Spotlight Profile—Fahad: Ottawa and Arnprior barber/owner

Making people look good and feel great is what Fahad does best. After many years of working under some of Ottawa’s revered local barbers, Fahad honed his craft and built up a roster of loyal clientele who would wait patiently for a seat in his barber’s chair. From the first haircut, his talent and personality continued to bring the National Capital Region’s men back time and time again.

Just before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, in February 2020, Fahad took the leap of faith and decided to dip his toes into entrepreneurship. He sourced a new location in Ottawa’s west end, hired new staff, and opened up shop. He had a few solid weeks of business before public health measures were implemented in order to combat the spread of the virus. The next few months were harsh on the new business owner, since his service-focused enterprise could not accept clients in person. That said, the time away from the chair afforded Fahad the opportunity to plan for his new business and consider the most optimal path forward. Fahad emerged on the other side of the series of lockdowns stronger than before. He opened up a second location on the outskirts of the National Capital Region, to provide a whole new community with his passion for making men the best versions of themselves.

Most recently, Fahad started looking to expand his business by opening a third location. With a young, male target market in mind, he is looking to bring his business to the neighbourhoods where his clients can walk, bike, or bus to his shop. With his sights set on urban locales within close proximity to post-secondary institutions, he is able to use insights from the 2021 Census to discover where the highest concentration of his potential clientele is located. Armed with this information, he can narrow in on listings for potential barbershop spaces within his budget, in centrally-located neighbourhoods where his clients can access his services.

As Statistics Canada is continuing to release 2021 Census data throughout 2022, detailed demographic insights are to be gained into who Canadians are, where they live, work and play. Equipped with Statistics Canada’s data tools and resources, such as the dynamic search tool for 2021 Census data, business people like Fahad can gain a deep understanding into how factors like age, sex and gender, education, marital status, language, income, and occupation differ at varying levels of geography.

With this information in hand, business owners and entrepreneurs can develop a granular portrait of neighbourhoods they wish to consider for their business, that serve their needs now and into the future.

From sourcing a new location, to reaching new clients and hiring staff members, insights from the 2021 Census can shed light on how to start your business, and also expand into new potential target markets. Stay tuned as we continue to highlight stories from Canadian small business owners and entrepreneurs nationwide.

Data from the 2021 Census is available, check them out at www.statcan.gc.ca/census.