His self-proclaimed mission can also be understood as a calling: if a gentleman enters his salon, he may only leave as a true gentleman. His tools: a well-groomed haircut and a perfectly trimmed beard. His weapons: an old barber chair, a cult-classic whiskey spray bottle, some pomade, and a whole lot of nostalgia. His trademarks: a hat, trendy suspenders, and a dapper beard. His name: Herr Feldmann.
The barber's profession was once considered almost extinct. But since the mid-2010s, the craft of the classic men's hairdresser has experienced a veritable renaissance. Today's man is sporting a beard again, not out of subservience to a trend, but rather as an expression of a lifestyle. However, here too, proper beard care is essential. Few know this better than Alexander Feldmann. The trained hairdresser is one of the pioneers of barbering in Germany. Following good old American tradition, Mr. Feldmann and his wife, Mrs. Feldmann, have been running their eponymous barbershop since 2016, located on a stretch of Route 66 in Mönchengladbach on the Lower Rhine. Besides a classic shave and a proper parting, real men can escape the stresses of everyday life and be transported to the USA of the 1950s. Particularly popular with male customers is the hot towel shave, where the facial skin is relaxed with a steamed towel before shaving, opening the pores for a close shave. Alexander Feldmann also knows every trick and tweak when it comes to hairstyles. His expertise doesn't come from chance . Regular visits to his mother's barbershop in the USA allowed him to identify trends and establish them in "good old Germany." Today, Mr. Feldmann himself conducts seminars on barbering and is considered the Bartagnan of the barbering scene. Furthermore, he and his team possess in-depth expertise in the complex field of wigs, toupees, and hairpieces.
Mr. Feldmann was recently honored with the naming of a Böker razor after him. It is thanks to his dedication that shaving with a classic straight razor has truly become fashionable again. During the New Barber era, he was the first barber in North Rhine-Westphalia to be allowed to use a traditional straight razor on stubble again, while adhering to hygiene regulations. " Handling a straight razor requires completely different skills compared to the widely used replaceable-blade razors ," he explains. Besides his own razor, Mr. Feldmann relies particularly on the Böker Tiny Razor for fine work: " With its narrow 4/8" blade and barber's notch, this razor is ideal for contour shaving. Once you've internalized the Tiny Razor's compact proportions, it's incredibly agile when it comes to quickly tracing the contours ."
The partnership with Böker began at a barber convention in 2017 and has been nurtured like a well-groomed beard ever since. Customers at Herr Feldmann's salon can also purchase Böker razors themselves – expert advice and a touch of rockabilly included.
And what about the ladies? According to recent understandings, barbershops carry the stigma of Area 51 when it comes to women. Mrs. Feldmann, however, gives these conventions a ruthless makeover and warmly welcomes women to her salon, Herr Feldmann, for classic to modern hairstyles.
Want hair with flair? Then head straight to Herr Feldmann, the professional for hairstyles, beards and hairpieces in Mönchengladbach.
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