From left to right – Merritt Potter, Kelly Clodfelter and Trey Chenkus.
White Oak Barber Shop in Chattanooga brings back the traditional barbershop by offering the best men's haircuts and hot lather face shaves. Of course, every haircut is finished with a straight razor neck shave. You can rest assured you'll get a great haircut, everytime.
In the 19th century, American men went only to barbershops for haircuts and shaves. The barbershop was also a meeting place for local businessmen. In those days, to prevent the spread of disease, regular customers often kept their own shaving brushes and porcelain mugs with artwork marking their trade. The safety razor brought about a change in the daily business for the barber, but men still enjoyed congregating at their neighborhood barbershop.
In the 1960s, after the invasion of the Beatles, men grew longer hair. Many of the more talented barbers turned their skills to unisex hairstyling. By the 1980s the number of barbershops in America had dwindled. White Oak Barber Shop is one of the few remaining historical barbershops. It dates back to the 1920s, when barbers took great pride in their work.
Master barber Merritt Potter is determined not only to preserve the history of the barbershop, but also the quality of the services performed. After years in a unisex styling salon himself, Potter says it’s great to be back into a barbershop again.
White Oak Barber Shop still offers the hot lather shaves and several methods of cutting hair that most people thought were gone, such as shear-over-comb, clipper-over-comb and razor cutting. Plus, the latest techniques and styles -- like the fade and textured spike cuts. All of this is performed in the old fashioned, masculine atmosphere of a vintage barbershop.
