SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Yellowknife's got three new barbers in town and plans are to bring back the traditional barber shop - with a new age spin to it.

Yellowknife's got three new barbers, ready to offer men of the city a place of their own. With over 40 combined years of experience cutting hair, Steve Bing, left, Craig Zamonsky, and James McGaughey purchased Henry's Barber Shop from Henry White and have re-branded it Ragged Ass Barbers. - Andrew Livingstone/NNSL photo

Steve Bing, a 14-year resident of Yellowknife, Craig Zamonsky and James McGaughey, who moved to Yellowknife just last week from Regina, are the owners of Ragged Ass Barbers, the re-branded barber shop recently sold by Henry White, who packed up and left for Hay River.

The goal the ambitious men have in mind is to bring back the old school barber shop philosophy.

"It's making a movement, a big comeback," McGaughey said of the re-emergence of traditional barber shops. "A lot of shops down south are coming back traditional.

"People want the atmosphere. Guys want a place to go that is their own, just like some women go to the salon. It's the type of place you don't have to be afraid to drop an f-bomb when you're here."

Bing said the name materialized out of a Christmas season drive with his father-in-law.

"We drove down past Ragged Ass Road and he said 'Well, why don't you call it Ragged Ass Barbers?' Bing recalled. "I thought it was very Yellowknife and I texted the boys and they liked it, so that was it," he said.

Zamonsky, who moved to Yellowknife a year ago to work at a hair salon, said he met Bing through his old job, where Bing's wife was working as a hair stylist.

"I started about 13 years ago," Zamonsky said of his experience styling hair. "I went from hair dressing school into a barber shop and did that for a couple years. I went into the hairstyling side of it and now I'm back here. I was looking for a change of atmosphere."

Bing said the three of them had worked in shops full of women and wanted to do something new, offering a place for men. Zamonsky and McGaughey, who met in Regina, said they had talked about doing something like this down south, but when the opportunity arose here, they jumped at it.

"It's a good group of clients that come in here," Bing said.

With the hustle and bustle of taking care of paperwork, Zamonsky said he and his business partners are working at getting their name and their fresh approach to haircutting out there.

"We're going to be doing full renovations and we really want to make it our own," Zamonsky said. "We want to change the whole look.

"We all have experience in hair salons, so we've got a little bit more style than say the traditional clipper work, we can work with products and stuff."

McGaughey agreed, adding "we want to attract a younger crowd, but still keeping like a very traditional barber shop."

With over 40 years experience between the trio, the Ragged Ass Barbers are really shooting for a place for men to feel comfortable getting their hair cut, pointing specifically to the fact all cuts are done for walk-in clients.

"It takes two weeks to get in and I think that's where we'll clean up," Zamonsky said. "There won't be long waits, you just walk in and get a cut, it's very traditional."

Along with extended hours, the trio plans to bring in a line of men's hair products called Hollywood's from a retro barber shop located in California.

"It's a real ... barber shop stuff," McGaughey said. "We've got some pomade and aftershave. It's the only thing we'll be selling and it's based for men."

Both McGaughey and Zamonsky said they've got some big plans for the future of the shop, which will be appealing to the customer looking for a place to kick back and relax while they get their haircut.