Cut off: isolated Canadian town searches for a hairdresser to tame their manes

Wanted: one hairdresser. Must be willing to withstand temperatures that can drop as low as -50°C (-58F) and be able to rectify years of DIY trims and amateur styling.

After two years of making do without a hairdresser, the isolated northern Canadian town of Norman Wells in the Northwest Territories – population 800 – is going public with their plight in the hope of attracting a coiffeur.

“It’s been a long struggle for us,” said Nicky Richards, the economic development officer leading the recruitment effort for this town that sits near the southern edge of the Arctic Circle. “We just don’t have anyone. It’s something that people down south don’t even ever think about because they don’t have to worry about it.”

Many residents have had to turn to family members to cut their hair or attempt to do it themselves. “We’re trying to figure out ways to maintain ourselves,” said Richards, who regularly gives the same buzz cut to her husband, a friend and her boss. “I’m not a hairdresser by any set of means, but I do have a set of clippers and that’s what I use,” she told the Guardian.

When it comes to her own long locks, Richards prefers to hold out, taking advantage of out-of-town trips to schedule hair appointments. It’s not the most practical solution, given that the nearest hairdressers are at least a 17-hour drive away, or a four-hour daily flight to Edmonton, in Alberta, costing upwards of C$800 ($577/£400) each way.

Many in town simply let their hair grow, constantly testing the limits of how long they can hold out. “I was in desperate need of a haircut,” resident Ryan Spurrell told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. “So we just did it … in the front yard there, down by the parking lot, with a pair of sheep shears and some scissors.”

Over the decades, several hairdressers have come and gone from Norman Wells, leaving behind a workspace in a local inn outfitted with chairs, mirrors and a sink. It’s currently available for lease, meaning any entrepreneurial hairstylist need only bring their tools and products. As the town serves as a hub for several surrounding communities, the potential clients number in the few thousand.

The recruitment effort will hopefully get people thinking about the varied business opportunities available in Canada’s north, said Susan Colbeck, who works at the local branch of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, while also solving a longstanding grievance. “We definitely need someone. Anyone who came here would be loved so much.”

Since Richards began spreading the word, the town has heard from a few interested people. The first thing she does is ensure they know what life in this small town entails. “It’s a beautiful town, everybody knows everybody,” she said. “But it has its challenges.”

Most food products must be flown in, resulting in prices as high as C$8 for two litres (4.2 pints) of milk. “And there’s lots of times when we will actually go without stuff because we’re waiting for the planes to come in, or stock might get bumped or the plane didn’t come in that day.”

As oil drives much of the industry around town, the plunging price of oil has taken an economic toll on residents in recent months, while services often available in larger municipalities, such as daycare, are non-existent.

And then there is the cold. “It’s only hit 40 below [zero] about three times this winter,” said Richards, calling it one of the warmest winters in recent memory. “Sometimes we will have a good 40 or 50 below spell for a week or two at a time. So you’re either going to love it or hate it, I suppose.”