A man who spent over £7k on a haircut says he is always being stopped in the street and being mistaken for 'The Tinder Swindler'.
Fans of the Netflix series apparently often mistake him for love scammer Simon Leviev, with many often asking him to take a selfie under the impression he's the real swindler. Dan Smith's sudden notoriety came as a huge surprise after he underwent treatment after struggling with male pattern hair loss for a long time since his early twenties.
The 37-year-old says he still isn't used to being the centre of attention due to his likeness to a TV celebrity, the Mirror reports. "My hair loss started at 21 and got steadily worse," Dan said.
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He added: "I kept waking up to find my pillows covered in my hair, and it began to make me very paranoid. I noticed that I was starting to look a lot older than I was. I started to develop an obvious bald patch in the middle of my head and nothing would cover it.
"I spent a fortune on pointless hair growth tablets and miracle creams in the hope they would help me, but they didn’t. I felt quite depressed and just wanted to feel more confident again."
After doing loads of research into, Dan decided to undergo the costly hair transplant procedure in the hopes of pushing his lost hairline forward. "I did a lot of research online, to evaluate my options, and I noticed a lot of people saying that hair transplants were a good option and I’d seen a few celebrities have them," he remarked.
"I went to see a surgeon in my hometown of Manchester but unfortunately I didn’t feel like they understood me. They told me my baldness was nothing to be concerned about, which to me didn’t seem right. I did more digging online and that’s when I came across Dr Arshad.”
Dr Fas Arshad a world-renowned expert behind The Hair Dr – Hair Transplant Clinic in Leeds. "He was very thorough. First and foremost, I felt like Dr Arshad really understood my issues. He took the time to listen to me, looked at my hair assessed my hairline, and discussed my options with me," added Dan.
"He even took the time to look at my hairline to identify the best shape for me that would achieve the most natural results. The whole procedure was explained in detail clearly.
"He made sure I completely understood the procedure, complication risk, aftercare, and results I could expect before I made my decision. I was sent home with a very large booklet to read through to help me further understand the procedure.”
Dan underwent the hair transplant treatment in December 2020 just a few months after the coronavirus pandemic kicked off. He says: "It was a long day, I think I arrived at the clinic around 7.30 am and didn’t leave until 6.30 pm. Directly after, I was very tired and scared I would accidentally knock the hair follicles out.”
He started seeing results by March 2021 but also noticed he had begun gaining weight as well. Because of this, he decided to change his lifestyle.
Dan said: "I started to become a lot more conscious of looking after myself. I made an effort to make healthier choices, and along with my hair I noticed a drastic change in my overall appearance.” After undergoing the treatment for a year, Dan's boss remarked that he looked a lot like the infamous 'Tinder Swindler' made popular by the Netflix documentary of the same name.
"Initially I dismissed it as a one-off comment; a bit of banter. But then other people started to make similar comparisons. I was once stopped four times in a day in the street for pictures - people really thought I was him,” said Dan.
"It’s always funny when they realise their mistake. I do think I do sort of look similar to Simon Leviev, and I find it amusing. To be fair, Simon Leviev has a very nice hairline, so I don’t mind the comparisons in that respect.”
Dr Arshad said: “Dan’s story is not uncommon. Male pattern hair loss is a very common condition that can affect up to 85% of men after a certain age.
"Usually, the clear signs of male pattern hair loss start around the age of 50, but for some, it can start as early as the late teens, or early twenties.
"Male pattern hair loss tends to develop slowly and may take several years for you to notice visually. The visual signs of male pattern baldness include a receding hairline, patterned thinning of hair or significant accelerated hair loss.”
"One of the most popular, and effective treatment methods to address male pattern hair loss is a hair transplant. This procedure works by surgically removing hair follicles from one part of the scalp, known as the 'donor site' to a bald or balding part of the scalp known as the 'recipient site'.
"The procedure is minimally invasive, and it can also be used to restore eyelashes, eyebrows, beard hair and to fill in scars. Potential candidates need to bear in mind that the process does not create new hair but rather re-distributes existing hair, and therefore there must be enough hair to transplant for the procedure to be successful.
"I am very open and transparent with my patients about this, so they understand the entire procedure before they undergo it.”
Despite all the extra attention Dan's received since the hair transplant, he says that he doesn't regret having it done and feels much more confident in his looks. He even noted that he enjoys being mistaken for a millionaire playboy.
Dr Arshad who performed Dan’s surgery added: "Hair is intrinsically linked to a person's self-confidence, so the impact of male pattern hair loss or other forms of alopecia is severely underestimated, in my opinion.
"I often see once patients have a hair transplant it leads to other health improvements particularly mental health, which is great to see and something."
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