“You know those things you always have on your list [of things you want to do] but never get around to doing? You put it off, and you put it off.” Bermudez said. “For me, that was opening a barber shop.”
Bermudez and his family moved to Richardson from Mexico City in 2000. He worked for an automotive corporation for 13 years before leaving to finally start his own business.
“I used to travel all over the country for work. Even when I didn’t need a haircut, I would go into all the small barber shops in towns I would visit,” he said.
Bermudez has a cousin and an uncle who each own barber shops in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and his sister, Viridiana Bermudez, has been a barber for nine years. Family ties to the industry inspired Bermudez to open Bulldog Barber Shop, where his sister works as a barber and partial owner. The shop is named after his favorite bar in Mexico City and as a nod to several pet bulldogs in the family.
Bulldog Barber Shop opened in March 2019 with an emphasis on offering clients a traditional barber shop experience, he said.
“We use straight razors,” he said. “A lot of new barber shops don’t do that anymore.”
The shop offers a variety of services, including haircuts with both scissors and razors as well as beard services, eyebrow trimming and hair dyeing. The shop sees women, men and children of all ages.
Bermudez wants customers to have a luxurious experience in a comfortable space, he said. The shop offers face and head massages, free beer and beverages, face masks and hot towels.
“We’ve had customers fall asleep in the chair because they are so relaxed,” Bermudez said.
Bulldog Barber Shop has an industrial interior design with several large sofas so that waiting clients can feel comfortable and are not intimidated by a sterile environment, Bermudez said.
The shop has 18 barbers, and while Bermudez said he hopes to expand, he does not want to overcrowd the shop with too many barbers and chairs. Bermudez said he hires licensed barbers who are balanced in skill and customer service.
When considering where to open Bulldog Barber Shop, Bermudez said Richardson was the only place that made sense.
“My sister and I have kids we are raising here,” he said. “It’s home.”
Bulldog Barber Shop
318 S. Central Expressway, Ste. 108, Richardson
469-494-0086
www.bulldog-barbershops.com
Hours: Mon.-Thu. 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 9 a.m.-8 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
