Barbershops in Canada Team Up with Hockey to Fund Men's Health
A network of barbershops in Victoria, Canada, is participating in the Make Your Growmitment campaign alongside hockey leagues. The initiative aims to raise awareness about men's mental and physical health.
In Victoria, Canada, locations of the Tommy Gun’s Original Barbershop chain are joining a national campaign to raise funds and increase awareness about men's health. The action, taking place at three specific locations in the Greater Victoria region — two in Langford and one at the Hillside Shopping Centre — directly interests the barbershop industry by turning everyday service into a tool for dialogue on well-being.
The initiative, named Make Your Growmitment, takes place between October 1st and November 30th. It is held in partnership with the charity Movember, as well as the professional hockey leagues Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and Western Hockey League (WHL). The central objective is to encourage open conversations about men's physical and mental health while raising resources for specific causes.
During October, the campaign focuses on education and awareness, encouraging clients to speak more openly about their health conditions. Starting November 1st, the dynamic changes: clients visiting participating barbershops will be invited to make donations to Movember at the time of payment.
To reinforce a sense of community, those who donate will have the opportunity to fill in a paper mustache and pin it to a display wall inside the shop. This visual installation serves as a tangible representation of local support. The charity focuses on suicide prevention, mental health, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer.
The strategy goes beyond barbershop chairs, extending to hockey arenas across Canada. During OHL and WHL games in October and November, Tommy Gun’s will display co-branded promotions. Fans can scan QR codes displayed in the arenas to donate to their local teams' Moustache Cup fundraising efforts.
Craig Westley, Vice President of Operations and Marketing at Tommy Gun’s, highlights the unique relationship between barber and client: “Men tell things to their barber that they wouldn't tell anyone else. That trust means something. With Movember, the OHL, and the WHL, we are using this to help men take their health as seriously as their fade.” Movember has already helped fund more than 1,250 projects worldwide, supporting research and programs aimed at improving men's health and strengthening social connections.
BarberRicci newsroom, with information from Sooke News Mirror.