Beloved Canton South barber a hair's length from retirement after 52 years

CANTON TWP. – Marvin Harstine makes the 40-minute drive from his home in Carrollton almost every day to work at his barbershop, Canton South Barbers.

Now, he is a hair's length from retirement after 52 years of cutting hair in the community.

Canton South Barbers, 100 52nd St. SE, will remain open until June 1, after which Harstine will retire to spend time with his wife Linda, his two daughters and his six grandchildren.

Harstine, 70, has been a barber since he was 18.

"One of my best friends talked about how he was going to look at barber schools and I thought, 'That sounds really interesting,' because at that point I had no idea what I was going to do," he said. "I graduated high school in May and started at barber school in June, so no summer off."

Canton South Barbers is the second of two locations Harstine has owned and worked in during his career. The first was on Faircrest Street, still in the Canton area. Harstine bought the 52nd Street location in 1996 and has operated there since.

"He is so proud of that community and proud to be a part of it," Harstine's wife Linda said. "It's like family to him."

The mushroom haircut? Not a fan

Harstine has seen hair trends ebb and flow over the decades, noting that he does not get many clients with longer hair nowadays compared to the 1970s. He had a more difficult time with long hair after not having worked with it in some time, but the most challenging hair trends came in the 1980s.

"There was the mushroom haircut or the lines in the side, and in the '80s everybody wanted stripes, lightning bolts, stuff like that," Harstine said. "And in school we were taught to smooth everything out and take away lines, you never put a line in someone's hair."

Despite living more than a half an hour away from the barbershop, Harstine said he values the area and community, as well as his time spent in it.

"They're a good, supportive community and they support the local area a lot," he said. "It's always been a really nice area to work in and be around."

'A staple of this community for many years.'

The only other barbershop in the immediate area is just up the road at Barber Dan's Barber Shop. Barber Dan Datkuliak said Harstine has been pivotal to not just the Canton South community, but his own career, as well.

"He's an amazing man and an amazing barber who's been a staple of this community for many years," Datkuliak said. "I got my first haircut from Marv, and sitting in his barbershop inspired me to become a barber."

Long-time customers remember Harstine's presence in the community since he first opened his practice. Denny Steinbach, a 72-year-old who cuts trees for a living, said he got his haircuts from Harstine since he attended Canton South High School. Harstine's first location on Faircrest Street sat just two blocks from the school.

"Everybody's gonna miss him. He's a heck of a barber," Steinbach said. "He's a fantastic personality, a good Christian man and a hard man to replace."

Customer Craig Lindamood, 64, who works at Caliber Collision in Wooster, said he grew up right next to Harstine's barbershop. (Editor's note: This story was updated May 17 to correct where Craig Lindamood works.)

"Marv's a great friend and a great asset to our area who will definitely be missed," he said. "Barbers are hard to come by."

After retirement, Harstine plans to travel some and then spend the rest of his time with his family.

"My wife and I are going to take off and go on a trip out West," he said. "I've always wanted to do it but you can't just drive to California in a week or two, so it was always a plan for when I retire."

While no plans to sell the building are set in stone, Harstine said he has a potential buyer.

"I have someone interested. I've always thought I'd like to see it stay a barbershop," he said. "But it's been hard to even try to find a barber."

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are just under 16,000 barbers employed in the United States as of last year.

Harstine said the biggest challenge he has faced in his career is being self-employed. Without traditional benefits, a large retirement package does not await him once he closes his doors. Nonetheless, he said he would not have it any other way.

"There's no retirement package, there's no health benefits, the hardest thing is probably trying to keep health insurance," he said.

"But I've never regretted it and I've never had trouble with coming to work. It's been a joy. I've loved every bit of working here and I'm having trouble with leaving it."

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Canton barber Marvin Harstine retiring after 52 years of cutting hair