The Family Barber Shop marked 62 years in its current location at 8112 Oak Street on October 16, 2008. Although day spas and “hair stylists” line Oak Street today, FBS is the only original barber shop in the area. However, according to Bud, “in the day” there was as many as seven barbers on the few blocks from Carrollton to River Road. There even was once a streetcar on Oak Street, and Bud has a picture to prove it! The photograph was taken soon after a streetcar “jumped the tracks” near Leonidas Street, and is a piece of neighborhood history.In the old days Oak Street was a major commercial district. Bud tells of how there were two grocery stores (no “supermarkets” back then) where customers would enter and hand a clerk a grocery list. Then, they’d chew the fat while groceries were packaged for the customer. Once a month or so the bill was paid. Now that’s service!
The company name “Family Barber Shop” came about out of necessity. While applying to barber school, Bud found that he couldn’t get in because of high enrollment. However, he was told that he could register in the beautician school and train there for a couple weeks until a slot opened in barber school. He did, and in no time was giving manicures and styling women’s hair into the latest fashions. So he can do it all, although he is realistic when he states that “no woman is going to go to a barber nowadays.” But plenty of men still do!
