China parade inspires military-themed haircuts for children

A hair salon in Beijing has been offering patriotic and military-themed haircuts and styles to children in the weeks leading up to China's largest military parade to date to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two.

At the start of this month, hairdresser Wang Xueru found children visiting her shop began requesting designs of the national flag or tanks in their undercuts, a close shave around the head on which barbers can carve out specific designs.

As more of such requests came, the 34-year-old decided she could turn the special requests into a complimentary service in conjunction with the military parade to be staged in the heart of the capital next week. She still charges for the haircuts, however.

"I thought, well how about offering these hair carving activities free of charge? As long as the little one is willing, we can carve it for free," she said.

Wang, who has been looking forward to watching the military parade for months, now has also freshly carved undercuts to look out for on television or on live streams of the massive event taking place next Wednesday.

"I'll see if I can find a child with a small flag design on their head. They may have been my client," she said, delighted at the prospect of seeing her work in the crowd. 

The "Victory Day" parade, as Beijing calls it, marks the end of World War Two following Japan's formal surrender and will be a projection of China's growing military might.

The highly choreographed parade will unveil cutting-edge equipment like fighter jets, missile defence systems and hypersonic weapons.

Chen Nan, who brought her son in for a themed trim, said she felt the activity could inspire children about their own country, and was an opportunity for them to participate in their own way in the event that promises to showcase new Chinese weaponry.

"I think for the children it also has great educational meaning. For our family, from the perspective of the motherland, a stronger China means we won't be bullied anymore. And for my family, of course, peace is the most important thing - we just hope for lasting peace." 

Reuters