North Park’s Freshly Faded cultivates healthy culture for men

Derrick Banks of Freshly Faded cuts his friend Jeff Nguyen s hair Drew Sitton Times of San Diego NORTH PARK A high school graduation first date college graduation proposal job interview wedding day These are chosen of the milestones Derrick Banks has shared with long-term customers who have sat in his chair over the past years These key moments in people s lives barbers especially for Black men barbers are a part of all those moments Banks disclosed while cutting the hair of his childhood friend Jeff Nguyen on Saturday Aug inside his barbershop Freshly Faded Barber Shop A client at Freshly Faded surrounded by mirrors and plants Drew Sitton Times of San Diego It was the first time Nguyen had gotten a haircut after becoming a father two years ago He was ready for a big chop that made his shoulder-length hair less tempting to a toddler The pair shared stories about family physical condition crises friends new businesses and not losing themselves trying to become a super dad It feels good I feel lighter for sure Nguyen mentioned as he left with his wife and son That lightness may be both physical and emotional Nguyen is less weighed down by hair but to Banks it s not about hair at all I could care less about haircuts Banks reported How do you feel when you walk in there How do you feel when you leave Beyond barbering In the last years Freshly Faded has become an element in a multitude of people s stories Beyond hair Banks built a locality hub for art literacy entrepreneurship and strength Plants work from local artists products from small business owners and books cover every surface beyond the barbers stations A dog greets clients at the door on Saturday it was Astro with a knotted red rope Music plays softly It s a vibe A client at Freshly Faded surrounded by mirrors and plants Drew Sitton Times of San Diego It s just a calm cool space for men to come explained J Smith who was first a client at the shop before stepping behind the chair five years ago when he left the military They have also hosted international poetry competitions monthly heart medical screenings from UCSD students and voter registration drives in the brick-walled building off Utah Street Whatever is called for at the time That s what we try to provide Banks explained The North Park barbershop opened more than years ago as an unapologetically Black space in a neighborhood fast gaining widespread popularity and pricing out people alongside that I just sought to be a part of almost like a reverse gentrification Banks mentioned He opened it in North Park in honor of R Spot Barber and Books where he first went to a spoken word night after being invited by his high school basketball coach Growing up in the hood you don t have exposure to live music the arts That barbershop was my first exposure Banks who was raised in Oak Park disclosed James Richards had to close R Spot in after its rent more than doubled Banks sought to continue his legacy of a barbershop about more than hair Historically barbershops have often served as social centers for men Done right it s one of the scarce places men can share their own issues and be real with each other free to complain about anything On its pioneering website and now its Instagram freshlyfadedbarber the shop attracts clients interested in a different type of custom one that flips the narrative on being vulnerable Men s mental wellbeing Barbers and clients alike partake in frank discussions on mental fitness in a judgment-free zone For years the shop has hosted a men s mental vitality group on the first Wednesday of the month One modern question the barbers questioned one another was the best way to heal from trauma Even clients who did not participate in the organic discussion may have learned something as multiple perspectives were shared A lot of men we need help We don t have anybody to talk to about the things that we battle Nobody asks us how we feel announced Smith who is going to school to be a therapist after seeing how he helped people as a barber A client getting his hair cut at Freshly Faded His bib says Mental Fitness Is Real Drew Sitton Times of San Diego That help came because of the space and barbers Banks curated who hires people based on personality not haircut demonstrations Everybody can come in and get disarmed by the dog disarmed by the plants explained Terrell Banks the owner s younger brother who has barbered at the shop for six years Growing up he remembered his brother working at a different barber shop with a hyper-masculine super-competitive practices Where he first used to work was the typical barbershop you know people smoking weed outside gambling the younger Banks declared You walk up and you don t feel calm You re just like Oh do I gotta put on a bravado Banks founded Freshly Faded out of necessity to leave that shop The younger Banks still sees men enter the space chests out and shoulders up It s when they start joking around that he knows their defense mechanism of acting tough has dropped Everyone s welcome everybody can feel settled Terrell Banks disclosed Bookings can be made at freshlyfaded com or by calling - Walk-ins are welcome El Cajon Blvd Ste Tuesday through Saturday from a m to p m