In the City by the Sea, competition for the haircutting dollar can be fierce.
Newport measures less than 12 square miles, but residents and visitors have more than 30 options when looking to get their hair done.
Amid the choices, a neighborhood barbershop on Thames Street called Hair Apparent has cut out a distinctive niche, operating within a small but cozy commercial space that fits not much more than three barber chairs, a seating area, and a collection of TVs, photographs and memorabilia filling much of the wall space.
Co-owner David Lockhart began perfecting his craft as a teenager out of pressure from his military family, he says. He recalls how his father insisted that he learn how to cut hair so David and his brothers would maintain a sharp and presentable appearance while his father was on deployment.
“He would say, ‘I don’t want to come back and see you and your brothers looking all disheveled and messy,’ ” Lockhart said. “So I had to train myself.”
This side-skill eventually led to Lockhart offering cuts to friends and family while growing up.
Lockhart – now a Fall River resident – partnered up with seasoned business owner Tony Moore and another barber to open Hair Apparent in 2018.
But today, it’s only Lockhart and Moore keeping Hair Apparent going.
Moore, a U.S. Navy veteran, said the partnership with Lockhart, a U.S. Air Force veteran, has allowed him to focus more on his craft instead of handling the minutiae of small-business ownership alone, keeping up with bills and up to date on licensure from the R.I. Department of State and R.I. Department of Health.
“I’ve been doing this a long time,” he said.
The business’s clientele is an eclectic cross-section of teenagers, grown-ups, and visitors from every social class. While many barbershops fit into either the distinctly urban or more old-school traditional mold, Hair Apparent stands apart.
“It’s good that we are downtown, so it’s right in the middle of all of the neighborhoods,” Lockhart said. “We get everyone. Parents with their kids. Locals. Businesspeople. You name it.”
And since Newport is home to a naval station and the Naval War College, they have also become popular among the city’s military community.
“They know we know how to do a proper military haircut,” Lockhart said.
Even though the business is ranked high on the review site Yelp.com, it doesn’t have its own website and leaves aside modern smartphone apps for scheduling.
And for customers who forgot to bring cash, there’s an ATM taking up one of the shop’s far corners.
Hair Apparent welcomes large groups – mostly bachelor parties or weddings – looking to clean up before events or the downtown nightlife.
The company also makes it a point to give back to the community, occasionally offering free haircuts for the city’s homeless population in collaboration with organizations such as the nonprofit Turning Around Ministries Inc.
Moore takes it as a point of pride that while longtime customers might not escape an innocent ribbing, Hair Apparent has built a reputation as a place for all stripes.
“It is just always a grind,” he said. “But when you walk through our door, you’re not Black or white or green. You’re just someone who wants a cut.”
OWNERS: David Lockhart and Tony Moore
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Barbershop
LOCATION: 424 Thames St., Newport
EMPLOYEES: Two
YEAR FOUNDED: 2018
ANNUAL REVENUE: WND
