Travonte Jones and Daquane Mitchell have grown up cutting hair on Main Street in Buffalo’s University District. Now the two friends who each owns his own barbershop are coming together to show love to a community that has supported them from Day 1 with a back-to-school event Saturday.
“We have been in the district for about 10 years watching everybody grow,” said Jones, owner of the recently opened Tray’s Fade Lounge barbershop. “Everybody’s seen me grow from the beginning and I think this is going to be a successful event, just helping out everybody in the area and showing them that we appreciate them for all their service and all they do for us out here as contractors and barbers and workers.”
The community day event will feature food, raffles, book bag and school supplies giveaways and free haircuts for young children.
Mitchell, who’s affectionately known as Scooter, said the money put toward new book bags, school supplies and fresh haircuts in time for the first day of school can often put parents in a financial pinch.
“We see it every day as a barber,” he said. “A lot of moms are single parents, they can't afford to give their three four kids book bags with supplies. It's just unrealistic so they don't really have help, so with me hearing stories like that actually will come to my mind because we'll get some blowback, so let's help them out let's help out the community.”
Jones said the event is also a way for this particular community to keep moving forward in the wake of the mass shooting in May which left 10 people dead and three others wounded.
“I just wanted to show the community and show everybody in the area that we can all come together for something positive and not something negative,” he said.
With Mitchell’s Sharp Image one block west of Tray’s Fade Lounge on Main Street, both Mitchell and Jones represent the growth of Black-owned businesses on the stretch of Main between Winspear and Hertel.
Mitchell began his career sweeping up hair as a teenager at the barbershop he took over five years ago at the age of 25.
“It feels great,” Mitchell said of owning his own business in a neighborhood he’s well acquainted with. “Because I remember seeing a lot of shops not just barbershops a lot of businesses in general that just didn't make it due to COVID or just due to the fact that they're not getting the right business or Main Street is just not the location for your business, and I've seen that a million times.”
Jones worked with Mitchell for years before going out on his own can’t imagine starting a business anywhere else in the city.
“With me working over here pretty much my whole career seeing the growth in people letting them see the growth in me,” he said. “I just always told myself whenever I became a business owner that I wanted to stay in the community that supported me the most, showed me as much love and done things for me throughout my whole career.”
Jones wants to make this an annual event and is also considering doing a clothing drive during the holidays to help local homeless shelters and the City Mission.
