Longtime barber hangs his shingle in Grafton

Parked outside of Headquarters barbershop in the Village of Grafton sits Herb Fischer’s fire-engine red Corvette letting customers know he’s there for business.

“I’m the new kid in Grafton,” he said. “My customers said I should come out to Grafton, and I’m glad I made the move.”

For nearly six decades, Fischer has been lowering the ears for clients across southeastern Wisconsin.

In June, the 78-year-old barber moved his operation from Bayside to Grafton.

Fischer decided the Grafton barbershop at 1522 Wisconsin Ave. is a strong central hub for his customers, who come from  areas that range from Milwaukee to Fredonia.

The Town of Belgium resident said most of his clients seek the old-fashioned barber experience, which focuses on making small talk and building friendships.  

“It’s all about the customers and giving them what they want,” he said. “Having more personal relationships with the clients is what being a barber is all about.”

He also said traditional barbers prefer scissors over clippers because clippers can limit a barber’s artistic liberty.

“I don’t know how to paint by numbers, and I don’t know how to cut hair by numbers,” he said.

Headquarters owner Jill Moorbeck, who has been running the barbershop for 11 years, said she was seeking an experienced barber.

“There really aren’t any barbers anymore. I was looking for someone who could help me cover walk-ins and also bring in a good list of clients,” she said. “It’s a relief just to have somebody else here. It’s hard to run a business by yourself.”

Fischer began cutting hair when he was 19, following in the footsteps of his brother Gunter, a barber and Grafton resident.

His family moved from Germany to America in 1951 after World War II devastated their homeland.

“We lost everything from the war. We got out of there to go to the greatest country,” he said.

His family settled in Brown Deer when he was 11 years old. Fischer said he barely knew English at the time.

“I could count up to 10 and say no. They gave me a first-grade reader and said, ‘Welcome to America,’” he said.

After graduating from Cedarburg High School, Fischer began taking barber classes in 1959 at Milwaukee Institute of Technology, today Milwaukee Area Technical College, where he also took courses in anatomy and physiology.

“I learned a lot about skin and scalp diseases. Being a barber is like a dermatologist,” Fischer said, adding most professional hairstylists are comparable to cosmetologists.

He said being a male barber in a world full of female hairstylists puts him in the minority.

“It’s definitely a woman-dominated industry, which wasn’t the case when I was starting out,” he said. “I’m the minority, and I’m becoming a dinosaur.”

Fischer said there’s tough competition in the business with quick-service hair salons, which prioritize getting customers in and out of the chair as soon as possible. But most of the stylists who work at those shops are students learning the ropes.

When he wasn’t busy seeing his regulars, Fischer found time to be a self-employed real estate broker for about 12 years. He said he left the industry to focus on his passion, but he still offers his clients advice on when to buy properties.

“First and foremost, I’m a barber and that’s what I do,” he said.

Headquarters primarily cuts hair for men and sometimes children, but Moorbeck also serves  women.

“Everything depends on the texture of their hair,” Moorbeck said. “Men’s hair is about the cutting, while women’s hair is cutting, styling and coloring.
“It’s a whole different ball game.”

Headquarters handles 12 to 18 customers a day, and Fischer works Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays. He said about 90% of his clientele followed him to Grafton when he made the move on June 1.

Fischer said talking to his patrons is similar to being a therapist, because they often confide their personal stories to a trustworthy and unbiased listener.

“It’s kind of a specialty trade. You’re like a bartender or a psychologist because you’re dealing with family problems and other life events,” he said, noting he’s a bartender at the Port Washington Yacht Club.

Over the years, Fischer has seen it all when it comes to the latest hair trends — from mowhawks to fades — but being in Wisconsin also lends itself to a particular style around football season.

One time, a customer asked Fischer to shave the Green Bay Packers logo on his head.

“I also had a gal who wanted diamonds in the back of her head,” he said. “I never used a stencil.”

When Fischer isn’t busy cutting hair, he passes the time at the barbershop practicing his short game for golf.

“The real reason I moved here is because Jill has carpeting,” he joked. “I brought my putter here so I can practice. When I’m not in the shop you can most likely find me at the golf course.”