www.SouthernMinn.com | Wednesday, March 30, 2022 | PAGE B14
Young, humble barber
Bobby Gutierrez keeps 60-year-old shop in business
By SHAYNA LEWIS shayna.lewis@apgsomn.com
F
rom hair cuts to beard trims, hair salons and barbers help people feel good, fresh and ready to take on the world. Bobby Gutierrez, the owner of Thee Barber Shop, is originally from Texas. He came to Minnesota in 2001 after his parents separated. His maternal grandmother lives in Mankato, and that is where Gutierrez currently resides. As a child, Gutierrez would spend six months in Minnesota with his mother, and six months in Texas with his dad. Growing up, Gutierrez always saw himself owning his own business. He watched his dad, taking inspiration from him, as he was a owner of a restaurant in Texas as well as another business. “I would see what my dad did, and so from a young age I knew I wanted to own a shop,” Gutierrez said. “I knew it was going to take some time and work, but I got there.”
Thee Barber Shop Prior to Gutierrez owning the shop, it was once called, Johnson’s Barber Shop, and the original owner, Gary Johnson, opened the shop in 1959.
“I’ve been in this industry for 63 years,” Johnson said. “A long time.” Johnson knew Gutierrez from previous work experience. Gutierrez worked part time at the shop before exploring more options. “I worked almost two months straight without a day off,” he said. “I got burnt out.” Around the time of the pandemic, Gutierrez was ready to open up his own shop. Johnson, who now works part time at Thee Barber Shop, called Gutierrez and told the young man if he was looking to buy a shop, Johnson had the space available. Gutierrez became the owner of Thee Barber Shop on Sept. 15, 2020. “It’s going pretty good,” Gutierrez said.
Gutierrez went to school to be a barber, where he attended a nine month program, completing 1,500 hours. When he first started, he perceived it as you are always cutting hair, but that wasn’t always the case.
Thee Barber Shop takes clients through walkins, no appointments needed.
“You have to be there all day, six days a week,” Gutierrez said. “Somedays you might get two to three haircuts, and some days you don’t get one at all, but you have to be there to complete the hours.”
According to Gutierrez, he tries not to have clients favor one person over another. Although that can sometimes be difficult when a client knows that a specific barber has mastered a specific style.
“I’ve been coming here since I was a child,” one client said. “Mr. Johnson used to cut my hair.”
Bobby Gutierrez, George Castaneda-Samaniego and Gary Johnson cut hair side-by-side. Although the inside of the building has changed, the atmosphere is still one to enjoy, just as it’s been for more than six decades. (Shayna Lewis/ southernminn.com)
“We all cut hair. Someday I might be on vacation, so they’ll have to go somewhere else,” Gutierrez said. “I’m not the Kardashians; I don’t have money to fly you to me.” George “Loco” Castaneda-Samaniego went to school at Moler Barber School in Columbia Heights and now works for Guiterrez. “It’s awesome working here,” CastanedaSamaniego said. “I love it. It’s the best job I’ve had.” Castaneda-Samaniego has been working at Thee Barber Shop for about four months.
Thee Barber Shop hours Sunday: CLOSED Monday: CLOSED Tuesday-Friday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday: 8 a.m. to Noon If you have questions, give Thee Barber Shop a call at 507-124-7830 “George is a great stylist,” Gutierrez said. “Everyone here is very talented.”
Clientele
Gutierrez’s favorite type of client is when they want their whole head shaved; the “Dr. Phil” special. According to Gutierrez, it’s not
necessarily his favorite, it’s just the easiest. He likes a bit of a challenge to see how far he can take or do something. The stylists do their best to make sure that the client is satisfied, but since most people just want easy haircuts, Gutierrez said it’s hard to mess it up.
“I still make mistakes as a barber, I just don’t want people to think we do it on purpose because that’s far from it,” Gutierrez said. “We give haircuts as if we
Gutierrez Continued on page 16
