The Hairdressers Women Fight Over

The Man
How did you get into the business? It was a spoof. I was 17 or 18 years old, and there was a [hair-styling] class that mainly women were taking. The policy was if you signed up for the class and decided at the end of the month that you didn’t like the beauty business, you would get your money back. So I went and got a bunch of friends. It started off that way, but when I got into it, I really started liking it. My father was a professor, and I had to go home and tell him I wasn’t going to American University; I was going to beauty school instead. He thought I was kidding.

Do you have a specialty? I know color, but I’m primarily a stylist. I’m one of the old school guys who departmentalize. I look at the overall picture and give the hair style and shape, and then we use color to enhance that style.

Fashion inspires hair: Hair always changes in fashion. In the industry we see colors and clothes that are coming down [from New York], and we dress the hair to that clothing. I’m not going to say we’re not a trendy salon; we’re very much aware of the trends, but we focus more on fashion, what people are wearing.

On being a friend: I’ve had clients come to me before they went home to tell their husbands they had cancer. It’s a humbling thing. You don’t realize how close you’ve become to your clients until they tell you things like that, that show their complete confidence. It’s not about their hair; it’s about being able to come to someone they’ve bonded with or someplace that’s in their comfort zone.

He’s a guy’s guy: I’m pleasantly surprised by the number of men who come into the salon. When [trends in men’s] hair got longer, it forced them to stop going to barber shops, and what forced them back into barber shops in the last five years is when hair started getting buzzed. But now that it’s getting longer again, we’re starting to see more and more men come in. Thirty percent of our clientele are men, and more so with me, because I’m primarily a cutter.

Creativity is key: It’s fun when you have people come in and say, "Do whatever you want." I love that.