SIDNEY — Jacob Cornett may be the youngest small business owner in town.
The 19-year-old will celebrate the grand opening of JC’s Barber Shop, Saturday, April 2, with refrehsments and a meet-and-greet from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce will conduct a ribbon-cutting ceremony there, April 19, at noon.
The shop is at 833 St. Marys Ave. and Cornett, a March graduate of the Ron West Barber College in Dayton, is ready to provide hair cuts, beard trims and shaves to men of all ages and ethnicities.
Although he just got his barber’s license, Cornett hasn’t just begun to cut hair. He gave his friends haircuts throughout his high school years at Sidney High.
Now a shop owner, he has added steam towels and straight razor shaves to his repertoire.
“I was really unsure of what I wanted to do (after graduation),” Cornett said recently. His girlfriend, Harwinder Kaur, of Sidney, suggested he explore barbering. With support from his grandparents, Flo and Dale Zimmerman, and his mother, Michel Spradlin, all of Sidney, as well as from Kaur, Cornett opened a shop of his own, rather than rent a chair in an existing business.
“I had a lot of doubt in myself. They basically made me dedicated,” he said. “I wouldn’t be what I am without them. I want my grandparents to know how much I appreciate them.”
To prepare his facility, he painted the walls brick red and the trim a crisp white. He installed sinks and new lighting. He decorated with antique barber items and signs.
“I’m an antique fanatic,” Cornett said. “In school, I loved all the history of barbering.”
He hopes customers will feel they’re in an old-fashioned, friendly barbershop that has all the modern conveniences.
“I feel a lot of people have lost the meaning of the old-school, traditional barbershop. Some are all sports barbershops. I don’t want to follow that theme,” the new barber said. “Not many still do steam towels and straight-razor shaves. Just getting the back of your neck shaved after a haircut — people used to do that and not many do anymore.”
Cornett is also a fanatic about cleanliness.
“I’ve been in a lot of shops that don’t focus on sanitation. That’s OK but my shop won’t be that way,” he said.
JC’s Barber Shop offers haircuts for $12, beard trims for $5, shaves for $15 and a shave and a haircut for $25. Cornett will accept walk-ins and appointments can be made by calling 489-8067. Shop hours are Mondays and Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
