DESPERATE FOR A TRIM
Demo Pedulla cuts Ari Magden’s hair as Bloke — Barber and Shop reopened in Dorval yesterday after being closed for three months during the pandemic. Even with new health protocols, Pedulla says he is booked solid for weeks. John Meagher reports.
It’s no secret a lot of Montrealers have gone a little hairy during the pandemic and now they can finally do something about it.
Barbershops and beauty salons reopened Monday after a three-month hiatus caused by the COVID -19 lockdown.
At Bloke — Barber and Shop in Dorval, company founder Demo Pedulla eagerly greeted the first wave of customers in need of a pandemic haircut.
“It’s been a long road to get to here,” said Pedulla, who is booked solid for the next couple of weeks after rearranging his shop to meet the demands of new health protocols and old customers.
“We removed waiting areas, cleaned all the counters and removed unnecessary product. We also brought in fever guns, hand sanitizers and masks.
“I feel like I’m preparing for the apocalypse,” he said with a laugh. “In all fairness, the clients are super excited coming back seeing us. It’s like being reunited again.”
Pedulla said a greater emphasis on hygiene also means fewer overall clients because more time will be devoted to cleaning up between appointments.
“We’re taking longer appointments. Normally we book for 45 minutes and now we’re booking an hour. That extra 15 minutes gives us time to clean down (and disinfect) the whole station. We always had a high standard as far as cleanliness goes, it’s just amplified now.”
Barbers, or groomers, must wear facial visors, masks and gloves. Customers will also have to don a protective mask.
Pedulla didn’t have to remove any chairs from his shop, but groomers are now spaced further apart with Plexiglas dividers installed between each station.
Bloke’s bills itself as a ‘gentleman’s grooming lounge,’ but some client services have been trimmed.
“We’ve had to do away with beards and shaves for now. I can’t use hot towels because it opens up skin pores. It’s strictly haircuts. I can’t wash hair, so we have to wet down the client. We can’t dry hair, so we have to towel-dry the client. It’s changed our whole process.”
Also temporarily shelved is Bloke’s tradition of offering clients an espresso or something stiffer while waiting for a trim.
Pedulla’s other barbershop, located downtown on Crescent St., will remain closed for now because a handful of employees decided to move on while much of the city was shut down. He said the hair-care business is in for some turbulence over the next year.
“It’s survival of the fittest,” said Pedulla, who predicts between 25 to 30 per cent of barbershops and salons in Montreal could eventually close because of the pandemic.
Meanwhile, over at the Revolution Hair Studio in Beaconsfield,
Tamara Rifai was preparing for a grand reopening Tuesday after giving her studio a stylistic pandemic makeover with a lot of copper finishing.
Rifai has reduced the number of chairs from 13 to eight, but has tried to keep the funky vibe for which the salon is known.
But Rifai, who also operates a salon on Notre-dame St. in St-henri, is aware the business has been altered by the pandemic. “Understandably, some people are nervous but I want to keep the vibe warm and inviting.”
Rifai knows of other salons that have closed, but she plans to carry on the 35-year-old family business. “We’re booked until August,” she said.