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Old-fashioned experience

By LaTina Emerson

Staff Writer

Sunday, July 25, 2010

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When you enter Tim Durden's shop, it's like taking a trip down memory lane.

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John Curry/Staff

Tim Durden, owner of Durden's Barber Shop cuts the hair of Dr. Richard Harrison of Martinez, Monday, July 19, 2010. Durden's Barber shop on Monte Sano Ave. in Augusta, has been in business since 1957.

On the walls at Durden's Barber Shop are black and white pictures of characters from the popular 1960s television comedy, The Andy Griffith Show. There are candid photos of his father, Morris Durden Jr., who started the barbershop 53 years ago, alongside a photo of pro golfer Charles Howell III, who grew up getting his hair cut at the shop and has remained a loyal customer.

Also hanging on the wall are newspaper and magazine clippings, including an article in Sports Illustrated highlighting the barbershop because many golfers have gotten haircuts there during the Masters Tournament.

There's even an old-fashioned vacuum machine near the barber chairs that prevents hair from getting all over the floor. A hose is attached to the clippers, which have their own stand for the barber's convenience.

"There's very few people, if anybody, in town that uses them because you can't buy them. I just keep replacing the motor," Durden said.

His father, who died in 2008, started the business in 1957 at the same location, 1405 Monte Sano Ave. Durden purchased the business from him in 2005.

Even though the shop is off the beaten path, it has remained successful because of its longtime reputation in the community, Durden said.

"It's a fun business. The people who have been coming here for years, they're like your extended family," he said.

Durden follows several principles to run the business.

"I think having a good attitude and treating people the way you want to be treated are the basic business philosophy," Durden said.

He also believes in customer service. He's a one-man show, so he sends a mass e-mail to his customers whenever he plans to be out of the shop, he said.

Melissa Johnson has been bringing her four sons to Durden's Barber Shop since 2003. It's a family tradition. Her husband, Matt, started coming there when he was a child. She likes the "family, neighborhood atmosphere."

"We've always come to Mr. Durden. They've never been anywhere else. Mr. Durden takes good care of us," Johnson said.

Wayne Mixon, of Martinez, has been a customer for 14 years. When the history professor at Augusta State University joined the faculty, co-workers recommended Durden's Barber Shop, which is only one block away from the college.

"It was convenient, and I've been very satisfied with every haircut I've gotten here," Mixon said. "Mr. Morris (Durden) was a fine man and Tim is a fine man. You can have a lot of laughs in here, especially if there are five or six guys waiting. Nothing like an old-fashioned barber shop. I look forward to coming here ... and you usually don't look forward to spending your money."

Roots

Durden grew up in Augusta as the middle child of four siblings. He spent much of his childhood at his father's barbershop.

His father had worked for Daniel Village Barbershop for a year and then purchased his own in 1957. Back then, barbershops were a "dime a dozen" and competition was fierce, he said.

As a child, Durden shined shoes at his father's shop. When he got older, his father taught him the trade. His mother, Martha Durden, was a stay-at-home mom.

"I observed him through my teenage years, practicing on my own hair and other people's hair," he said.

Durden graduated from Aquinas High School and enrolled in barber school.

"I ended up leaving barber school to learn more. You're limited as far as the amount of customers you can see in a day in a school versus a busier shop. I probably learned more actual barbering techniques and skills through him than I did in school," Durden said.

A cousin told him about the U.S. Coast Guard, and Durden decided to enroll and served four years. He was stationed in Miami, where he helped to bust drug dealers who were hauling cocaine. His training paid off in 1993.

"I actually saved a man's life who jumped off the 13th Street bridge. I was down there on the Augusta Princess. All of a sudden I heard a splash and he started going under. I had to dive in," he said.

The city gave him an award for saving the man's life, he said.

When Durden left the Coast Guard, he took a job with a Florida investigating business, which assisted companies with loss prevention. He went undercover as an employee, mostly at restaurants, to determine if the company was losing money through theft or had other illegal activity.

This experience led to management jobs. In 1987, he started managing Bobby Rubino's, a ribs restaurant in Florida. He later managed restaurants for Arby's and Wensouth Corp., which owned Wendy's franchise stores.

In 1990, he moved to Augusta for an assistant manager job at Fuddruckers. When the restaurant closed, he started managing a men's clothing store.

Cutting hair

In 1994, Durden caught the bug to be self-employed.

"I discovered how the corporate world works. I remember when I was a kid, there seemed to be a mindset that the employee was loyal to the employer and the employer was loyal to the employee. As the years went by, I started seeing the lack of loyalty on the employer's part," he said.

His father told him there was a demand for barbers. Durden came to work at his father's barbershop in 1995.

There weren't many barbers around because of changes in hairstyles, which started affecting the industry in the 1960s. When the Beatles and hippie culture became popular, most men started wearing their hair longer. They got haircuts by beauticians instead, causing many barbershops to go out of business. In the 1980s, men started wearing their hair shorter again, but there were fewer barbers, he said.

"No one has been getting in the barbering business. There's not even any schools. If you find a school, you won't find any white males in it. The white males are going to beauty school," he said.

Durden said he works alone because he can't find other skilled barbers.

"I would prefer to have someone in here. If there's somebody trainable, I'd be willing to help somebody learn," he said.

Good ol' days

There's a difference between an old-fashioned barbershop and a unisex salon, Durden said.

Barbers receive training in barbering skills, such as the "clipper and comb technique." He also offers hot lather and shaving, unlike many hair salons.

"The new generation of guys that didn't grow up in barber shops, they're not experiencing what their dad and grandfather experienced," Durden said.

He encourages men to give old-fashioned barbershops a try.

"Come help us keep a great American experience alive," he said.