American Vintage Barber Co. reimagined with relocation

ROUSES POINT | Ryan Garrand bounced around career-wise, never finding a career that didn't feel like a job to him. "My story started, I'd never cut hair professionally, I'd never thought about cutting hair professionally. It was something that I kind of did for friends and family on the side, I was never serious about it," Garrand explained. It wasn't until his mother-in-law asked him why he didn't cut hair professionally, that he knew what he wanted to do. Locally, Champlain Valley Education Services has the only cosmetology program around, and while it would have provided the necessary training needed to cut hair, it's not the direction Garrand wanted to go. "I knew right off the bat, I wanted to be a barber," said Garrand. Garrand ended up finding Paul Mitchell The School in Schenectady and booked a tour with them, that same day he ended up signing the admission paperwork. Once Garrand completed his program and passed the New York State licensing exam, he then opened his own shop in Mooers, taking over the former location of Larry's Barbershop. "I knew right off the bat the whole reason I was doing this was that I wanted to have something that was mine, I wanted to be my own boss," stated Garrand. Larry's Barbershop sat vacant before Garrand took over it in the spring of 2019. He remodeled it little by little to add his own touch to the space before the grand opening of American Vintage Barber Company on Nov. 2, 2019. "The business itself I really wanted to cater towards like patriotic, love for your country, but I wanted to cater towards that old school classic barber experience that has literally just eroded over time," Garrand said on his vision for the shop. Garrand had a lot of excitement surrounding the shop right off the bat, and the business has been growing ever since. Garrand's hope was to bring back the classic barbershop experience, and he choose a name that he thought inspired just that he said, "When I thought of the name American Vintage, like the first thought that I wanted to come to people's mind is 'Vintage America barbershop.' The old school, classic shaves, the kind of men's social type environment, you know. So it kind of just fit the name together." Even with COVID-19 happening just four months after the opening of the American Vintage Barber Company, business was booming for Garrand. "I was drowning so to speak, I had more business than I could handle," recalled Garrand, he went on to add, "The need/want to expand the business, obviously the first thing that had to be done was to bring in another barber to take over the overflow, but to also, I mean the more people he can handle, the more people he will also bring in." Garrand searched for a while and had a few conversations with people interested in apprenticeships, but nothing ever came from it. That's when Garrand met Noel Barriere. "So uh, god where do I start? So I retired from the government, 33 years of service. So just prior to retiring, I ended up going to check out Ryan's shop. Everybody was talking about it, wanted to see what it was all about. Always did my own hair, occasionally went to a barber, somebody to kind of trim up my neck, so I went to see Ryan, that's when we met," Barriere explained. The pair clicked and Barriere was soon off to the Paul Mitchell The School in Schenectady to complete the same training program that Garrand did. Barriere graduated on Sept. 28. "I had always mentioned this kind of dream to incorporate a lounge aspect into a barbershop and obviously the location that I'm currently in, being at 380 square feet, I had absolutely no room to do anything like that," said Garrand. At the new location not only will customers be able to get their haircut, but they'll also be able to play pool, darts, and enjoy the complimentary coffee bar or alcoholic drink of their choosing. "The idea is every barber station will have a refrigerator, a glass door refrigerator next to it that will be fully stocked with different assortments of beer, cider, and wine. The idea is when you come in, hang your coat up, grab a beer. If you're waiting not only can you have your beverage, but you can also utilize the lounge," explained Garrand. There will be no hard liquor on sight, and everything offered will be pre-bottled or pre-canned. Currently, the plan is to have a selection of domestics, individually bottled wine, as well as a variety of local craft beers and ciders. Garrand and Barriere also hope to form a partnership with Lakeside Coffee for their complimentary coffee bar. American Vintage Barber Company will also have merchandise available for purchase at the new location along with a full hair product line. For now, Garrand and Barriere are focusing on selling the classic barbershop experience and infusing the lounge-type environment, in the future, they do hope to expand. "Eventually, we would like to take on an apprentice or hire another licensed barber and you know, that's just the pathway to growth, you know," Garrand said. American Vintage Barber Company should be relocating to its new home at 102 Lake St. around Memorial Day. "Everything I have is going into this place right here, and this will be the last time that I, as the owner of American Vintage Barber Company will ever move," stated Garrand. Garrand and Barriere are both accepting clients and will be at their Mooers location until about the week before the move. For more information about American Vintage Barber Company or to book an appointment visit their Facebook pages Ryan at American Vintage Barber Co. and Noel at American Vintage Barber Co.

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American Vintage Barber Co. reimagined with relocation

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