BARBER wars have broken out in Bury as a new shop threatens to “scalp” its rivals by offering cuts for just £3!
Now, other trimmers and snippers in the town are slashing prices with some even combing the streets with flyers offering cheaper hair cuts.
The price war came to a head when The Barber’s Shop opened a fortnight ago in Market Street, offering £3 cuts for men and £4 trims for females — massively undercutting existing prices in the town by as much as 90 per cent.
Man in the hot, or rather the barber’s seat, is 30-year-old Dave Maguire who runs The Barber’s Shop which has a chain of 25 outlets in the North West and Yorkshire.
Dave, who has returned to Bury after two years snipping in New Zealand, said: “We are the cheapest and the best cutters in town.
“ When I went away a couple of years ago, the prices were still more than double what we are charging now.
“I’ve 10 years of experience in this business and know it’s not a cut price introductory deal — we are here to stay.
“With the recession hitting everyone, keeping the prices down low is putting money back in people’s pockets.” Now, the cheap cuts have raised the spectre of rival hairdressers going head to head to compete for customers.
Established barber Danny Brown, who runs the Bolton Road-based Danny’s Barbers and charges £6.90 a cut, is amazed by what’s happening in the town.
“I’ve been in the business 40 years and have never seen anything like it. The price war is potty. Something has got to give.
“You can’t go on like this and people will go the wall. I’d rather slash my wrists than cut my prices.” At the top end of the market is Antony Popadic, 46, who has been in the business for 20 years.
He charges £15 for a gents haircut at his Antony for Hair salon in Tithebarn Street.
He said: “Eight per cent of my clients are male and we don’t want to compete with the lower scale.
“My customers want a quality cut and that’s what we pride ourselves on.”
Meanwhile, the National Hairdressers’ Federation — which represents about 6,500 of the UK’s 32,000 salons — is understood to be closely monitoring the situation in Bury.
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