Female barber blazes path in NYC
Cassandra Mendoza, left, a rarity in her field.
Near Roosevelt and 70th Street in the New York City borough of Queens, there’s a crimson sign that says “good vibez only” on a silver-barred door.
Up a flight of stairs, there are blackand-white portraits of barbers cutting hair. At the top, you’ll see a sign with an arrow that says Ztylez Studio (pronounced Styles).
Inside there are the usual items in a barbershop: clippers, mirrors and scissors. But, something there that you don’t see in many shops is a young, female barber – especially one who owns the place.
At 29, Cassandra Mendoza is a young entrepreneur in a male-dominated industry that many say largely only welcomes women who have an overtly sexual appearance.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, of the 135,000 barbers on record in the U.S. in 2017, only 16 percent were women (many barbers work without obtaining permits and licenses and don’t show up in government figures).
It’s “a hard business for a female to break into because it’s so male-dominated,” said Lee Resnick, founder of Barbershop Connect, an annual trade show for the barbering and cosmetology industry. “The ones, unfortunately, that are successful, a lot of it is based on their looks.”
As a female barber, Mendoza has had challenges. Some men not only didn’t want her to cut their hair, they would mock her and say, “you’re not going to zeek me?” Translation: “You’re not going to mess up my hair, right?”
“Being a female in the industry, it was always like, ‘Oh, what do you know?’ ” Mendoza said.
That discrimination didn’t deter her. After working as a barber since she was 18, in October 2017 Mendoza, known as “Kazz” to family, friends and clients, opened Ztylez Studio, which provides fades, haircuts, facial treatments and more. “I never thought in a million years that I would be a store owner. Never,” Mendoza said. “It’s something that just happened,”
But barbering may be in her blood. Growing up with five generations of barbers and hair stylists, Mendoza witnessed first-hand the mechanics behind the business. She watched her parents keep track of finances, work with customers and, most importantly, cut hair. Even with all this insight, it was a profession she did not intend to pursue.
Her initial plan was to buy a condo or house in New York City using the money she had saved from holiday and birth- day gifts, taxes and work. She kept expenses low by preparing more meals at home and buying a used car instead of a new one.
“I knew I had to stay focused,” she said. “You buy what you need, not what you want.” Mendoza said she didn’t see this as a sacrifice but “a way of life.”
When it came time to look for a home, she found the process difficult, so she decided to use her savings to open a business. But having the money set aside wasn’t the only reason she opened a shop. She had been working at a salon four days a week making just $50 a day plus tips.
“I didn’t understand that I put in this time and effort into people and only got paid just a little bit,” Mendoza said.
The business really took off when her colleague Jonathan Villota joined her, she said. Villota not only brought his barbering skills but also marketing expertise. He manages Ztlyez Studio’s Instagram feed with pictures and videos of haircuts and live streams from the shop.
“I fell in love with making people feel good,” said Mendoza, who greets every client personally and spends time getting to know them. “Some people measure success with money and numbers. I think I like to measure success in people.”