The barbers shop that has just turned 50

For many strolling down the high street it’s just another barber’s shop – but for those in the know, it is a Dukinfield institution.

Graham’s Barber’s has been a mainstay on King Street for half a century, and some of his clients have been coming back for just as long. The secret to the longevity of Graham Evans’ family business is that ‘it doesn’t feel like work’ for him, it’s a place where men get a chance to just chat without distraction for half an hour.

His son Gareth, who is the main man at the shop nowadays, described it as ‘like being in a pub here, just without the alcohol’.

Whether it’s the sun shining through the glass frontage or the welcome greetings from the lads in the shop, there is a warmth about the place. Stepping into the shop is regular John, who is welcomed by his old pal Graham and the familiar background buzzing of the clippers and the snipping of scissors.

John has only had two barbers in his life, and for the past 40+ years it has been Graham. The 78-year-old has been in the trade since he was 15, originally starting out as an apprentice in Ashton before opening his shop in 1975.

The business has been growing ever since, with a dedicated team carrying the torch that Graham lit all those years ago. Although the shop’s namesake only does one day a week nowadays, it still brings him as much joy as it did when he was a teenager.

“I started up the business and it just got busier and busier so I took a few people on,” Graham said. “My wife and daughter even started the ‘Cheshire Lady’ next door.

“Then two years ago the barbers moved into that store when they decided to pack up. We all have our own customers, but I go in more for the meet and greet side of things now.

“I still have clients whose hair I cut right at the very beginning, before I opened this shop – so they’ve been coming to me for about 60 years.

“It doesn’t feel like work to me. It’s really just a social occasion.

“It’s one of the only places where you’re just talking to someone without distraction for 30 to 40 minutes. That’s rare nowadays.”

One of the stand out memories for Graham was when the 1979 film Yanks was filming nearby and a producer popped in asking if he could sort their hair. So he closed up shop for the day to take on the hair of the star-studded cast – but to his frustration, he didn’t get Richard Gere.

The barber’s other claim to fame is that he used to cut the hair of a man named Bill, who one day said he was ‘going to be on TV next week’. That man went on to become a Coronation Street regular portraying Percy Sugden.

Although Graham has less day-to-day dealings with the shop now, he is still busy organising his portfolio of properties, which he started on the side many moons ago ‘to keep things fresh’.

The positive atmosphere not only encourages customers to come back, but it also ensures staff stay. Graham delighted in saying that his most recent hire was four years ago.

His heart is still very much with the barber’s shop – something he has passed onto his son, who has been involved for over 30 years.

Gareth caught the barber bug early on, starting out sweeping up hair in the shop as a youngster. His enjoyment of the business comes through being part of people’s milestones in life – having cut client’s hair for their first day at school and later on in life for their weddings.

“I have been here for 30 years now,” he said. “The barbers shop has seen businesses on King Street come and go – it’s one of the last ones left here.

“When others come to work here they tend to stay, like me.”

Graham has finished off John’s cut and takes the time before his next appointment to show off the shrine he has created just for the shop’s anniversary. Stepping into what was originally his home at the back of the shop now sits two chairs in front of a wall with a timeline of memories from the shop through time.

He looked on at the old photos and was beaming with pride at how his son had taken the reins. Graham explained that he might have started it, ‘but it’s Gareth and the lads that have pushed it on’.

Even though it was Graham who sparked the business to life, he was keen to point out that it was the staff that had kept it going. The team joke how Chip Hanson ‘arrived on a BMX’ around 30 years ago and has stuck around ever since.

Chip is basically one of the family now. As are Liam Watts and Brad Cooper, who handle the walk-ins.

Thursday, March 6 is when Graham’s Barbers officially turned 50, and there is no reason to see why it can’t continue for another 50 in the eyes of the family.