An aesthetics doctor has revealed how tradesmen are increasingly turning to Botox to smooth out the weathered look they get from working outside.
Lancashire-based aesthetics practitioner Dr Stephen Hennessy has seen the number of men on his books increase from 18 to 83 in five years and they now make up 10 per cent of his patients.
According to Dr Hennessy, men in the South East tend to opt for ‘finance face’ to get rid of the frown lines caused by stressful careers such as banking, while up North it’s all about ‘Bloke-tox’ for roofers, bricklayers, labourers and other outdoor workers.
‘I really didn’t expect builders, gardeners and bricklayers to start coming in, but when I thought about it, it kind of makes sense,’ he said.
‘The outdoors does weather the skin, and you can really see the damage when you’re dealing with someone who works outdoors. Botox is usually the first step, this can be followed up by a facial peel, which a number of my male clients have undergone.’
One of his clients is Stephen Melling, 52, a roofer from Lancashire who started using Botox recently after a trip to see Stephen for dental work where he got talking about the frown line in between his eyebrows.
‘I work outside a lot and because of all the wind and dust, squint and frown quite a bit. I’d started to notice the lines were pretty deep, even when I wasn’t frowning,’ he explained.
‘I’ve used face creams in the past, because if I’ve been working outside all day, with the wind and the sun, my face is as dry as a piece of toast.
‘I was at the dentist one day, and Stephen, who does facial aesthetics along with dentistry, said he could do something about the lines.
‘So thought I’d try it, first of all, out of curiosity, but it’s really made a difference.
Roofer Stephen Melling, 52, from Lancashire started getting Botox after becoming worried about the lines between his eyebrows, caused by frowning as he works in dusty environments
Dr Stephen Hennessy has seen the number of men on his books increase from 18 to 83 in five years and they now make up 10 per cent of his patients
I didn’t tell my wife, but one day, even she said ‘you look a bit different, I still didn’t tell her, but she knows now.
‘She’s younger than me, got no wrinkles, and she’s not bothered about me having it’.’
Stephen insists that men shouldn’t be expected to accept wrinkles as part of life when so many women don’t, revealing friends have gone abroad for treatment as they were so unhappy with how they looked.
‘My friend, who’s a similar age to me, he went to Venezuela for work done, as he’d been really bothered by his wrinkles,’ he explained.
At first the roofer hid the fact he was having Botox from his wife. But now she knows about the jabs and is supportive
‘It made him feel better about himself. I spoke to him about Botox for me, and he kind of talked me into doing it.
‘My dad worked outdoors all of his life, and he was very proud of his wrinkles, but times have changed.
‘I myself have never felt pressured to look any kind of way to fit in, but I can understand why some people do.
‘I’d say any men concerned about their looks – it works, and if you’re that bothered, and you’ve got a bit of disposable income, give it a go.
‘Loads of people keep it secret, because it’s vanity, but getting a suntan, dyeing your hair, it’s all the same thing. Everyone wants to look better, whether they’ll admit it or not.’
Stephen is one of the many outdoor workers turning to Botox to get rid of the weathered look
Dr Stephen Hennessy runs the clinic in Preston where Stephen has his treatments started carrying out non-surgical procedures in 2000, and says back then, almost exclusively, all his clients were women:
‘After a couple of years, some men did start coming to see us, which did surprise me,’ he said.
‘Five years ago I had a handful of male patients, I’d say around 20, but now, that number’s almost 100 which is about 10 per cent of my clients.
Roofer Stephen said that men should not be embarrassed about having aesthetic treatments
‘At first, the men typically worked in the beauty industry themselves, so wanted to look good, or they’d been brought in by their wives, who’d noticed a few wrinkles.
‘Some people say men should be men, but the world is changing, blokes are looking after themselves more than they used to. Every bloke now uses a moisturiser, 20 years ago they wouldn’t have done.
‘Women have been having Botox for years, men are catching up. It’s the same with the stigma surrounding it.
‘The stigma with women having Botox is fading, with more of them speaking about it, men may follow suit, Bloke-tox is still relatively new, but come back in ten years, I think the stigma will be a lot less.’