Personal care businesses have been through a lot in the last year and a half, as public health measures have consistently dictated whether or not their doors were allowed to open for services.
Despite the challenges that come with being a small business owner during a pandemic, barber Glenn Kelly was determined to establish a shop of his own that would not only provide haircuts and hot shaves to the people of Bragg Creek, but also be a hub for the community.
Bragg Creek Barber Co. opened to the public on June 1 in the main plaza on Balsam Avenue in Bragg Creek. The barbershop is located in a white building in between local MLA Miranda Rosin’s constituency office and Mountain Bistro Pizza.
Up until now, Kelly said people in Bragg Creek received their haircuts either at a local salon, home-based businesses, a barber bus that comes to town occasionally, or they drove to Calgary or Cochrane. He said to the best of his knowledge, Bragg Creek Barber Co. will be the community’s first brick-and-mortar barbershop.
“I think [a barbershop] is something that Bragg Creek needs, and they’ve needed [it] for a long time,” Kelly said, adding he wants his barbershop to be an inclusive space for diverse clientele.
“It's true barbershops have traditionally had a male client base but I think that is definitely changing. We want to be an inclusive space that welcomes all people of all genders and backgrounds.”
Kelly has lived in the Bragg Creek area for 10 years and has been a barber for the last eight years. Before he picked up a pair of scissors, he worked as a journalist, completing his education at SAIT and working as a photojournalist for the former Metro newspapers.
He said he had always known people in the barber industry and held a sense of curiosity about what the profession was like. It was after he visited a barbershop while living and working on Vancouver Island that he really began to take the possibility of a career change seriously.
“It’s just something I serendipitously fell into and I’m honestly glad I have, because it’s been great,” Kelly said.
After becoming a barber, Kelly said he started his career in Calgary, working at Cannibale Barbershop for three years. After that, he said he switched to offering a home-based barber service for the next five years.
Having recently opened his new business, Kelly said he’s had a great response from the community so far. He had yet to put up the tri-coloured barber pole outside of his shop as of June 16, but said he had already received multiple inquiries about haircuts and shaves. Community members have even been stopping by just to poke their head in out of curiosity, according to Kelly.
“I love the community,” he said. “I love how everybody supports each other here.”
A grand opening of the shop is tentatively set for June 30. Kelly said there will be a 10 per cent discount for haircuts that day and he hopes to offer some live music as well.
