I was good friends with our small town's last actual BARBER. It was very much a cash business.
NEVER EVER trust a barber who doesn't speak Italian.
and using a straight takes practice, something I don't see many modern barbers having.
how many shaves do you think the average barber gives in a week?
I tend to favour old fashioned barbers shop for hair cuts rather than the unisex salons that have sprung up everywhere. When I say barbershops, I mean the plain ordinary working joe type, not the retro, high $$, designed to look something from the late 1800's types.
In all the years I have been going (I am nearly 50) I don't recall ever seeing anybody getting a shave. Sure I have seen barbers clean up the back and sides of the neck after a hair cut, but not a proper shave as we are discussing here; I don't even recall seeing a shave being listed on any price list either...
I suspect it is a dying art and/or a niche market.