COURTESY
NEW LONDON and CLAREMONT — Readers of New Hampshire Magazine have voted Topstone Barber Co., a New London barbershop owned by a sixth-generation Claremont native, best in the state.
The shop opened in 2015 and has thrived by drawing customers from across the Upper Valley and beyond, according to a press release.
Topstone outgrew its original location in New London as it went from a single barber to five plus an apprentice in fewer than three years.
“Being named best in New Hampshire is exciting and rewarding because it’s a reminder of how much our customers value quality and attention to detail,” said Andrew Maki, who established the shop with a single 1940s-era barber chair soon after completing barber school near Concord.
In 2016, Maki moved Topstone’s antique barber pole from a small New London storefront to a much larger space at the historic New London Inn. The new location — more than triple the area of the original — had been home to a barbershop years earlier.
Maki, 26, said he and his five colleagues like to think they are tapping into the “tonsorial traditions” that inhabit the space.
“Barbershops can be cornerstones of their communities,” Maki said. “We work every day to achieve that by showing the pride we take in what we do.”
The Topstone barbers believe continual education offers the best way to further elevate their craft. The young men are regulars at conventions in New York City and elsewhere.
Maki also brings in accomplished barbers and cosmetologists from high-profile shops to teach classes. Topstone invites barbers from around the state to attend. He and his Topstone colleagues believe promoting overall excellence — even beyond their shop — is good for barbering and good for customers everywhere.
For the Topstone barbers, having opportunities to develop their skills keeps them interested in their work and, therefore, in staying in the community. That’s welcome news for many elected officials, including Gov. Chris Sununu, and for nonprofits like Stay Work Play New Hampshire that are trying to help the state retain and attract young workers, according to the press release. Stay Work Play will be the beneficiary of a mid-June event celebrating the winners of New Hampshire Magazine’s Best of NH Readers’ Poll. Winners of the contest, which drew nearly 15,000 votes, will appear in the magazine’s July issue.
Maki said he sees Topstone as the kind of place that can provide an attractive option for young people seeking authentic experiences and fulfilling work.
Maki named the barbershop after his late grandfather’s furniture store in part to honor him and also to draw on the value of tradition. Indeed, an old-school vibe permeates the boisterous shop, which occupies the street level of the New London Inn, a local landmark built in 1792.
The clinks and crackles of heat pipes mix with muffled footfalls from above. But the shop’s predominant sound is of good-natured ribbing among the barbers and, at times, their customers. The atmosphere entices many clients to stop in between haircuts and shaves to get their fix of spirited banter.
Topstone has become a town gathering spot, not just for the laughter and camaraderie; there is also an element of never knowing what one might find. The shop sells T-shirts, notebooks and journals, a smattering of midcentury antiques, as well as a broad selection of vintage LPs. At the center of it all are the barber stations that Maki and the rest of the Topstone crew constructed using wood reclaimed from bowling lanes. It all comes together in a look that is 70s glitz meets industrial.
The shop’s authentic feel extends beyond the antique tools and faded concert posters on display. There are carefully selected razors, shaving lotions, beard oils, pomades and a range of aftershaves. The barbers road-test all of the grooming products before making space on the shelf. Maki makes sure to meet and gently interrogate the makers of the products, many of which are produced by small companies in the U.S.
“We only carry things we obsess over and believe in,” Maki said.
That zeal for well-crafted goods and services is what pushed him to attend New England School of Barbering in Penacook. Maki, who is married, served as a member of the New Hampshire Army National Guard’s 39th Army Band, Manchester, before and after becoming a barber.
Maki’s inclination to serve is evident in Topstone’s diverse customer pool. The shop, which operates by appointments made in person, by phone or online, pulls in everyone from local students to doctors at Dartmouth. Topstone’s everyman sensibilities are evident from the firefighter and police patches marshalled along the rear wall to the prime real estate reserved for kids’ toys.
For regulars, it’s a perfect mix of people. Steve Walker, a former U.S. military officer who lives in New London, loves coming in for a cut for himself or for his boys.
“The Topstone guys are the best,” he said. “You always get a great cut and it’s always a fun and lively place to be.”
The welcoming, easygoing interactions that are central to Topstone are what Danny Brooks likes best about barbering. He is Maki’s longest-serving colleague, and moved with him from the old shop when, for a time, it was just the two of them.
“It’s been a wild ride, but we couldn’t be happier with how much the shop has grown in just a few years,” said Brooks, 25.
Besides Maki and Brooks, Topstone’s barbers are Ryan “Roomba” Kirby, 27; Ethan Smith, 24; and Ryan Perras, 24. Each has developed a loyal base of customers. Jimmy Prijdekker, 19, is completing an apprenticeship at Topstone before taking his state licensing exam.
If sharpening their skills is what keeps the Topstone barbers planted, good service is what keeps the customers, Maki said. The neighborly atmosphere, the quality products and the look and feel of the shop are critical to Topstone’s success. But, above all, Maki believes it’s about doing top-notch work: “We are custodians of the best traditions of our trade. By working to grow our skills, we can continue to offer the best service possible to our customers who have made this shop what it is today.”
For more information, visit http://topstonebarber.com.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.