There has been an explosive rise in the number of specialist men’s barbers over the last five years due to the fashion for beards and moustaches, according to Chamber of Commerce statistics.

Nationwide the number of barbers which focus on beards and moustaches has soared almost five-fold but in Zuid Holland province there are now 283, compared with just 61 five years ago. Hipsters in Friesland have the least choice – there are just 16 companies specialising in male grooming in the northern province.

The news comes at the start of the month of Movember, in which men are encouraged to grow a moustache to raise awareness about men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer.

Scientists have suggested  that the hipster beard, usually combined with a check shirt, is an effort to boost ‘lumbersexuality’. The more men compete for the attention of a female, the more extravagant their facial decorations become, thus boosting the number of grooming parlours.