Barbershops reopen in NC to a flood of shaggy customers, taking extra care
At 5 p.m. Friday, Jesse Padilla fired up his clippers for the first time in two months, and by midday Saturday, he had shaved the tangles off a dozen shaggy heads — all of them fresh out of pandemic hibernation.
Right Cut Barbershop in Cary had braced for a nonstop parade of hirsute customers, hanging shower curtains between each chair, where nine barbers furiously trimmed with their hands tucked inside gloves, faces hidden behind masks.
A serious mane can develop under a stay-at-home order, and once it lifted Friday, the men started pouring in for trims — virus be danged.
“This kid had so much hair, it normally takes me 20 minutes to cut, and today it took me 45,” said Padilla, the owner. “People are looking scary.”
If Right Cut is any barometer, Phase Two of North Carolina’s reopening plan will quickly bring the state out of hibernation. Padilla’s phone rang the minute the 5 p.m. bell sounded, announcing a new stage in pandemic readiness.
“It has been hell ever since,” he said. “In a good way.”
Under Gov. Roy Cooper’s latest executive order, barbers and hair salons can operate under new guidelines, providing ease to one of the state’s hardest-hit professions. They must operate at reduced capacity, and employees must wear face coverings when working with customers. Capes, tools and other equipment must be cleaned after contact with clients.
Not every barber flung the doors open wide. Man-Mur on Hillsborough Street pledged to open Tuesday once the shop buys required supplies, and meanwhile asked customers to leave their numbers on a sign-up sheet. Others stayed closed altogether.
The Phase Two rules also relax restrictions on restaurants, allowing dine-in meals at a lower capacity.
For Padilla, the new rules haven’t been a burden. He was already cleaning the chairs between cuts, and the shower curtains were just an extra precaution.
The only difference has been walk-in customers. Right Cut’s door is locked, and the barbers are working by appointment only. Some callers on Saturday were hearing the next available chair would be free Tuesday.
For Mike Christmas, a barber for the last two years, appointment-only is pretty close to business as usual, and the mask gives little trouble.
“It hurts your ears,” he confessed.
But while every barber trimmed with a covered face, customers took no such precaution. Cooper’s order recommends patrons wear masks, but does not require it. At Right Cut, men watched “Men In Black” and smiled while the barbers swapped banter. Facemasks do not inhibit smack talk.
“I’ve had a few friends come in,” said Brendan Reeser as the clippers circled his ear. “I trust it.”
Closed since late March, the barbers all struggled, prayed and scraped together what they could while only businesses deemed essential were allowed to operate.
As the hair fell to the floor in clumps, they hoped from now on, people will more appreciate the value of a good haircut — essential at last.
This story was originally published May 23, 2020 at 1:16 PM.