Ladies and Gents

Fitzgerald said the shop’s mission to provide quality hair-care services while helping the community has not changed in the five years since the business opened.   

Fitzgerald makes a point of hiring those who have previously been convicted of felonies. She said she has seen the effect that a few poor decisions can have on someone’s life. Employment at Ladies and Gents is one way she tries to give people a second chance.

“It’s so hard for men to get a chance once they have a criminal record,” Fitzgerald said. “I have cousins who have been down that road and haven’t been able to change their life. They haven’t been able to find a place to really rehabilitate themselves. I felt like if God blessed me enough, I had to give back.”

Juane Watson, who has a criminal conviction, has been working at Ladies and Gents since the shop opened in 2011, said he and the other barbers and stylists at the shop try to keep the atmosphere light.

“At the end of the day people can go anywhere to get a haircut. You probably think your barber is the best. But when you really see the purpose of something, you don’t mind spending your money there.”

—Kim Fitzgerald, Ladies and Gents owner

Practical jokes and laughter are commonplace at Ladies and Gents, he said.

“We try to keep it family-oriented and have fun, so when [customers] come in they know they’re going to get a laugh,” Watson said. “People like this environment. I love it. I ain’t going nowhere.”

Adrian Loredo, one of the five barbers on staff at Ladies and Gents, said working at the shop has helped him achieve one of his dreams. 

Loredo enrolled in classes at a barber school in Austin, and with help from the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, he was able to complete his certification and rent a chair at Ladies and Gents.

Fitzgerald said Loredo has become one of the most popular barbers at the shop. "Artistic cuts," in which Loredo is able to fashion symbols, logos and pictures into clients' hair, start at $20. 

“I’ve been wanting to be a barber all my life,” Loredo said. “Since I was 10 years old I’ve been cutting hair. I’ll be 26 next month.”