Today we’d like to introduce you to Vinny De Leon.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Have you ever decided to do something and failed at it miserably?!?! That’s what I did when I bought my first set of Andis clippers at 20yrs old and decided to cut my own hair. Two hours later the end result was HORRIBLE, lol. Needless to say, the passion started and I never put them down after that. I worked a number of jobs mostly construction / HSSE.
I would cut hair in my office, in my garage, in parking lots, in warehouses, in my dining room, in other’s dining room’s, kitchens, anywhere that had a plug I would cut hair. Fast forward after being homeless in 2010 due to the recession (and my lack of managing finances) I decided to go to barber college and get my barber license.
In 2017 I opened Vinny’s Barbershop and we have not stopped. I can honestly say I am enjoying life and with God’s grace my wife Sara and I along with our 4 children Anastasia, Solomon, Simon, and Kayleigh are living our best life thus far.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
A smooth road I don’t believe exists when you are an entrepreneur (especially one with zero experience). I didn’t know what to expect or how to structure a business, finances etc… all I knew is that failure wasn’t an option.
I remember one struggle in particular we moved out of our rental home and decided to move into a 2 bedroom apartment to save money to open Vinny’s barbershop. We had 4 children and they would share a bedroom/ couches to sleep on. We had a storage room as a place to keep drawers in due to limited space. Shortly after the move and opening Vinny’s Barbershop in May 2017 the historical hurricane Harvey hit us in August 2017 I had officially been in business 2 months and now I had to deal with another obstacle of potentially losing everything we had to our name.
Feelings of failure and uncertainties definitely played a huge part in my thought process. I remember saying “Vinny what are you doing?” Thankfully nothing happened to us or our belongings during the hurricane and we worked even harder to make ends meet.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
While cutting hair is definitely something I enjoy, I love and appreciate the Art of straight edge shaving. Ironically I didn’t know a business named The Art Of Shaving was a legit store until I was presented with a job offer from them. When I took that offer I quickly became even more intrigued/ interested in a different side of barbering that I didn’t know existed.
I was a regional trainer for TAOS and then I was offered an opportunity to represent GQ for fashion week in Houston and shave on set not to mention they even did an article on me in GQ magazine. Since then I made it a point to live by a slogan for my chair and barbershop that slogan is “It’s not just a haircut it’s an experience”.
I recently have won Houston Chronicle best of the best stylist of the year and our barbershop won 2nd place for barbershop of the year 2021, I also was in the top 10 for best barbers in Houston. Vinny’s Barbershop has joined the Paul Mitchell family and we have some big things happening for our team/ community.
Our customer service and shop ambiance definitely sets us apart from most barbershop experiences. You will find a clean environment, diverse clientele, not to mention some cool tunes with TVs on in the background. We have dedicated to keep a local barbershop feel that future generations will enjoy for many years to come.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
I have committed to helping others through their journey and still active in doing so. I offer mentorship to owners/ barbers, shaving classes, business classes, structuring barbers as their own business, not just a barber/ employee. I am also willing to collaborate with those who fit to what my vision is for the industry.
This being said you can always come by the barbershop and speak to me or schedule a service with myself to receive a great conversation and feel the good vibes our shop has to offer.
Contact Info:
- Email: vinnysbarbershophtx@gmail.com
- Website: www.Vinnysbarbershop.net
- Instagram: @vinny_barbershop / @vinnydeleon3
- Facebook: @Vinnysbarbershoptx
- Other: https://linktr.ee/Vinnysbarbershop
