"Cover of the Rolling Stone..." Well, kinda

Carlisle couple, barbers a cut above
By Becca Gregg, Sentinel Reporter, February 25, 2011 The Sentinel - cumberlink.com Posted: Friday, February 25, 2011 9:00 am

Carol and Bernie Smith find it hard to believe they've been in business for 30 years.

But then again, the barbershop duo agrees, "It's hard to believe we've done anything for 30 years."

Michael Bupp/The Sentinel
Bernie and Carol Smith of Carlisle have been together in the hair-cutting business for more than 30 years.

Time, Bernie Smith said, "squirts right by," so much that two children have turned into five grandchildren, numerous side jobs have combined into one family business, and modest beginnings have made way for well-established community ties.

As Carol Smith summed it up, "Life is good."

Independent

Earlier this month, the clipper-wielding couple celebrated 30 years since the opening of their joint venture - The Hairsmiths Barbershop - which sits in the converted garage of their Carlisle home, across from the fairgrounds on Spring Road.

"I think its because we were determined, that we've been able to stay in business 30 years," Carol Smith explained. "He does his thing, I do my thing, and it's not like we're working together."

Continuing with a laugh, she added, "It's not like I'm the doctor and he's the nurse ... ‘I need more gauze. You didn't do it right.' He works independent and I work independent and I think that helps us."

Despite its success over the years, a barbershop wasn't always on the horizon for the high school sweethearts.

"When I was in high school, I would've never guessed I'd be a barber," Bernie Smith admitted. "In high school I thought I was going to be a teacher ... but that plan changed."

Beginnings

By 1980, the Smiths found themselves married and living the military life with their two young children.

"I was looking for something independent," Bernie Smith recalled of the decision to go into business with his wife. "I was a medic in the Army and it was either this or go through six years of medical school. This was a lot easier."

According to Carol Smith, "We thought we needed to transition into civilian life easily, and barber school was nine months full-time. So he was still in the Army and he started barber school."

By day, Bernie Smith studied his craft at barber school. By night though, he returned to work at the health clinic at the Army War College.

With a college background in math, Carol Smith initially intended to do the books for her husband's barbershop business.

That would soon change, though, with both Smiths finding themselves enrolled in barber school before the year's end.

"I thought, (doing the books) might not be enough," Carol Smith said. "Bernie had been in barber school three months and I decided to start barber school too."

Gamble

Upon receiving their respective degrees, "Our first jobs were over at the post barbershop," Carol Smith noted. "Bernie was still in the Army, and we had part-time jobs."

Soon enough, the Smiths would begin the search for a location of their own.

"Bernie's idea was to have the shop attached to the house," Carol Smith explained. "We found this house ... we asked the realtor to show it to us and she said we couldn't afford it. So then we asked again and she said ‘No, you can't afford that."

Undeterred, the Smiths pressed on.

Michael Bupp/The Sentinel

"We thought, well, this is a good location," Carol Smith recalled, explaining that from there, a feasibility study was done and submitted to the former Carlisle Building and Loan. "They gambled on us and it worked. So we're very appreciative that the bank thought that we could succeed."

On Thanksgiving Day 1980, the Smiths moved into their new home. Almost immediately, work began on the attached garage that would soon be transformed into their barbershop.

Nearly three months later, on Feb. 4, 1981, The Hairsmiths Barbershop opened its doors for business.

‘Partners'

Michael Bupp/The Sentinel
Carol Smith, left, gives a perm to Barb Ocker of Carlisle as Bernie Smith looks on.

Since then, the husband and wife team has worked side by side, both in business and in life.

"We've been pretty lucky that we love each other, and we've been partners since we were married," Bernie Smith said. "I think that's the biggest thing that got us through ... because we're partners, and we cover each others backs," Bernie Smith said.

Added Carol Smith, "We were determined in the beginning that we were going to be successful somehow, and if that meant working elsewhere, we would."

And so they did.

During the early years of the shop, Bernie Smith took a job at the neighboring Getty gas station to pay the mortgage while the couple worked to build their customer base.

"When we first started out, it was nice with a 3-year-old and a 5-year-old. We could work around their schedules," Bernie Smith said. "They were the most important parts of our lives ... our children. That's why we wanted to be independent. So we could spend times with the kids."

Convenience

Three decades later, it's clear that the bank's gamble has paid off for the Smiths.

"It's worked out. Our kids ... they don't hate us," Bernie Smith said with a laugh. "And our commute is the best in the country ... especially with the price of gas the way it is."

Michael Bupp/The Sentinel
Bernie Smith watches his wife cut hair. Jokingly, Carol added that's what he does best.

According to Carol Smith, "When we're not busy, I can run around. I can go to the store, I can do the wash, I can stitch, I can quilt, I can garden ... and he can do his things too."

Continuing, she noted, "We work by appointments, so we know when we have to be here. The first years, you just want to be here. You've got to be here in case someone walks in. But we've moved to all appointments, and that suits us well. We have children and grandchildren around, and we can make ourselves available for them too because we've been here 30 years."

‘Instant gratification'

Working together each day, Carol Smith said that the couple never runs out of things to talk about.

"We know all the same people, so we have something very much in common ... our work, our background," she explained. "We started going together young, but we sort of grew together. We went different ways, but we came back together."

"Our friends are always amazed that we don't fight," added Bernie Smith. "We don't holler at each other ... we never have. We both had good parents, and that has a lot to do with it."

In addition to both the convenience and the teamwork, both Smiths say that the clientele is what drives them to keep a'cuttin'. Michael Bupp/The Sentinel
Carol Smith gives a perm to Barb Ocker of Carlisle.

"We like people, and we have some great conversations. There's so much to learn about people ... you're always learning something," Carol Smith explained. "It's interesting. Just all kinds of people come in. The people are great."

According to Bernie Smith, "It's nice to help people look their best ... it's instant gratification. Some people work on projects for years and years and years and never see the end of it. And we do 20 people a day and 20 times a day, we say ‘Ah, you look good.'"

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