By WVUA 23 Digital Reporter Candace Johnson
August is National Black Business Month, and WVUA 23 Digital is highlighting a Black-owned business each week. This week, that business is eTags Barbershop.
Every day, customers file in and out of eTags Barbershop, where they get a chance to chit-chat with their favorite barber or stylist while under a barber’s bib.
Owner Eddie Murphy said eTags stands for “Eddie’s Touch and Go Styles,” and the business got off the ground in 2015. He’s always been about customer service, he said, and that’s why patrons keep coming back.
“You can send your grandmother in here and get her hair cut,” said Murphy. “We take what we do with excellence and precision.”
And offering a space for the community ensures young patrons can come in and be inspired by what they see.
“I think it gives us a sense of belonging,” said Murphy. “I also feel like it gives our youth a vision to see that they can be a business owner of some sort.”
The close-knit shop has a familial atmosphere and welcomes its regulars and newcomers alike, Murphy said.
“When they come in, they brighten up the place and everybody knows everybody,” said Murphy.
While there, customers can escape the problems of the world or commiserate with barbers or fellow patrons.
“I believe the world as they know it stops because of the environment,” said Murphy. “So whatever’s going on, when they come in, they forget about it.”
eTags Barbershop is located at 1524 Greensboro Ave. in Tuscaloosa.