ST. CHARLES – Superficial items, such as the decor and plumbing, have changed at 117 E. Main St. in the last century, but the heart of the downtown business – barbering – hasn't.
Established in 1910 by Clarence "Buck" Berry, Berry's Barbershop predates the Hotel Baker, Arcada Theatre and Blue Goose Market, all of which opened in the 1920s.
Economic Development Director Chris Aiston said having a business celebrate 100 years is, without question, unusual.
He said the barbershop's success is a testament to the loyalty of its customers, especially in a flooded market.
"It's great to see an old-fashioned barber make it," Aiston said.
Ron Saltzgiver – the shop's third owner and the first outside of the Berry family – has spent the last couple of years planning an anniversary bash, set for Saturday, as a thank you to the customers.
"I think that's the least I could do," the 64-year-old said.
Saltzgiver has stories of families whose hair he has cut for generations, of a father driving his 2-year-old from Wisconsin because Berry's Barbershop is where he got his first haircut, and of the decades-long regulars.
Sixty-eight-year-old Ralph Nerino is one such customer. After moving to the Tri-Cities from New Jersey in 1970, Nerino saw the shop's barber pole while driving through town. He decided to give the place a shot.
He said he hasn't tried – nor has he looked for – any other barbershop since.
"If I had to go to another barber, I don't know where they are," Nerino said.
A sense of family developed around the shop's three Kochs barber chairs, but not just between Nerino and Saltzgiver. Regulars became friends – some even scheduled their next appointments together – jokes were told, news was shared and the men, barbers and customers alike, watched as their kids grew up, Saltzgiver said.
The homey atmosphere and easygoing relationship with Saltzgiver kept now-retired barber Jack McKiness at Berry's Barbershop for 25 years, McKiness said. He thinks good old-fashioned service – good haircuts, good conversation and good customer service – kept the customers coming back, he said.
"You have to care about your customers, or you'll never make it," Saltzgiver said.
Saltzgiver never intended to make Berry's Barbershop his career. He was hired as a barber in 1968 after serving in the Vietnam War. He said he planned to work there only a few years, but he became owner in 1971 when then-owner Jim Berry, son of Buck, moved to New York.
"It was probably the best thing I ever did," he said.
Saltzgiver promised to keep the business' name. Black and white photographs hanging on the wall depict the shop's past: one of 1910 Main Street shows hitching posts out front and another shows the Berrys at work.
The Berry family never pressured Saltzgiver to do well, he said, noting they were just happy to have the business continue. Although the barbershop has had its ups and downs, he said, he was able to raise four healthy children.
"That's all the average guy could ask for," Saltzgiver said.
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