New Owners of McGuire’s Barbershop Make the Cut

“You have to meet these guys,” my husband says referring to the new owners of McGuire’s Barbershop. “They’re great. I just walk in and say medium cut and these guys know what I am talking about. They shave my neck with an old school razor, do my eyebrows and they take their time.” 

I reluctantly walk the three blocks in the July heat to 553 Main St. in downtown Dunedin to meet John Bryson and Morris Hensley. These two friends, both from Asheville, N.C., became owners of McGuire’s in January 2011. This location, originally Taylor’s, has been a barbershop since 1949.

The atmosphere inside the barbershop is inviting and friendly. John jokes and keeps it lively. Nostalgia from the last 62 years hang on the walls. It reflects John and Morris’ intent for an old-fashioned atmosphere.

I ask them how they ended up in Dunedin.

“It’s quite a story,” Morris says, “partly because we are both from Asheville, but never met until we both moonlighted at a barbershop in Clearwater.”

When Morris decided to open a shop of his own, John wanted to join him. Morris had his eyes set on a business in Safety Harbor but life had different plans for him. When the shop in Safety Harbor was sold out from under him, he hastily bought a shop in Holiday, Fla.

Ultimately, he was unhappy with the long commute to his new location.

Serendipity intervened when John and Morris received a phone call from the former owner of McGuire’s. She was looking to sell. The two men told her they were not in the market to buy another business.

A few months later she called back and offered to trade. “It was a great deal for both of us,” John says. They traded businesses and have never been happier.

My husband is getting his haircut while the two men tell me their story. They are both warm and honest and I feel myself sinking into my chair as I happily listen to them talk. They are so happy doing what they love that you can’t help but be happy in their presence. I’m feeling so content that when my husband says it is time to go, I have a hard time pulling myself away.  

553 Main St.

Call: 727-733-2279

Hours:

• Tuesday to Friday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Saturday: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.