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By ANGELA DELGADO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 3, 2007

Updated: 10/01/2007 06:44 pm

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TOWN 'N COUNTRY - Joe Silvestro remembers the days when people would take their children to the same barber they frequented and their father frequented.

He remembers when barber shops had the red, white and blue cylinder spinning outside the door, where neighborhood men would visit, even when they did not need a haircut or straight-razor shave.

Silvestro grew up going to barbers like this in the '60s when he lived in New York, and he has been drawn to that kind of establishment ever since.

About eight years ago, Silvestro's barber went out of business. Upon a recommendation from his coworkers, he ended up at Fernando's Barber Shop, 7530 W. Waters Ave., and has remained a loyal customer.

'It's like a neighborhood place, where people relax, get a good hair cut, have good conversation and feel pampered,' he said. 'I like the attention they pay; I'm usually on the chair for 45 minutes. It's not one of these places you go in and pay $10 and get out. It's a real man's barber shop.'

Fernando Santamaria Sr. opened the original Fernando's Barber Shop on Hillsborough Avenue in 1973. In his younger years, Santamaria, 72, worked at a barber shop in his native Cuba before moving in 1968 to Grand Rapids, Mich. There, he worked in factories - but only to earn enough money to open a barber shop in Tampa.

Five years after opening his first shop, Santamaria moved to Waters Avenue, across the street from the shop's current location, which opened in 1990.

When Santamaria lived in Grand Rapids, he continued practicing his craft by cutting his co-workers' hair in his basement. That is where his son Fernando Santamaria Jr. began learning the trade.

Santamaria Jr. and his brother, Jorge, used to sit and watch his dad work, but it wasn't until Santamaria Jr. began barber school that he realized how good his own skills were and how much he loved it.

'He was born seeing me cut hair,' Santamaria Sr. said in Spanish. 'He had to go to barber school to get his license, but he already knew the tricks of the trade.'

'I developed a love for the art and it just took off after that,' Santamaria Jr. said.

After earning his license he worked for other salons and became an instructor for Paul Mitchell. He cut and styled hair for men and women, but in the end he returned to his roots. In 1997, Santamaria Sr. retired and handed the 900-square-foot shop over to Santamaria Jr.

While working at the barber shop, Santamaria Jr. was introduced to a new product line and its concept: blending the old school barbershop style with a contemporary modern salon atmosphere.

'I managed to mix the two together and started getting the 30s to 50s client base,' he said. 'I started introducing them to shaves.'

'The techniques that I use are old-school, but I provide contemporary looks,' he added. 'I started developing a following with that.'

Santamaria said his barbershop appeals to clients mainly because he provides straight-razor shaves. He perfected his technique by practicing on a balloon, he said.

'Clients enjoy it,' he said. 'They hear about my shaves and say they didn't know a place around here that provided it anymore.'

His shaves are so popular, he was named one of the top five barbers in the United States by Classic Style magazine. He also is drawing enough clients that he is considering opening a second shop next year, possibly in Tampa.

'It just puts me in a good frame of mind,' Silvestro said. 'Once you go in for a shave where you sit back and relax, it's just like heaven. That's what it is to me.'

William Gonzalez has been getting his hair cut by Santamaria for seven years, traveling from Land O' Lakes for the service.

'I wouldn't trust my hair to anybody else,' he said during a recent visit to the shop.

Gonzalez goes to Fernando's every two weeks and takes his son, Gabriel, 7, with him. Gabriel got his first haircut at the shop, Gonzalez said.

Aside from his loyal local clients - Santamaria has about 300, but in total he and four employees bring in an average of 800 customers - he has cut hair and shaved faces for troops in Afghanistan. Santamaria was in the Army Reserve when the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks occurred. He was sent to Afghanistan six months later, and fellow soldiers learned he was a barber.

Staff from MacDill Air Force Base sent a barber chair, clippers and put up four walls so Santamaria could have a room to work. During his free time, he had 10 to 12 clients a day, he said. The service was free.

'It was my refuge, my little piece of home in the Middle East,' he said.

Santamaria married a coworker, Barbara, and they have three children: Fernando, 7, Erica, 5, and Luis Manuel, 2 months.

'I learned everything by watching my dad,' he said. 'I'd have to say every part of being a barber, I love. The artistry behind it, the history behind it, the connections you get with people is amazing. It just is a passion I have.'

FERNANDO'S BARBER SHOP

LOCATION: 7530 W. Waters Ave.

PHONE: (813) 900-2668

EXPERIENCE: Fernando Santamaria Jr. has been cutting and styling hair for 24 years.

PRICES: Haircut, $15; Shave, $15

Reporter Angela Delgado can be reached at (813) 865-1501 or adelgado@tampatrib.com.

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