Justin Karbowiak, 23, is the owner of a mobile hair cutting business called Barber Dash.
For the past three years, the Heritage Woods Secondary graduate has built up his business through word of mouth and a captivating Instagram feed showing him cutting hair in grocery store aisles, on fishing docks, restaurants, an escalator and even at a night club.
Many of his clients are rappers, such as two-time Canadian Music Award-nominee Mercules, and Karbowiak is known for driving a luxury car around town.
Now, the Coquitlam resident wants to give back and his first choice for philanthropy is KidSport Tri-Cities, a charity that offers grants to enable kids to play organized sports.
"I think that sports is such a huge factor in shaping young people," said Karbowiak, who played rugby and wrestled in high school.
Karbowiak said it's important for young people to be active and he knows how important it is to be able to "push through obstacles and challenges."
Thanks to his circle of friends and clients, whose contributions he matched, Karbowiak collected $5,000 for KidSport Tri-Cities and on Thursday (April 27) he handed a cheque over to Chris Wilson, the executive director of the local organization.
Many of his clients have VIP status and Karbowiak says he now only cuts hair for his specialty clientele.
"My videos on Instagram stood out and they got a lot of traction," said Karbowiak.
The serial entrepreneur has other businesses on the go, but cutting hair has been his dream since he was a teen.
He packs a chair, cutting tools and lotions into his car and goes where he's needed, earning a positive reputation for his good people skills.
He now hopes giving a not insignificant donation to KidSport Tri-Cities will show how important it is to give back to your community.
"I just like paying it forward," Karbowiak said.
