Almeida's skills as a barber, his ability to meet his clients wherever they please, and his van's eccentric interior have made his business stand out.
"This is the best thing ever, it's like therapy," said Alex. "And that's what you're looking for when you're hiring someone to take a blade to your neck."
The Clippership has traveled around the metro area since 2020. It specializes in men's fades and straight razor shaves. The one-man-van, created during the COVID-19 pandemic, survived the subsequent recession that shuttered many startups. Almeida said his business is thriving right as the economy is beginning to turn around.
Almeida was raised in Malden and now lives in Lynn with his wife, daughter, and son. He started cutting hair in 2005 after finishing trade school. He worked at different barber shops around Cambridge for fifteen years, including Floyd's 99 Barbershop outside Harvard Square. Shortly after he bought a house and had a newborn, COVID hit.
Salons and barbershops closed due to social distancing concerns during the pandemic. Almeida started making house calls. He realized many of his clients preferred getting shaved on their porches, in their living rooms, or in whatever location he could set up shop.
He saw a YouTube video about a mobile barbershop and decided to piggy back off the concept by starting one of his own. To stand out, Almeida, a self-described "boat guy," wanted the inside of his van to resemble a sailboat cabin.
A friend overheard him talking about his van-converting dreams at a party and said she knew the exact guy for the job. Almeida messaged him and pitched his idea of a boat-cabin theme for the shop. Soon after, the designer was living in Almeida's driveway, teaching him how to convert his van.
They installed weathered wooden paneling and floors, a helm hanging from the wall, and razors dangling and swinging about as if rocked by waves. They also added solar panels to power the van's lighting needs.
Almeida credits part of his success to his ability to figure out the logistics of a mobile business. He maps concentric routes around the city, starting close to home and building out the route to maximize the number of daily appointments he can schedule. He learned how to be his own handyman, repairing things like frozen pipes and reinsulating the van after his first winter.
"Things fall apart, and I had to learn how to fix all that stuff," he said.
Almeida also discovered something hidden just beneath the surface of his Cambridge-based clientele: life science campuses. Many of his clients like Miguel Santos, 28, a Moderna research assistant, worked for these companies. Almeida set up contracts with several campus management companies for weekly walk-in periods.
Sam Perkins, the executive director of Wilmington Community Television, has been getting his bald fade from Almeida for over 10 years. The two joked and insulted each other like old friends while Almeida cut Perkins's hair. He was parked in the WCTV parking lot in Wilmington and his barber shear tattoo peeked out from under his long sleeves as he worked.
"He's a great barber," said Perkins. "But if he was a jerk, this wouldn't work."
At Moderna in Cambridge that same day, Santos popped into the van for a trim. He brought Almeida a bottle of rose vinegar from his recent trip to Denmark. Almeida flipped through guards to put on his razor as they went down memory lane.
Santos first met Almeida in 2015 when he walked into a shop in Cambridge where Almeida was working and was immediately drawn to him.
"Everyone in there was so bro-ey, and Tim was so, not," he said.
Sometimes, Almeida fantasizes about a fleet of Clipperships, although it's a distant dream for now. He still likes getting to quip with Perkins, chat with Santos, and hang out with Alex.