Saint John Barber Chooses Moncton Flat Iron For New Shop
MONCTON – It was the match made in Heaven when a landlord and tenant found exactly what each other were looking for. That is, bringing Bayside Barbers’ third location to Moncton’s iconic Subway Block.
Thomas Dennis, Bayside Barbers’s owner, said the historic flat iron building’s landlord, Amit Deutsch, was specifically looking for a barbershop for the Main Street Moncton property.
“The reason we picked this space is, honestly, because I stumbled across it online. The owner was looking for a candidate and he just happened to be looking for a barbershop,” Dennis said.
“I saw photos of the space and he completely renovated it, brought it up to 2023 standards, and it seems like the perfect opportunity to move into a space that fits us in this big, awesome city.”
The new barbershop’s doors open February 1 and the Moncton location will be Dennis’ first foray into a market outside of Greater Saint John.
Dennis operates two other shops: one in Saint John and another in nearby Rothesay.
Bayside Barbers first launched in Saint John in October 2021, taking up residence in the heart of the city at the historical property at 1 Princess Street, before expanding to Rothesay in June of 2022.
“It’s been a crazy year and a half,” said Dennis.
Dennis – who in a previous interview with Huddle said his five-year goal is to have at least three barber shops across Atlantic Canada – preferred not to discuss further expansion plans.
“If you asked me eight months ago if I was planning on expanding to Moncton, I’d probably say no, but here I am. I try to set things up that I can jump on opportunities when they arise. I want to make sure that I’m not losing focus on the shops we do have,” he said.
“I want to make sure everyone’s happy with the shops we do have and that everything goes to plan. I don’t want to put too much on the plate too fast.”
The Subway Block is owned by the Lemon Group Inc., a Halifax-based real estate firm that bills itself as a specialist in restoring historical properties.
The Subway Block was built in 1917 and has stood beside the train tracks in Moncton for more than a century. It was vacant for about a decade before Dennis chose to open in it.
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Dennis told Huddle he’s excited at the prospect of breathing new life into a space that hasn’t seen a tenant in so long.
“It’s really cool to see how many people are genuinely just interested in what’s happening in this building,” he said.
The building, which boasts an Italianate storefront façade, was a replacement meant to appeal to rail travelers that supplanted a previous wooden structure of a similar design. It was officially designated a heritage property by the city in 1996.
“We’ve had people that we’ve never spoken to before just send me photos of the building over the years, from the early 1900s and stuff,” said Dennis. “It’s kind of cool, you know, to see what it was then and what it is now, and that we can be a part of the history of this place.”
When it opens next month, the four-chair barbershop will occupy about 1,400 square feet across two floors.
Dennis, a graduate of Eikonic Academy of Mississauga, is still in the process of hiring and hopes to be fully staffed in Moncton when the doors open next month.
“It hasn’t been difficult or incredibly easy to hire, per se, but we do offer as much as we can, because I do believe in everyone being able to make a solid living off this and be happy working here,” he said.
“We have a few prospects, but we’re definitely still searching. Even if there are only two of us when we’re opening, the doors will definitely still be open.”
Speculation about who was taking up the space at the Flat Iron Building kicked up last summer when contractors were spotted doing exterior renovations to the building.
Dennis told Huddle most of the work is done on his barber shop’s future berth and that the preparations at this point before opening only involve outfitting it with his equipment.
“It’s already painted outside and inside, and it’s just about installing stuff. It’s a quick turnaround, which is awesome.”
Sam Macdonald is a Huddle reporter in Moncton. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].