Imsety Aten-Re leads a barber boot camp for high school and middle school students on Sunday, Aug. 3, 2025. | Michelle Corum, Jacksonville Today
Published on August 4, 2025 at 3:36 pm
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A Jacksonville barber is passing on his love of hair cutting to young people who may want to pick it up as a career.
Imsety Aten-Re and some other volunteers are conducting a Barber Boot Camp from Sunday through Tuesday at the Neighborhood Heroes Barbershop on Edgewood Avenue S. in Murray Hill. Aten-Re cut hair there, and as an entrepreneur, and also runs a clothing line, Top Tier Outfitters LLC.
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On a rainy Sunday afternoon, Aten-Re led 28 middle school and high school students who had signed up for this day camp to learn what it takes to be a professional barber — from using the right cutting tools to grooming skin and scalp to marketing with social media.
Aten-Re says there’s a lot to it and he wants to impart that knowledge to young people in the community.
“I was a part of a few nonprofits myself growing up, so I understand the principle of giving back,” he said. “Basically, I was in it and I want to do the same for other youth, in my own way.”
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Aten Re is known on Instagram as “m__point blankk the barber.” He has been at it for 11 years (five professionally), cutting hair for friends, family and a growing clientele. He says barbers are like therapists too.
“Sometimes there may be something they’re going through and you can be the person that helps guide their decision,” he said. He sees clients come in feeling depressed or sad; “they go out confident and feeling like they can do anything.”
His mom, Marolotta Douglas of Jacksonville, is helping him at the boot camp. She said he’s become well known locally, even cutting hair for celebrities.
“It’s almost like being a rock star,” she said. “I don’t think he knew that coming in, but that’s what it’s become. But he just likes to cut hair.”
Douglas recalls how her son disliked his high school cosmetology class, until it came to barbering. Now, “he’s in his element,” she said.
Aten-Re explains that his career pays well enough he can pay his bills, reinvest in his business and, he hopes, open a barber school one day. In Jacksonville, a barber can make an average of $48,295 per year and nearly $70,000 at the high end, according to ZipRecruiter.
“It’s a skill set no one can take away from you,” said Aten-Re. “You can go anywhere in the world and cut hair. Everybody’s gonna need a cut.”
Sponsors of the barber training event chipped in to give all the participants their own set of barber tools, which will be awarded them on the last day of their camp.
Interest and enrollment was so high in this class, they plan to offer another one in December.
