Halle Taylor says Byres Road is the perfect location for a high-end barber shop.
McGraff Barbering opens for business on Wednesday (July 15) offering a £25 premium service.
A student discount at £15 aims to cater for another side of West End life.
Halle has been hired as head barber to look after the day-to-day running of the business.
She said: “It’s going to be a really high-class barber shop.
“Our service is going to be the best of the best.
“The guys are going to get a hair wash, head massage, and a cut.
'Busy footfall'
“And we have a really state of the art coffee machine coming in.”
But the location is the key element to how the shop will work.
Halle said: “Byres Road is such a busy street - we expect many people to walk in and book.
“The owners chose Byres Road because of the busy footfall.
“The road is one of the busiest in Glasgow - it’s a perfect location."
Around £40,000 has been invested in the premises.
A cool, dark interior with modern fixtures and high-end cutting gear is being fitted out.
McGraff Barbering has also partnered with luxury hair care brand Kevin Murphy.
Exclusive
Halle said: “We are going to be selling their exclusive products in the shop.
“All our equipment is Dyson, which is costly but fits in with where are market is.
“We need to be using the right equipment.”
Halle trained as a hairdresser before concentrating solely on barbering.
And she has taken her skills around the world.
“I went travelling for two and half years - to Australia and south-east Asia.
“I was barbering in all kinds of different shops and doing guest appearances.
“I was doing anything from haircuts on the beach to really high-class salons.
“I also ran my own shop in Sydney for a bit as well.”
'Byres Road is such a busy street - we expect many people to walk in and book.'The owners chose Byres Road because of the busy footfall.
'The road is one of the busiest in Glasgow - it’s a perfect location'
Halle Taylor
The experience has given her a great insight into the industry and people.
But customer safety will be her top priority from day one in her new job.
McGraff and its 800-sq ft for floorspace has plenty of room for safe distancing.
Halle said: “There are a lot of health and safety requirements with Covid-19.
“But we are confident we have all the necessary measures in place.
“No one will be sitting directly beside anyone else and we are getting screens made and put in between each chair.
“Masks will be provided to anyone who comes in and all our barbers will have a visor on.
“We will also have hand sanitiser stations.
'Cleansed'
“And all workstations and surfaces will be cleansed before and after each cut.”
She said: “Anyone who comes in we will need to take their details and store them on our system for 21 days.
“If there is any contraction of the virus linked to the shop then we have the information to track and trace people.”
* McGraff Barbering is at 280 Byres Road and at www.mcgraffs.com for appointments. The shop is also on Instagram and Facebook.
