Did you ever ask him to shave his beard?

As a guy I can say that if my girlfriend came to me and said that she wanted me to change something so simple I would do as asked.

You didn't want to hurt him by being honest about it but you broke up with him, which I will assume was a lot worse for him.

I'm sorry if it sounds like I am "blaming" you, I am just trying to say that even if it isn't always easy, being honest with the people you care about is almost always the best route.

Given that he cares about you I doubt that it would bother him too much to have to change a couple small things or to put a little extra effort into a thing or two. A large part of relationships working is the fact that both people make these little compromises to better fit with each other. You do it because you care, because you want to be with them, you want to make them happy.

It isn't asking someone to change who they are, that is a mistake and never works. Asking someone to make a small change for your preferences is completely reasonable. Ask yourself, how many things do you ladies do just so that you can be seen as attractive, or to adhere to a significant others preferences? Don't think that the men folk won't change a few things for you too.