Female barber happy to be 'one of the guys'
After years of cutting hair locally, Holly White opens her own shop
BY JESSICA SMITH
Staff Writer

JEFF GRANIT staff Holly White, a longtime barber in the area who recently opened her own shop in Milltown, works on East Brunswick's Jerry Krafgack, a former salon owner.

Scala's Barber Shop has all the usual accouterments one would expect of such an establishment.

These include the tools of the trade, complete with straight razors, the usual banter that occurs among gentlemen, and good, old-fashioned hair-cutting.

The only thing that might surprise new clients would be seeing Holly White's smiling face waiting for them where they might expect to find a man.

"I want to keep the old-school barbershop alive," White said. "Being a woman in this business, I get old guys saying, 'I've never had a lady do this before.' I did get some men who said, 'I'm not sitting in her chair, she's a woman.' Now I'm one of the guys."

About 10 years ago, White left her life as a women's hairdresser behind to enter what has traditionally been a man's world. At a now-closed shop in Spotswood, White learned her skills from a veteran of the trade.

Holly White left her career as a women's hairdresser to work in a barbershop in Spotswood and later cut hair in the now-closed Rocco's in Milltown. Last week, she opened her own shop, Scala's, on North Main Street.

"He was like a drill sergeant with me," White said. "I always hear his voice in my head."

Her most recent stint was at Rocco's, a Milltown landmark since 1968 that closed about a year ago.

"[Rocco] gave me a break by hiring me," White said. "The guys all disappeared, so that's why I had to open my own place."

Wielding the scissors at Rocco's made White the first-ever female barber in Milltown. With the opening of her new shop April 26, White has become a trailblazer in another way, as the first female owner of a barbershop in town.

"My kids are getting older now," White said. "Now, me opening my own shop in Milltown, this is my baby."

White has lived in Milltown for about 20 years. She resides with her husband, Frank. They have two children - Frank, 20, and Heather, 18.

JEFF GRANIT staff

"They're really proud of me," White said. "It's always been a dream of mine to have my own barber shop."

Though Scala is her maiden name, White said she wants to keep the tradition of the old-fashioned, Italian barber shop alive. She also had a second reason for naming the shop Scala's.

"If they see Holly's Barber Shop, they might say, 'Oh, it's a lady's place,' " White said.

Though her shop is new, White said she already has a large clientele.

"What I did was, I kept contact with all of my customers. I'm reclaiming them now."

Among White's regulars are a number of police officers and firefighters, to whom she gives flat tops and fades, she said. While she serves men and boys of all ages, White said she no longer does women's hair - unless, of course, it is very short.

Working around men exclusively has exposed White to conversations that are normally kept strictly among the boys, she said, noting that the men would sometimes tell risqué jokes about women.

"I never really took offense to it," White said. "To be honest, I laughed right along with it. Actually, I started telling the jokes. I have seen a whole other side of the man's point of view, about everything from dating to politics. It's nice hearing their view."

The inside of Scala's evokes images from the past, with Norman Rockwell prints adorning the walls, and an old razor strop on display. On the outside, customers might find White's Harley-Davidson motorcycle holding court, sort of a testament to her status as one of the guys.

White is the sole barber at her shop, but if things go well, she may hire others.

"Milltown is an old-fashioned, Norman Rockwell kind of town," White said. "It's such a cute little town."

Scala's Barber Shop is in the same building as Milltown Hardware, at 66 North Main St., in the rear. Hours of operation are Tuesday 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Wednesday 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Thursday 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Men's haircuts are $14, and for boys under 10 they are $12. A beard trim is $8. For more information, call (732) 619-9114.