ROCHESTER — Nick Richards’ journey to opening his own Rochester barber shop — Proper 4 — started with getting bad haircuts in high school.
After following a winding path that included a stint in the Middle East with the US Air Force, Richards has high hopes his southwest barber shop will take off.
The goal is to start seeing Proper 4 customers by early to mid-July in Suite 104 of the West On Second Marketplace center at 230 20th Ave SW. That’s the Second Street commercial center anchored by the popular
Rochester’s Capital General Contracting, formerly known as
is handling the build out of the new three-chair barber shop, which is next door to
Richards said his goal is to counter franchise barber shops that can sometimes focus on quantity over quality. His path to this point has not been a standard one.
In the wake of some bad haircuts, he watched YouTube videos to learn about cutting hair when he was at Dover-Eyota High School. That early interest led to a side gig cutting friends’ hair throughout high school and college. While serving in the US Air Force, he shifted from his planned career in marketing and went to barber school.
He followed that up with hands-on barbering experience at a number of Minnesota shops, including the Man Cave Barber Co. in Chanhassen plus the
and
in Rochester.
“I’ve always wanted to do my own thing and be my own boss, so I burned the boats, so to speak, and struck out on my own. I figured it was either sink or swim,” said Richards.
When he opens Proper 4, customers will find a traditional barber shop that also offers salon services. That means in addition to standard men’s haircuts and classic straight razor shaves, he will also offer hair coloring, facials and hair treatments for women and men.
This is just the first phase of his dreams, which is why he chose the unusual name of Proper 4.
“The big dream is to eventually have a barber shop with a speakeasy bar in the back. While I am starting small with just the barber shop, I wanted a name that was more neutral and conveyed a sense of being classy,” explained Richards.
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