What makes it art?
It’s everything, from the time we take on each customer, to the way we customise the experience to each person, down to the type of products we use. Everything is bespoke – I look at my customers as individuals – and I always want them to have a cut that is unique to them. We measure and tailor everything so precisely, it’s almost like being a surgeon.

What was your first experience in the grooming world?
When I was younger, I would spend hours watching my mother work at her salon in Mexico City, and I began by helping out washing clients’ hair. One day a family friend asked me to give him a haircut, and having observed my mother closely for years, I rose to the occasion. To my surprise, I discovered a real passion for grooming and styling from that moment.

Can you describe your professional journey from then to now?
After that experience, I asked my mother and sister to train me, and I began by giving free haircuts at the local primary school. Then in 1992 I started as a unisex hair stylist, before focusing on the blade in 1995. In 2005 I shifted my focus to male grooming only, as I realised that as a man myself I knew exactly what I would want from a shave, and that I was therefore best placed to advise other men on what looked best for them. So I opened my own barber shop, and I’ve never looked back since.

What’s special about the job for you?
I think it’s the way my customers feel once they walk out of the door. To know that I have been able to create a positive change to someone’s day, to know that I can participate in creating a new image for someone. To know that I have contributed to a moment of pure indulgence for them, and to be able to provide an experience that they won’t have anywhere else. It’s incredibly rewarding.

The art of the blade at One&Only Palmilla