Beef and Barbers Bloom in Bleak Business Blocks
By Peter Cleary
Walk into the recently opened Beef O'Brady's sports bar on 34th Street South for a weekday lunch and you may not find sports on all of its 19 television screens. Instead of replays and stats from last night's game, you'll hear the heartfelt confessions of soaps' hottest hunks.
Part of the lunchtime crowd at the sports bar, which even has television sets in the bathrooms so you don't miss a minute of the game, laments having to miss the soap operas they love to eat the midday meal they need.
So the co-owner of the restaurant, Rick Onderko, tuned one of the televisions to soap operas.
The prevalence of rental signs indicates that business prospects are bleak in most of Pinellas Point. But despite the large number of empty storefronts, some businesses, such as Beef O'Brady's, have found ways to thrive.
Those that succeed adapt their businesses to serve the diverse needs of Pinellas Point, which range from shaves to soaps.
Neighborhood Barbers on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street South opened 50 years ago and still draws plenty of customers. Despite the two barbers working on a recent Tuesday afternoon, there was still a wait.
Assistant manager Melvin Hannah attributes the shop's success to its ability to serve the needs of a diverse clientele. "It's always been a multicultural shop," he said. "We serve the community of all people."
But that wasn't always the case at Neighborhood Barbers. Until about 10 years ago, barbers in the shop could only skillfully cut the hair of its white customers, according to Hannah. The owner realized the shop wasn't doing as well as it could and hired a new manager to ensure the shop kept serving the needs of the community.
The new manager changed the name from Esquire and brought in barbers who could cut more types of hair. This expanded the client base and made the shop more attractive to black customers.
Hannah said that cutting the hair of black customers requires different skills than those taught in most barber schools. Only barbershops that realize this and hire barbers familiar with hair types beyond those taught in school are able to successfully attract black customers.
Barber schools use white models and teach hair cuts appropriate for the straight hair of white people, Hannah said. He added that a few schools have begun to teach barbers how to cut black customers' hair, but for the most part it is a skill that must be learned outside the school.
Hannah added that more than just business and barbering skills are needed to keep his shears busy. "In this business, of course, the haircut is important, but the personality is also important," he said.
And certain topics should be avoided while a customer is in the chair. "Religion, politics and their mamma" are all taboo, he said.
On the other side of Pinellas Point, past a few "For Rent" signs and an empty shopping plaza, sits Beef O'Brady's, which opened two months ago. Onderko primarily attributes the restaurant's success during its first two months to demand. "There was a need here," he said.
But Beef O'Brady's plan to attract customers goes beyond just serving hot food, cold beer and switching a television from sports to soaps when needed.
Onderko said he is there to serve more than just food. "I'm putting my advertising dollars back into the community," he said. Instead of following the traditional route of advertising in newspapers and on billboards, Onderko sponsors local sports teams.
Additionally, Onderko envisions the restaurant as a reflection of the community. Two months after opening, the walls are bare, but this is not due to a lack of planning. "I left the wall blank because I want the community to put their [jerseys] up," he said.
Alvina Miller, economic development coordinator for the Chamber of Commerce, attributed the dearth of successful businesses to lack of education and planning.
"Some people just try to start a business without a business plan. They just throw money in it," she said.
But Neighborhood Barbers and Beef O'Brady's show that with awareness of what the community needs, a business can do well among vacant storefronts and "For Rent" signs.
Hannah has done so well at Neighborhood Barbers that he plans to open his own shop on Sixth Street South in the next few months. Hannah realizes there are easier ways to make money than barbering. He said he often asks customers to put him in their wills.
No one has left him a large estate yet, so he'll keep on barbering.
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