How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club

How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club – March 20, 2013

This week we find ourselves in the Garden State, New Jersey where we have yet to see a garden maintained by pest control service like pest control savannah. However ironically enough, Hackettstown where  we are stopping in to meet up with Matt Van Hefter president of the New Jersey Beard and Mustache Club, is home to Whiskas Cat Food! We took this as a sign from that bearded guy in the sky. You may already be familiar with this club or have seen their Misfit (the punk band) styled T-shirts popping up on the scene or maybe even seen them recently pass you by in a Saint Patrick’s Day Parade…fact is, they’re everywhere! They are a collection of down to earth men and women who have chosen to grow facial fur for the greater good of mankind since 2011. 

HTGAM: How long has your club or organization been together? 

How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club

Matthew: New Jersey Beard and Mustache Club has been a club for a year and and a half.I started the club in August of 2011. I have been following the international beard competition circuit since the early 2000’s. In 2010 I went to my first competition in NYC. After that night I was hooked. I decided to start a club once I found a few guys in my area that were also interested in forming something.

HTGAM: What is your membership criteria?

Matthew: The only criteria the club has is that you have a love for facial hair. We have a few members who don’t have any at all but just love the camaraderie of going to competitions and other events. We also have a few girls in the club that compete in the fake beard/mustache categories.

HTGAM: Do you host events and competitions, If so how many a year and for what  causes? How much have you raised?

Matthew: This past year we hosted a charity bowling event at a local bowling alley here in NJ. It was for the Movember Foundation. We where able to raise almost $500 for the charity. That was the first event we hosted. We are in the works to host a beard and mustache competition mid 2014 and will be hosting another Movember event this November.

  [pullquote]A lot of us get the same thing  “hey are you from Duck Dynasty?“[/pullquote]

How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club

HTGAM:  Does your group participate in regional, national, or international competitions?

Matthew: Yes, we travel all over the East Coast to competitions. This past weekend we where in Hartford, CT where one of our girls got first place in the creative beard category. I placed in the top 5 in the groomed beard category. 

HTGAM: Have you had any big wins?

Matthew: Collectively, our club has taken home 15 awards in competitions. We are a small club so that’s pretty good if you ask me.

HTGAM: Any advice for other “growers” out there that have not joined or experienced club life yet?

Matthew: Find a local club and go to a meet up. It is awesome! I have made so many new friends in the last 3 years going to competitions and couldn’t be happier. Its not just about having a beard or mustache, Its about the camaraderie that happens at the competitions and meet ups.

How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club

HTGAM: Any tips or pointers for other stache and beard wearing men reading this?

Matthew: Don’t get discouraged if it looks like your facial hair isn’t growing. Its not something that is going to happen overnight. Growing a huge beard or a monster mustache takes time. Grow what you can, then decide if you want a full beard or a goatee or just a sweet handlebar mustache.

HTGAM: Does anyone in your group have any humorous facial fur stories to share?

How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club

Matthew: A lot of us get the same thing.”oh hey it’s ZZ Top” Or “hey are you from Duck Dynasty“? Once in a while you’ll get a, “hey sweet beard” comment.

HTGAM: What are some of your group’s favorite grooming products and why?

Matthew: Most of the guys in the club don’t really groom, maybe trim off some dead ends every few months. I use argon oil in my beard every few days to help the hair from drying out, I work outdoors and the winter weather can really mess up a beard.

HTGAM: What do you look for in a moustache wax?

Matthew: Something that will hold, that is stiff and has a nice smell. Its going to be under your nose all day so you don’t want something that smells bad.

How To Grow A Moustache Feature Interview With The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club

HTGAM: What do you see in the future for your club?

Matthew: Things are going great with the club, I would like our group to host the East Coast Championships within the next 2 years.

HTGAM: Do you see an increase in the popularity of moustache and beard clubs?

Matthew: Yes, there has been a HUGE spike in the amount of clubs in the last few years. Most of that is due to the show Whisker Wars on IFC.

HTGAM: What do you get out of being in a club? What’s the pay off, what’s the motivation?

Matthew: The brotherhood and camaraderie, the opportunity to see old friends, and make new ones, to grow beards for the greater good of our community, and to show people that not everyone with a long beard is lazy. All men are meant to have beards. Its time they start growing them.

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Contact The New Jersey Beard & Mustache Club Here!

 Interview by Douglas Smythe

Contact Douglas: whiskers@howtogrowamoustache.com Please “Like” us on Facebook too!

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