Open for Business: Blades and Fades brings old-school barbershop to Frederick
Mar. 9—Charles Gasque II, a barber originally from Germantown, first hatched the idea for his own business with the help of one of his regular clients, Brice Lott.
Lott, a businessman, pitched the idea to him during a haircut. The idea stuck.
A few years later, Gasque and Lott are officially business partners and co-owners of Blades and Fades Grooming Lounge on Motter Avenue. Gasque said the two barbershops he previously worked at on Market Street have since moved to other locations during the pandemic.
"I just saw that as our opportunity to put something in the community that would be beneficial to everyone," he said of the shop that opened March 2. "All races, colors, creeds sexual orientations, religions, it doesn't matter."
As the first business in a new space, Gasque and Lott had full control over what they wanted their space to look like, from where to hang lights to the electrical outlets. The result is a sleek space with concrete floors and industrial work benches that is full of art from sports and comic books.
In the back of the shop are two arcade games and a pool table available for customers to use. The choice in games — Marvel vs. Capcom and NBA Jam — are nods to Gasque's childhood.
"To us, it's a bit of nostalgia, but for the kids, they've never really seen it," he said. "They don't know that this type of gaming exists."
The pair began making progress on the space right when the pandemic began last spring. The opening was delayed due to the slower permitting process during COVID, as well as Gasque and Lott's desire to open when the pandemic was closer to over.
But as a result, Gasque and Lott were able to design the shop to be COVID-safe. They spaced out their chairs so there is more than six feet between each of them, and also put up clear dividers between the stations.
The shop offers a variety of services including haircuts, fades and shaves. Gasque has hired one other barber so far, and hopes to fill the remaining five chairs with a group of diverse barbers from different backgrounds. He said it's been difficult finding barbers so far, as many of them have had to take on second or third jobs during the pandemic.
"I want a little bit of everyone in here, just so when people came to the door there would be somebody that they could identify with, connect with and feel comfortable," he said.
Barbers are hired on a contractual basis — they make their own hours and make their own money, but pay rent for the booth itself.
"There's a plus to that, basically no one is their boss," Lott said.
While Lott looks forward to one day expanding the business to other locations in the DMV area, Gasque is especially excited about becoming a mainstay in the Frederick community. He wants the barbershop to be a place where people can come in and talk to one another, share ideas and stories, or begin socializing again as the pandemic wanes. Those kinds of interactions are crucial to barbershops, he said, many of which have closed due to the pandemic.
"I think that's what the issue is, is that as a whole we've gotten so deep into technology and phones and computers and social media and stuff like that, that we forgot to talk to each other," he said. "We forgot the face-to-face conversations that are prominent in the barbershop."
Open for Business is an occasional feature highlighting new businesses around Frederick County. Contact Erika Riley at eriley@newspost.com.
Follow Erika Riley on Twitter: @ej_riley
