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From small towns to big cities, barbershops have long played a role in the life of not only the boys and men who patronize them – but also in the communities in which they operate.
Over the course of the past century, barbershops served as something of a gathering place for town gossip and good-natured fellowship. If you were a man and you wanted to know what was really going on in your town, you sought out the local barber.
To be sure, the industry’s history is pretty colorful – and even somewhat strange.
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Dating back to the Middle Ages, the barber didn’t just cut hair and shave beards. Hundreds of years ago, they also served as surgeons -- doctors who conducted bloodletting exercises and sometimes even played the role of a dentist, pulling painful or rotted teeth.
The instantly recognizable barber-pole featuring the red, white and blue spiraling stripes was designed to compensate for illiterate customers and remind passers-by they were available to draw down their blood - ostensibly eliminating or reducing their risk of illness.
Dave Thanscheidt, barber
I was thinking about how barbershops are continuing to change these days, morphing from small one or two chair mom and pop operations to nationwide chains and elaborate shops complete with nostalgic décor.
In fact, after decades of attrition, there’s been something of a revival in the industry. The men’s grooming business is expected to gross $26 billion this year – up from $20.3 billion just five years ago.
At first, I was suspicious of the fancy storefronts and reimagined shops. When Floyd’s Barbershop came to our town, I hoped to step back into Mayberry and find Floyd Lawson drinking an Orange Crush out front. Instead, I found a twenty-something blond sitting in the swivel chair, texting her boyfriend while waiting for customers.
In my old school mind, the best barbers are found in the small shops, run by seasoned individuals who wear Cuban short-sleeved Guayabera shirts and keep their combs and instruments in glass jars filled with blue liquid.
Incidentally, you know it’s a real barber when at the end of a haircut they lather your neck with warm cream and shave you with a straightedge razor.
Over the course of my 47 years, I’ve only had four men cut my hair on a regular basis. The first two – Julian and Tony at the Grand Palace in Baldwin on Long Island -- both died while cutting hair – fortunately, not mine. I loved both of those men, though I think the free piece of Bazooka bubble gum they gave me after each cut helped solidify my affection. But the fact they died on the job adds to their legend, at least in my mind.
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Boris bought the shop from Tony’s family. Emigrating from Russia, I was his seventh customer. He was meticulous from the first clip to the last.
“In Russia, I was engineer,” he told me with a smile that first day. “Now, in America, where all is possible, I am barber!”
Two decades later, Boris’ shop at the corner of Merrick Road and Grand Avenue has expanded and is thriving.
Dave Thanscheidt’s been my barber out in Colorado for the last 23 years. He’s 77 and a total character.
A chain smoker who drinks and gambles at the casinos on the weekends up in the mountains of Cripple Creek, he always has a story – and sometimes it’s even true. I don’t give him much to work with, but he’s a master at his craft. I’m going to miss him if he ever decides to retire.
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But whether old or new school, the renewed interest in the barbershop is a positive thing, and not just for men.
When you look good, you feel good – and when you feel good, everything and everyone benefits in some form or fashion, especially our loved ones.
After all, who wants to be around an unhappy slob?
Taking pride in one’s appearance is an important part of a happy life -- and everybody feels better after a haircut, including those around you.
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If you ask me, neat grooming is a critical component of a civil and well-adjusted society.
Barbershops will continue to evolve but unlike other brick and mortar retail stores that are closing at record rates this year, the business is insulated from the online revolution since you can’t get your haircut thru Amazon – at least not yet.
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