Terry Brumby says retirement isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.
The hair stylist who founded Sweeny Todd’s salon nearly 40 years ago is back in the cutting game — 31Ú2 years after capping a remarkable career.
Brumby, 63, has joined an old rival, Ann Gaunt, at the Den on Fort Street, and couldn’t be happier rounding up her former clients and renewing acquaintances.
“It was really, really hard adjusting to retirement,” Brumby admitted. “It’s different. What you miss the most is the social interaction.”
Brumby said she was the first woman in Victoria to open a barber shop back in 1974 and was able to carve out a niche, men-only clientele.
She operated in Odeon Alley off Yates Street for the first 25 years, before moving next to the entrance to the View Street parkade. In January, 2010, she sold Sweeny Todd’s to partner Debbie Davies.
The name was borrowed from the character of urban legend, a barber who sliced the throats of wealthy customers while in the chair, but the only thing Brumby ever cut was hair.
Brumby is rebuilding a long client list that included lawyers, judges, stockbrokers, financial advisers, government officials and other downtown businessmen. When she retired, Brumby had more than 500 regular clients and kept a recipe card on every one of them with personal details, like where they work, their children’s birthdays — even their pet’s names. It made monthly haircuts for hundreds of clients a personal experience and kept them coming back, she said.
Brumby said even though she used to refer overflow customers to Gaunt at the Den — and vice-versa — the two had never met until a few months ago. Brumby was walking down Fort Street and decided to step into the mall recess near the Royal Bank, where the Den is located.
It turned out Gaunt had room for a stylist. The two hit it off.
“I look forward to reconnecting with past friends and clients — they’ve been missed,” says Brumby.
You can reach Brumby at 250-818-1199.
