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FAIRFIELD – After more than a decade without a barbershop, Fairfield has one again thanks to three young men who have started a business in their hometown.

Joey Haynes and Dylan Gridley, along with Zach Simpson who is still in barber school, operate The Barbershop on Broadway. The barbershop is located at 61 E. Broadway Ave., which is where Larry Hall ran his barbershop for 52 years until he retired in 2013, leaving the town without one.

The three entrepreneurs acquired the location in the middle of 2024, and worked to get it ready in time for the back-to-school rush of haircuts they expected in August. Haynes said they viewed that as a great marketing strategy and a way to get acquainted with a large number of people. The strategy has paid off, and has kept the barbers busy ever since.

“There’s been no taper down,” Haynes said. “There have been times where it’s the beginning of the week and I’m like, ‘Man, this is going to be a bad week,’ but then by the end of the week I’m like, ‘This is a record week. This is crazy.’”

Simpson said they all want to be strong role models in the community.

“When people come in, whether they’re young, old or in between, they see this is a professional environment and that [the barbers] are cool to talk to,” he said.

Gridley said they’ve already made a good impression on students at the high school.

“When we go to the football games, all the kids are running up to us, wanting to shake our hand,” he said. “They go, ‘You’re my barber!’ They get so excited, and it’s really cool to see that.”

The barbers said they’ve received an outpouring of support from the whole community, including cosmetologists and hairdressers who have been eager to refer clients to them. Haynes said that Stacey Martin-Sieren, who runs Studio 100 across the street on North Court Street, has been helping to promote their business.

“I’m shocked,” Haynes said. “The lady in Richland who shut down her barbershop is also sending us clients.”

Gridley said that hair stylist Kiersten Ritchie just moved out of the area, but before she did, she directed a lot of clients to The Barbershop on Broadway.

The barbershop reserves 45 minutes for a men’s haircut, and the same amount of time for a kid’s haircut at a lower price. The barbers also offer beard shaping, hot towel shave, a special rate for senior citizens, and many other aspects of men’s grooming. Simpson said the barbershop also offers specialty products that can’t be found in other stores.

Haynes added, “When you go to Walmart and pick up a product, they’re not going to spin you around in a barber chair and explain exactly how to use the product, do your hair style and send you out the door.”

The barbershop is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. all seven days of the week. Haynes said each barber cuts 60-80 heads per week. Simpson said he’s eager to join the other two barbers once he’s done with barber school.

“My grandpa [Ron Fischer] was a barber here for 50 years,” he said. “He wanted me to be a barber, and pass the family business on.”

Last year, Simpson ran into Gridley at the gym, and Gridley told him about the barbershop he was starting with Haynes. Simpson, who had served in the U.S. Marines for four years and had done other jobs since high school, decided the time was right for a career change, and entered barber school.

Haynes said he and Gridley are already booked consistently, and they liked the idea of adding a third barber, especially one they know and trust and who shares their vision.

“I feel like having us all in one location will pull everyone to that one location, and we’re all eating from it,” Haynes said.