Tips for Local Entrepreneurs

I am greatly in favor of local, independently owned and operated businesses. I will take an independent coffee shop over a Starbucks any day, given the option. But, local businesses have have a responsibility to provide comparable quality, and ideally a little something extra in terms of atmosphere. So, I was walking along 55th Street near 35th Ave., and I saw ahead an old-timey looking barber shop. It had a somewhat faded, light up barber pole in front of a tiny, unassuming store front. Charming, I thought. As I walked by, I glanced in the window. Inside was a man lounging in one of the barber's chairs, reading a newspaper. Around him, barber-type implements were lying out on tables, and the floor was absolutely covered in hair. Much as I love the entrepreneurial spirit, I think I'll opt for the much cleaner, classier looking, and, I believe, still independently run hair salon just down the street.