Singeumho hair salon: men's straight hair iron perm at Toro With Geek

My boyfriend's hair was so straight and had gotten so long that we kept saying "let's go get it done" and kept putting it off because things kept coming up. Wanting him to finally get a nice haircut, I searched around for men's hair salons and found one that's apparently famous across various SNS as a men's hair mecca, with people coming from all over the country — so we went.

(This is just a collage of photos with the logo stuck on! Looks kind of photoshopped, right? I thought so too, haha.)

The designer was so meticulous and really tailored everything to my boyfriend's needs, so I was extremely satisfied and want to recommend this place to anyone dealing with men's hair struggles! This is "Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch," a place that's great with men's hair near Singeumho.

How to find Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch, and where to park

Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch is on the 2nd floor at 82 Musumak-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea, a 3-minute walk from Exit 5 of Singeumho Station. For parking, use the Yeollin Geumho Education Culture Center lot 2 minutes away, and parking is free. Hours are Mon–Sat 10:00–20:00, Sunday 10:00–19:00, and there's currently a first-visit event running.

The entrance was a bit tricky to find. You go into the alley on the left, go up about half the staircase, and head toward the gray building on the right! The stairs just look a bit complicated — the entrance itself wasn't hard to find.

Inside Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch: interior and amenities

Inside Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch, the side wall is a full window, so you get a great view of the alley near Singeumho Station and the natural light is fantastic. The vintage-yet-hip atmosphere was really nice.

Maybe because it's a men's hair specialty shop, I noticed figures and little props scattered around that guys would like! There are lockers for storing your things — if you need one, just tell the staff you'd like to store your belongings.

There were three chairs at the shampoo zone, and they looked wide and cushioned, so pretty comfortable.

As soon as you arrive, they set you up with coffee/tea/other drinks, and there's even a fridge stocked with bottled water so you can help yourself easily, plus simple snacks like Mychew candies.

Straight hair consultation: why the perm and gray coverage are done separately

During the consultation at Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch, we were advised not to do a perm and gray-coverage dye on the same day. Doing both together can damage the hair badly and the perm might not take well, so they recommended doing just the perm and cut today, then coming back for the dye a week later.

This is my boyfriend's hair. Even looking at it now it looks shaggy and heavy, ugh. And since it's so straight, it kept sticking out in every direction.

Since his hair is so straight, we decided on an iron perm, which holds better than a regular perm and gives a prettier curl shape. They asked in detail about what curl and style he wanted, and I was already impressed from just the consultation. We went with the shadow perm style, which I personally love.

Cut first, then the iron perm, then one more cut

For the whole process, they do the cut first. I could really feel how carefully and meticulously they cut each section.

Just with the cut alone, it already looked so much cleaner. I thought, isn't this still kind of long? But they do an extra cut at the end after the perm. Since perming shortens the hair, they intentionally don't cut too much beforehand and do the extra trim after the perm.

First they apply the softening agent carefully to set up a nice hairstyle. The whole process actually takes several hours and could get boring, but the designer was witty and had great banter, so the time flew by. Even people who feel awkward chatting with salon staff would probably enjoy this place — it felt like hanging out with a close older/younger brother.

And now, the main event: the iron perm. The designer put curls into the hair strand by strand. I thought, well, men's hair is short so this'll be quick, but watching them carefully wind each section took way longer than expected. When women get a perm, they just roll the hair around rods and run the heat machine — takes maybe 10 minutes total. But an iron perm applies heat little by little and lets it cool as they go, section by section, so you can really tell the extra care that goes into it.

How the shadow perm turned out, plus home styling tips

The iron perm (shadow perm) plus cut at Toro With Geek Singeumho Branch took about 2 hours 10 minutes. During the final styling, they also showed us an easy way to dry the hair at home. Honestly, hair often looks great at the salon but doesn't turn out the same once you're home — so I loved that they showed a simple way to get the curl to hold without any special tools.

With such a thorough consultation and curls added generously to match his need — stressed-out about severely straight hair — the volume came out full and bouncy, and I was so happy with the result! Comparing before and after, his whole look is so much more alive, and we left very satisfied with the cut and perm.

If you're looking for a place that's good with men's hair in Seoul, or struggling with your own hair, I recommend this place!