By Andrew Sondern
Within the few squares blocks that compose downtown Princeton, there are four barber shops and countless more salons. With so many places to get a haircut, it may be hard to choose. Here is a brief review of some of the barbershops in town.
Princeton Barber Shop sits at 8 S. Tulane St., nestled between a jewelry store and a specialty baked goods shop, with a barber’s pole and an elegant wooden sign marking its territory. The shop’s interior design lives by its motto, “Gentleman’s Grooming at its Finest,” as it is elaborately wood paneled with marble accents. Each barber is dressed in a full suit, complete with tie and dress shoes.
“This is my vision of what a barbershop should be. It’s traditional,” owner Travis Monahan said.
Monahan didn’t set out to become a barber. He started cutting hair in high school and continued to help pay his way through college, but enjoyed it enough to make it a career.
He began to work at Rialto, a Princeton barbershop on Nassau Street named after a Venetian bridge. In 2006, owners Ed Cifelli and Richard Pinelli sought to sell the shop they had owned since 1969, and Monahan jumped at the opportunity. He changed the name to Princeton Barber Shop, and opened it in a Tulane Street storefront when the building’s owners sought to renovate in 2011.
“There are a lot of good barbers in this town, so we have to do a good job, because people have options,” he said.
The ambitious barber is also looking towards the future.
“If I have the opportunity, I’d like to open a late 19th century, early 20th century, Victorian-style barbershop with checkered floors and marble,” Monahan said.
Irena Wolinski, owner of Continental Barbers at 38 Witherspoon St., did not see herself as a barber either. She worked for 25 years as a stylist for La Jolie, a hair salon a few doors down on Hulfish Street, before purchasing the then-32-year-old shop 12 years ago.
Wolinski planned to work at La Jolie and manage Continental Barbers on the side, but a last-minute hiring problem forced her to quit her job at La Jolie and work around the corner at the barbershop. Even so, she does not regret the decision and enjoys cutting men’s hair.
“Cutting men’s hair is so much easier,” she said. “There’s no layering, no color, no complaints,” adding that she still retains loyal female customers from her years at the salon.
Continental Barbers, though, maintains some aspects of salon pricing. Whereas Princeton Barber Shop and Mike’s Barbershop charge roughly $20 for a haircut, Continental charges $29 for men’s cuts and $45 for women.
The shop is definitely a barbershop though. The shop features a wall lamp decorated as a barber pole and even has a poster of hairstyles to pick out.
Mike’s Barbershop, located at 33 Witherspoon St., opened in 2006, and is the product of years of barbering. Owner Mike Zingaro played baseball in college, but dropped out after one year and worked for one of his father’s friends, cutting hair.
After going through vocational school in Brick, Zingaro cut hair at a naval base and a Middletown barbershop called Crazy Johnny’s before coming to Princeton. He worked as the manager at Rialto for a few years, building clientele and learning important skills. When the shop was sold to Monahan in 2006, he opened Mike’s Barbershop.
“It’s designed to have a classic look, but it’s more of a good feel when you walk in,” said Zingaro, adding that he tries to make friends rather than trying to get people in and out as quickly as possible.
It shows in the design of the shop: a half-finished game of Connect Four stands on a waiting area table by a bucket of Double Bubble, and a large, black dog is lounging in the corner. Sports memorabilia and televisions line the slate walls, and there is an espresso machine for waiting customers.
“We all aim for different clientele, so I don’t think there’s that much competition,” said Zingaro.
He fears the art of barbering may die out, because New Jersey requires all hairdressers to acquire a cosmetology certificates, which Zingaro says do not prepare barbers well.
“There are no more barbering schools, so the trade is dying, and the older guys are weeding out,” he said.
It is also difficult to hire, he said, because barbering is more than being able to cut hair. Barbers should be able to make conversation with customers too, he said, because this is what differentiates independent barber shops from nationwide chains.
Even so, he is optimistic that the allure of the craft will motivate people take up the job.
“I like being around people, and different people come in each day,” Zingaro explained, “This is a pretty cool job.”
