BARBER FRANK IN GHENT: A LONDON LEGEND BEHIND THE CHAIR AT ROMAIN

Some guests you announce with flyers and big campaigns.

Others just walk in, put their tools on the station, and the whole room quietly understands something serious is about to happen.

For a month and a half, ROMAIN in Ghent had one of those.

Barber Frank.

Francesco, really.

An old-school Italian barber with more than 50 years on the clock, normally holding court at Barber Barber in London – one of those places where chairs stay full and the standards don’t bend.

This time, he made an exception.

He came to work in Belgium. In Ghent. In ROMAIN. Under the same roof – and side by side – with Stijn De Sutter.

They didn’t meet on Instagram.

They met the proper way: through the craft. Both are Master Barbers from the legendary Scapicchio Academy in Bovino, trained in the same unforgiving way of Italian barbering – the kind that doesn’t care how good your feed looks if your shave isn’t right.

Having Frank as a guest barber at ROMAIN wasn’t a marketing move.

It was a gift.

He brought London speed, Italian temperament and half a century of experience with him. Fast hands, sharp eyes, that slightly grumpy charm that only really good barbers can get away with, and an accent that made even the word “comb” sound like it had history. Clients would sit down a little unsure and stand up with that dazed, quiet look people get when they realise, “Ah. So *this* is what it’s supposed to feel like.”

The man is a walking archive.

Fades from before “skin fade” was a hashtag. Classic haircuts that don’t go out of style because they were never in fashion to begin with – they were just right. Beard work. Straight razor shaves. Small corrections in hand position, razor angles, posture. The kind of details you can’t learn from a reel.

For the ROMAIN team, it wasn’t just fun.

It was a live masterclass. Every day.

Tips, tricks, old stories, small corrections.

A comment dropped casually between two haircuts that actually condenses three years of trial and error. A small adjustment on the strop. One sentence about how to talk to a nervous client. A different way of moving around the chair so your back still works in twenty years.

And the best part?

Nothing about him screamed “celebrity barber”. No ego, no showmanship for the sake of it. Just a man who has spent his life behind the chair, still working hard, still caring if the neckline is clean and the sideburn hits exactly where it should.

For ROMAIN, having him in-house for a month and a half was an honour.

For Stijn, it was like hosting a brother from the same crazy barber family – someone who knows what it’s like to stand in front of Scapicchio judges, someone who understands why we obsess over steel and lather and timing.

Some people you say goodbye to with a handshake.

Frank left with something else.

To mark his time in Ghent, ROMAIN did what any self-respecting, slightly obsessive barbershop with a perfume line would do: they named a fragrance after him.

Francesco.

The third perfume in the house-made collection.

Not a random tribute.

A way of bottling a little bit of what he brought into the shop: strength, character, old-world class, a hint of danger and a lot of warmth underneath. The kind of scent you wear when you’re not interested in blending in.

The doors at ROMAIN stay open for him.

For his speed.

For his no-nonsense attitude.

For that rough-edged Italian humour.

And above all, for his professionalism and generosity in sharing a lifetime of knowledge.

Thank you, Frank.

For the work, the laughs, the lessons, and the reminder that this craft is bigger than any one city. London, Bovino, Ghent – same razor, same standards, same fire.

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If you want more than just a good story and you’re ready to sharpen your craft or your own look, you know where to find us.
From straight razor training and honing on natural stone to classic shaves and serious beard work in the chair, ROMAIN Barbershop & Academy in Ghent is where it actually happens – not just where people talk about it.

Want to book a service?
https://booking.optios.net/6064/select-location

Want to follow the journey?
ROMAIN on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/romain_ghent
Stijn on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/desutter_stijn
Stijn on YouTube (more adventures, more razors, more stories): https://www.youtube.com/@desutter_stijn

For Academy info, courses or questions, send an email to info@romaighent.be – and we’ll take it from there.