Though Alex Campbell’s increasingly wild mop had proven helpful during his work outside at Perseverance Tree Farm in Bechtelsville, he was ready to take a risk with a drastically different look. Mike Szerling of recently opened Steel District Barbershop sharpened his shears to take this surfer from au naturel to a crisply clipped aesthetic.
Alex Campbell
Bethlehem
How would you describe your style? Laid-back, easygoing, low maintenance.
What’s your usual grooming routine? Typically, not much. I’ll comb my hair when it’s long, and when it’s shorter, usually just running my hands through it does the trick. I’ll shave every few weeks.
How do you feel after such a drastic change? It took a while to get used to the look, and now it’s got a fresh, clean feel when I see it in the mirror.
When was your last haircut? Oh, maybe ten or 11 months ago. It’s been a while. I think I’ve had it cut professionally only one other time in my life.
Tell me about the Steel District experience. It had an upbeat, talkative vibe, like hanging out at your buddy’s, yet competent and professional. The guys renovated the space themselves, giving it a nice blend of old school with a touch of modern. A little bit of Steel City grit, a touch of new-school flash and all-the-way quality materials. They’ve got three refurbished barber chairs that take the whole experience to the next level.
How likely are you to maintain this cut? This isn’t really my style, but I’ve gotten some compliments on it already. A few more and I might keep it around.
What do you do for fun in the winter? I play indoor soccer and work on renovations to my 117-year-old house on the South Side. There might be a surf trip to Nicaragua in my future.
Barber Mike Szerling
Kacper Waskiewicz
Public Relations Specialist
What makes a barbershop like Steel District different than a hair salon? The biggest difference is that we are indeed a barbershop and not a salon, meaning our expertise is geared specifically for men’s cutting and grooming, allowing for better precision and providing a genuine experience that is centered around our client.
What were you going for with this cut? With Alex’s cut specifically, we aimed to provide him with a drastic enough difference that allowed for a clean modern look, while retaining some of the length that he’d accumulated.
Does curly hair make your job harder? Easier? Every client is different, as is each haircut, so it’s difficult to generalize curly hair as being easy or hard. Each client requires a specific approach, which is what makes cutting hair the challenging art form that it is.
What’s your best at-home facial hair advice? Many men neglect their facial hair. Acquiring and utilizing beard-specific oils, soaps and balms can really go a long way between beard trims.
Your favorite if-nothing-else product for the extremely low-maintenance? That’s difficult to answer. As barbers, we seek to maintain our own hair as best as possible and encourage our clientele to do so as well. That being said, quality of product is often directly related to its cost, so we steer clear of the pharmacy shelf brands, which are composed of harmful-to-hair ingredients, and stick to tried and true brands, such as Layrite, which has a diverse product line for all hair needs.
What does it take to look this good long-term? It’s not as expensive or high maintenance as it may seem. The average 3–4 week visit to a quality barber and a good product is all anyone needs to feel and look as good as they can.
What’s your favorite thing about this job? It would have to be two things. The service that we provide allows people to feel 100 percent complete, as a quality cut brings everything together. And when combined with the relationships we build with our clientele and community during their experience with us, I simply look forward to coming into work every day.
Steel District Barbershop | 77 W. Broad St. Unit 20, Bethlehem | 610.849.2134 | steeldistrictbarbershop.com
