Ivan Salazar started cutting hair in his mom’s basement. Now he charges $150 for one of his signature cuts.
A good haircut can make you look good and feel even better. That’s barber Ivan Salazar’s job. The licensed barber cuts hair at Common Good, a coffee shop and hair studio in Dallas. Salazar got started cutting hair at a young age.
“Yeah, back in high school, I would cut my own hair,” Salazar said. “My friends would actually ask me for haircuts when they saw me cut my own hair, and it became just a thing in my basement, my mom’s basement actually.”
Salazar has come a long way from that basement. He’s been a licensed barber for nine years, building his business on strong Hispanic roots and a large social media presence.
“I mean, it’s in the name; ‘Ivan the Great,’” client Abraham Montano said, referring to Salazar’s social media handle. Salazar makes videos for Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, where he has nearly half a million followers. “He’s only the third barber ever in my life.”
Both Montano and Salazar said that growing up, getting a haircut was a luxury.
“I come from a very… we both do… come from, like, traditional Mexican families,” Montano said.
For Salazar, the son of immigrant parents, celebrating Hispanic heritage isn’t just something he does one month out of the year.
“Every day I bring it to the chair,” Salazar said. “A lot of my clients are Hispanic, so I talk to them about their culture, talk about music.”
It’s the foundation of Salazar’s business and who he is today.
“Growing up, I remember my dad having up to three jobs at one time and waking up at 3 in the morning and coming home at 5,” Salazar said. “I think it taught me good work ethic, yeah, so that played a big role now, cause now I try to work as much as possible too, just like him.”
Salazar said that when he was a kid, getting a haircut from anyone other than his mom was considered a luxury. Now, some of his clients travel from out of state to sit in his chair.
“Yeah, so it’s not the cheapest haircut, probably one of the most expensive haircuts you can go out there and get,” Salazar said. “I try to make it as valuable as possible to my clients.”
