A few years ago, Florian and I sat in a pizzeria in Vienna and he talked about having his own barbershop, together with me. He took a napkin and a pencil and drew how our shop could look like. He looked really happy doing that, and I knew that this was the right thing for us.
In 2018 we saw that a beautiful building in Baden was for sale, we inspected it and we both knew that it was perfect for us. We weren’t happy in our jobs at the time, so it seemed like the perfect time. We took the chance, and it was the best thing we did. We opened on the 24th of November 2018.
We tried to do as much as possible ourselves when it came to getting the shop ready, like smashing down some walls (that was super funny!), tearing out the old carpet, the wallpaper, and the old tiles. The building had been empty for 12 years so you can imagine how it looked inside. Onlookers were excited that something was happening, so we covered the windows to keep the progress secret. We wanted to reveal the shop properly on the opening day. The building itself has a great story and is also one of the oldest in Baden.
Our furniture is from the 20s, 30s, and 40s. Both of us love old furniture and we wanted to open a traditional barbershop like back in the days. We got our inspiration from the old mafia and western movies and we really like the movies about the Prohibition. We wanted that, when someone enters the shop, they feel like they are in a living room and in a past time. We have one lady who visits us every few weeks just to enjoy the atmosphere. She drinks some whiskey and reads a book. She also lives in a very old house and when she finds a worthy piece, she gives it to us to display and to appreciate it!
We wanted to show our collection to our clients, many items had been sourced from around the world. The Paidar Sidewalk Barber pole is from Chicago in the ’30s, the Koken Barber chair is from 1898 and also from Chicago. We have an old National Cash Register from Canada, a few Gold Mining decorations and very old barber supplies. A Newspaper from 1918 about the Prohibition and some articles about the death of Bonnie and Clyde, which we are really proud of! But we also mix the decorations with things that Flo and I like, he played drums and Slipknot is our favourite band, so we have a few things from them too.
Our customers love the fact that my husband is the only one who cuts. They appreciate the time where they can relax and leave their stresses behind for a while. They can talk to us about everything and just enjoy the moment. We really appreciate the fact that some customers come early to their appointment just to enjoy the atmosphere. They drink their coffee or whiskey, look around to see what is new in the shop and enjoy the music. There are also a few who just visit us for fun, they are here the whole day, drink something and have a little chat with us. We have definitely found some awesome customers and good friends!
In 2019 we won the Porkchop of the month from Reuzel. This was our first award and we are super proud of that!
We have a few brands that we work with, but our all-time favourite is The Holy Black. They make everything themself and which we really appreciate! The fact that Matt and Stefan decide who sells their brand makes us really happy and we feel very honoured. We are also selling some articles of clothing from Dickies and soon some things from Pike Brothers. We are always looking for something new.
The Ford Model A was one of the primary pieces that we wanted in the shop, it was actually the first thing we bought. His name is Otto (yes, we give our cars names). We saw that a guy in Slovenia was selling the car and we knew that we had to get it. Otto had 20 previous owners and it may sound ridiculous, but we wanted to give him a warm and cosy place where he could rest his soul. So, we drove down there and brought him home with us. We made him pretty, fixed the roof, gave him a nice colour and took him to the shop. He is our Good Old Soul.
We both like the Hot Rod and Custom scene and wanted to have something in the shop that represents the lifestyle of it. We also own a Chevrolet K5 Blazer from 1979, she’s called Betty and was the first car that we bought. I hope that someday we can buy a Chevrolet Nova. The first time I saw this car was in Quentin Tarantino’s “Death Proof”, one of our favourite movies. We love old cars, just like the old furniture we have in the shop, they have a soul. They have this unique smell and they tell a story. Some people even think that we photoshop the Ford into our pictures and when they see him for the first time, they can’t believe that he’s actually inside. We once had a phone call from a lady, who had called every single barbershop in our area and asked: “Are you the barbershop with the car in it?”. Some even believed that an accident must have happened, resulting in his position in the shop. Otto has definitely brought a lot of attention.
We have put our heart and soul in the shop, and always will, and I think that is one main reason why people like the shop so much. They know that it’s not put on, we are really like this. That’s why we are called the Good Old Soul Barbershop.
