Tara Barbers

Tara Barbers has been in Johnstown now for 7 years and business is flourishing. It’s likely that half the Johnstown lads visit him regularly as he’s one of our nearest Barbers.

Upon meeting owner manager Dave you’d be forgiven for thinking that he is Australian but he’s actually from Dublin and his Irish accent has been highly influenced by 16 years of life in Australia.

How did you discover an interest in Hairdressing?

"When I was 16, a close friend of mine was interested in hairdressing and I thought I’d give it a go too. We both found that we were good at it and twenty years later and we’re both still in the industry. It’s a great way to work for yourself and to meet and chat with lots of interesting people."

Did you open a shop straight away?

"No, I trained for 4 years through an apprenticeship at Aiden Fitzgerald Salon, in Blackrock. The opportunity then arose to head overseas in the mid 90’s to Sydney, Australia and there I built a business opening 3 barbers shops called ‘CBD’, two in the heart of the business district and one to the south of the city at the well know and highly popular beach area of Bondi. Fifteen years later I returned to Dublin and opened Tara Barbers here in Johnstown at the Athlumney Centre in 2010.

3 years later I relocated to the Johnstown Shopping Centre to be closer to more trade and then, 3 years later I reopened a shop at the Athlumney Centre which Kate managed. We expanded to specialize in both Ladies and Gents hair and was the opportunity to expand that I’ve been looking to do for quite a few years but had to wait for the right location.

Unfortunately issues with the actual building forced us to close and the those issue still remain today since 3 shops are still vacant.

Kate came on board to manage the Shopping Centre and Adena join us last year as business picked up."

Has the industry changed much over the years?

"No not really that much, fashions are forever changing and I do have to keep up with the current trends, the styles that come and go and essentially be able to keep up with the ideas that today’s young people want."

What advice can you give those looking to follow you?

"Do an apprenticeship, is well worth the hard work and when done in a proper salon you’ll get the best experience. I’ve seen many colleges promote several week courses and some may be good but l think that too many of these promise too much and are in it for the quick buck without giving the proper experience and instruction."

Pick up a ‘Loyalty Card’ in store

Social Media

Like many small business' and groups using Facebook Dave discovered that he had 7 days to move his Facebook account from a personal profile over to a business account. There's very little difference to the end user but it meant that, like so many others, he had to start his page afresh.

What Happened?

"Literally in the space of a week we went from 1400 followers to zero. Facebook sent a message saying I must move to a business Page within 7 days before the page is frozen."

What advice would you give others?

"If there's anyone else out there using a personal page as a business then give yourself a head start and have two pages going and asking followers to follow the new page before Facebook shut it down with 7 days notice."