Meet Akin & Naomi | Owners

We had the good fortune of connecting with Akin & Naomi and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Akin & Naomi, what’s something about your industry that outsiders are probably unaware of?
Dapper 5 Fine Men’s Grooming isn’t your regular barbershop. We are a place where EVERY man can come and leave feeling good both inside and out. From our amazing staff, our very comfortable membership lounge to our networking events, Dapper 5 is a one-stop-shop for today’s man! Dapper 5 is the connection of the old barbershop feel meeting modernity. We embody what it means to be a “Dapper Man”. With the state of the world right now, it is easy to get bogged down and not want to care for anything, but looking Dapper is one of the first steps to gaining the confidence needed to take on the world. We understand that every human is unique, especially with their grooming routine, which is why we have distanced ourselves from the industry standard of cookie-cutter grooming services to provide our clients with a benchmark service that is the hallmark of what we stand for. Setting up this concept during a global pandemic was a challenge in itself, considering all that was going on, but knowing nothing can break the human spirit, and with sheer perseverance and will, we were able to prevail. Knowing well that overcoming is part of the American way of doing things as we have throughout our history whenever we encountered any form of adversity, having that at the back of our mind kept us going forward. Dapper 5 Fine Men’s grooming is here, and we are here to set the benchmark in men’s grooming. Watch out for a Dapper 5 location near you.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I would have to say that what sets Akin & I from others is our willingness to take risks. In this industry, I feel as though people are so scared to take a risk because they don’t know if it will be rewarding. We believe in the saying that “the bigger the risk, the greater the reward!”

Naomi- I got into this industry when I was in school getting my psychology degree, with the way my course load was set up there weren’t any jobs for me that would allow me to balance both school and work. I got asked by a friend of mine who owns a salon because of my psychology degree to help her with team building and customer relations and I said yes and that was the beginning of the seed that grew into Dapper 5. Deciding to go through with Dapper 5 wasn’t easier we had so many obstacles, one of our greatest ones was the pandemic. A lot of people thought we were crazy to want to start a brand new business during a pandemic especially a high contact business. We had been working on this for a little while at this point and we weren’t going to let a pandemic stop us! I learned a lot about myself during this process because when you are building a brand, you pour everything you have into the brand and that brand is then a piece of you. Dapper 5 tells a story of strength, resilience, and elegance.

Akin- I have a passion for investing in small businesses and when Naomi brought the idea to me and I looked through the numbers and the plan she had laid out and I knew this was something worth investing in. I have never done a build-out before so this was a very different project than I was used to. It took some adjusting for me, but having a great team and partner made the whole process easier. I would have to agree with Naomi when she says our story is one of strength, resilience, and elegance. My dad was in the military and he was part of a group of 5 men that became known as The Dapper 5. It didn’t matter what was going on, they always had a fresh and clean cut. So, we decided to take a page out of their book and spread the knowledge that EVERY MAN deserves to look his best regardless of who he is and what he does! We want to instill the idea of staying groomed and looking fresh at all times, regardless of your age. We call this “The Dapper Experience”. With Dapper 5, you can finally access all of those features and so much more. Our commitment is to constantly push the boundaries and bring in the right results and a very good value.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Hmmm. I would start here in Prosper, TX at The Gin Cafe, where you can unwind and get to meet the people that make this community click. The food, Drinks, and Music are recommended. You have to taste Sabaidee Lao & Thai Street Food, it’s by far one of the best Laotian/Thai food you will ever have. If you are looking for an African taste with an American touch, I suggest visiting Gidi Bar & Grill. You also have to visit The Star, which is the 91-acre campus of the Dallas Cowboys. You have many spots you can see and hang depending on your mood. Klyde Warren Park is also a chill spot to just unwind at. You can go for a walk or take a pick of the amazing food truck selections. For Dinner, I would suggest Restoration Hardware restaurant, it is a great scene, and you will love the vibe, and for a speakeasy type feel evening, I will recommend you visit “Alice in Dallas”

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Our Family, and friends, the Prosper Community, with the way they have shown us love and support, it’s been unreal and beyond our wildest dream. Last but not least, we would like to give a massive shoutout to all our Dapper Associates; they are a critical part of the Dapper Five Team. A huge shout out to our amazing construction team, Sirius Building Company for bringing our vision to life and for working with us day and night to make sure we got exactly what we wanted and Our legal team at Shofner Consulting!

Website: www.dapper5.com

Instagram: dapperfive

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dapperfive

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dapperfive/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/dapper-5-fine-men-s-grooming-prosper