At first glance the local story I am about to relate may just seem to be another blip in the ever changing downtown Montesano landscape. A nice to know thing, but quickly forgotten in a larger scene of events revolving in this crazy world around us.
In reality it is a canary in the mineshaft…..and there are a lot of little yellow birds about to go feet up around here if we don’t start paying attention.
We have had a run of bad luck recently in the town barber situation. A death, a medical closing, and as of today, a coming loss of the only shop left in town. Well a closing sort of.
Currently serving the town we are down to a one chair barber shop. Right downtown and next to the Senior Center. You all know where it is. What do we have here in town, say 4,000 people, half men and boys? A customer base of approximately 2,000 shaggy heads that need trimmed, shaved, and shaped on a semi regular basis. I say semi regular as, hey, it’s Montesano. Most of us get our clothes from the hardware store. We aren’t all that refined.
Still, a local barber shop is kinda important. Isn’t it? This isn’t just me thinking this is it?
The current owner and operator of our last nimble fingered barber is a nice lady named Aiden. You should go in and say hi. She is also informing me that as soon as next month she will be probably closing the retail store and moving operations to her home, which will have a business addition to hold her barber shop. I believe she mentioned adding a trailer to the property. I do want to note that for several months she has been actively looking around town for a smaller, affordable, little hole in the wall to set up her chair. Nothing.
The location will be moving to is just the other side of the Chehalis River Bridge. Right on the other side of the bridge on her property. It is still technically in Montesano. Better than driving to gulp! ELMA!!!! Or fight the drug addicts and crime in the other direction of Aberdeen.
Why….you ask. Since when do barbers abandon the time honored tradition of a small little hole in the wall in a downtown area with a giant plate glass window to contemplate the bustling city while getting trimmed.
Simple, the rents, insurance, and business electricity pricing are going so high, its a matter of being able to cut someone’s hair with a tip around $20 or hiking prices up to close to $50. It’s that bad and I’m not going to go into the details that were discussed with me. Go ask her yourself, you won’t believe it. You couldn’t put enough people in that chair during the day to pay the rent, let alone work all day and take a few bucks home. It’s getting that bad.
One thing that Aiden spoke to me about that caught my attention was she talked about her older clients. Most on Social Security. She worried they frankly wouldn’t be able to afford any more hikes. And she is right. It’s already pretty bad around here, but more man buns? More men with pony tails? Not on my watch. Not on my watch.
Now we as a community have a decision to make. Do we let Aiden flounder across the bridge until she completely gives up, or do we support her, even if she is the other side of the bridge? Do we want a local barber, or care enough about keeping the business here in Monte?
A grocery store, a gas station, a dry cleaners, pharmacy……basic things a town needs to be a town. Where does a barber fit into our calculation?
I told her to contact the Mayor and let Tyler know what was going on and he could put something in the little monthly newsletter the city sends out. Maybe some of you can get that wheel greased. It’s a city service plain and simple and we shouldn’t lose it. Remember how bad it felt when we lost our coffee shop for several years?
We aren’t talking about some fat cat banker, or a rich developer here. This is a lady with a young child and family just trying to get by and provide an essential affordable service to the town. She ain’t getting rich, but in my opinion, she is providing a bedrock service to the community.
So to my fellow grumpy shaggy, fish bait smelling Montesano men, it’s time to man up. Go on down there, tell her you support her and follow through next time your wife tells you to clean up. Do it here. Do it in Montesano.
Wait a second. Maybe I should be talking to the ladies around here. Women of Montesano……..just how shaggy do you want your men to get? Ya, that’s right, I can just hear the excuse. “But honey, there isn’t anywhere to go.”
For those of you here in town that do the Facebook thing, do the town a favor and spread this around.
Montesano Today 