After years of working in the restaurant and real estate industries, Candice Milton said she envisioned her next business venture as a salon that would be a welcoming place for men who were tired of visiting national haircut chains.

“A lot of guys see getting a haircut as another chore on their to-do list[s],” said Milton, owner of Tune Up: The Manly Salon. “But they can come in here and have a beer, hang out and enjoy getting their hair cut. The guys love it.”

Tune Up: The Manly Salon opened Oct. 17 on FM 1488 in Magnolia and has quickly become a place for men to receive the same pampered treatment usually seen at salons catering to the opposite sex, Milton said.

“The reaction [from the community] has been very good so far,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of regulars who come in. For a lot of guys, it’s become part of their routine[s] when they’re getting ready to go out on a Friday night.”

Tune Up offers free mixed drinks, craft beer from Karbach Brewing Co. or sodas for patrons receiving haircuts as well as those accompanying them to the salon. According to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, privately owned businesses can give away free alcohol to guests without a permit as long as the patron is 21 or older.

Milton said the salon also offers a VIP program that allows customers to take advantage of each of the different amenities. For $90 a month, customers can receive unlimited services as well as a bottle of liquor of their choice to be kept for them behind the salon’s bar.

In addition to enjoying a beverage while they wait, customers can watch news or sports on two flat screen TVs or play foosball, shuffleboard or video games in the salon’s stand-up arcade.

“It’s great that guys can have a place to go, and it’s [their] time,” she said. “It takes [getting a hair cut] off that chore list and turns it into something they look forward to.”

Tune Up: The Manly Salon

6402 FM 1488, Magnolia 281-763-7370 Hours: Mon.-Sat. 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Sun. noon-6 p.m.