Barbershops generally fall into two camps: the “Classic” and the “Modern.” The Classic shop is where you go if you want to feel like a character in a black-and-white movie. There’s a lot of dark wood, heavy porcelain chairs, and a barber named Sal who has been cutting hair since the Eisenhower administration.

The Modern shop, on the other hand, looks like a tech startup that decided to sell haircuts. There are neon signs, hip-hop blasting from hidden speakers, and a fridge full of craft beer. Both have their merits, and the best shops manage to bridge the gap between the two.

In a classic shop, the “Best Barbershop” title is earned through consistency. They don’t care about “trends.” If you ask for a “TikTok Mullet,” Sal will simply stare at you until you apologize. They do the classics: the side part, the buzz cut, and the flat top.

There is a comfort in the classic. You know exactly what you’re going to get. You get the smell of Clubman Pinaud and the sound of a straight razor being stropped on a leather belt. It’s a timeless ritual that reminds us that while styles change, the need to not look like a shaggy sheep remains constant.

The modern shops are where the experimentation happens. This is where “Style Meets Precision” involves lasers, high-end lighting, and barbers who are also Instagram influencers. They are the masters of the “Skin Fade” and the “Hard Part.”

These shops aren’t afraid of a little flair. They use hair fibers to fill in patches, they use blow first class barbershop dryers to create volume that defies gravity, and they treat every haircut like it’s going to be on the cover of a magazine. It’s high-energy, high-style, and usually involves a lot of product that smells like expensive vanilla.

We’ve seen some strange hair trends over the years. From the “Man Bun” to the “Mullet Revival,” the barbershop is the front line of fashion.

Discussion Question: Which “classic” hairstyle should never have been modernized, and which “modern” trend do you think will look the most embarrassing when we look back at photos in twenty years?