We were really chuffed to have been featured in John Freeman’s superb article on barber shop culture and the tradition of shaving in The New York Times Style Magazine recently. A true wet shave aficionado and a globetrotter like many of the guys and girls on our team, Freeman’s article invites the reader on a journey that stops off in Berber-style tents in the Atlas Mountains and tucked- away corners of Istanbul. He meets espresso drinking barbers in Beirut and vodka-pouring stylists in Manhattan. And then, he rounds off his article with the icing on the cake: us. Freeman says of our Fitzrovia store:
The tiles were gleaming white, the countertops granite and the barber’s brush was made of badger, not horsehair. My barber looked a lot like Stanley Tucci (must’ve been Elias…) but spoke with a South London accent… All I could feel was the gentle sweep of his blade, his occasional request for more hot towels. Time slowed down… all else was right with the world.
We totally agree with Freeman’s belief that visiting a barber shop, wherever you are in the world, is a reassuring ritual that connects us with others and reminds us that we’re all human and have the same basic needs. Popping into a barber shop for a wet shave is a bit like, as Freeman says, going out for a coffee or heading to a bar for a drink. It makes the world feel less alien, helps us ‘gain a foothold’ when we’re in unfamiliar places.
And getting a wet shave is good for the soul, too. Freeman’s had his fair share of shaves around the world and would happily trade an hour on the therapist’s couch for 45 minutes in the barber’s chair: “There’s so little we can actually control in this world, but even the unruliest beard can be managed.”
Amen to that.
You can read John Freeman's full article here: http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/17/yes-please-the-razors-edge/
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