier League players on mega money travelling past en route to Justin.
But that is exactly what the likes of Tottenham heroes Dele, Kieran Trippier, Moussa Sissoko and Hugo Lloris just might have done.
5
And it is not only there that some of the Three Lions heroes have met up with Justin. He went out with the team to the World Cup in Russia.
No wonder he jokes he is going to get in touch with the FA about sorting his own official tracksuit with his name on the back.
Speaking of that unforgettable summer, Justin, 27, said: “I went out to the World Cup and met a lot of the lads. Southgate came in and said hello to me.
“It was amazing being part of the whole experience and I got to work with the Nigerian team as well.
“It was a mad rush. Everything was happening. I got back and it was like, ‘Phew!’
“The Euros is next year and hopefully I will get to go out there. I went to the first Euros and hopefully it can just be an ongoing thing.”
Fast forward 12 months and Justin was entrusted with sorting the barnets of Spurs and Liverpool players ahead of the final in Madrid.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Rhian Brewster all got trims before the big night.
Like most of us, Justin, a Head & Shoulders ambassador, was glued to the TV that night, but for a slightly different reason.
5
He said: “It was crazy to see the players on the pitch and think, ‘I cut their hair!’
“When they’re on the screen I’m always looking at it to make sure I haven’t missed a bit.
“I’m thinking, ‘Can I do it better next time?’ There’s pressure because you know they’re going to be on TV and everyone will be watching.
“I pause it to double-check the style and think, ‘OK that’s cool’.
“My friends will give me some stick anyway, asking me what I have done to their hair.
“If it’s a Saturday night and the players are watching Match of the Day they’ll get in touch and see they like the trim. I’m getting good feedback – and that’s why I’m still in the industry!
“Before the Champions League final I was having banter with them saying because it’s a big game I had to give them a big trim.
“They all had their Champions League final heads on and it was cool to see both sides, the different players on different teams so focused.
“I haven’t spoken to the Liverpool players too much since the game but I spoke to Chamberlain and he’s buzzing.
“You could see it on him when he was celebrating, it must have been an amazing feeling.
“For me, it’s surreal to see them and know they’re sporting your haircut. People are very conscious of footballers’ image and it’s cool to know I contributed towards that.”
5
Justin Carr was speaking as an ambassador for Head & Shoulders, Official Hair Care Partner of the England Football Teams and the UK’s #1shampoo brand
