Sense and sensibility

AMSTERDAM - Joshua Coombes is as straightforward as he is charismatic. He raises his voice above the dance music blaring from the adjacent hall of De Hallen, a refurbished tram depot east of the city center. Toms is unveiling its latest campaign, and this 31-year-old hairdresser from Devon on the southwest coast of England speaks with palpable enthusiasm about his role in it: "I am an amplifier for people who have no voice."
For years, Coombes would roam the streets of London after work, giving free haircuts and shaves to the homeless, posting before and after photos on his Instagram account hashtagged with his animating principle #dosomethingfornothing. In late 2015, at the peak of Greece's refugee crisis, Coombes brought his scissors and street cuts to Athens's Elliniko camp and Victoria Square. He has also couch-surfed across the world from the US to Mexico and Ecuador, to...