Erin Portman - Birds Barbershop

Read how Erin Portman, co-owner of Birds Barbershop, has positioned the "Walk in and Rock out" barbershop as the place to get your "fohawk, mohawk, shortcut, shave, kid cut or ladybird special" within Austin, TX.

Most recently listed within the Austin Chronicle as the Best Barbershop for 2007, Birds has earned an amazing following. Hello! with only six months under their smock, Erin and her group have already left a mark and will continue to contribute to Austin's style scene one cut at a time.


Here the Q & A taken away from my interview with the talented wonder, Erin Portman.

Q: How long has Birds Barbershop been Rockin and Rollin?
As of November 20th, we've been opened for six months.

Q: New to the scene - How does Birds instantly influence style within Austin?
I will say that if there is one thing birds has contributed to Austin's style scene, it's Mohawks. Mohawks of course, are on the Birds menu for $15, and I think the price, our extraordinary talent and fun vibe have contributed to a big spike in the number of people rocking Mohawks in town.

At the Rancid show at Emo's earlier this year, we gave out free mohawks and had a line all night, and the trend has continued. I would say that on average, our stylists cut at least one a day.

Q: What celebrities have come in?
We get lots and lots of local musicians. Guy Forsyth gets his hair cut here, I see the grupo fantasma guys all the time, and I 'm sure a bunch more that I don't recognize. Even mayor will Wynn gets his hair cut with Us! He totally rocks.

Q: As a PR guru what do consider to be key in getting the word out about Birds?
Being creative. Anyone can take out an AD... I'd much rather do something original, like offer free mullets at the opening of Talladega Nights or host musicians or DJ's in our Shop that do what everyone esle does.

Q: Do you service more guys or girls?
Guys are the core of our business, but we have a big number of women who come through our doors. Like me, they are probably fed up with paying more than $60 for a cut every six weeks (Our Lady Bird costs only $39 and includes a wash, cut, and blowstyle). Plus, you don't even need to make a reservation.

Q: What is the most popular cut among guys?
The shortcut ($19). the guy who used to pay $13 at some chain is always glad to spend a couple extra bucks for a salon-quality cut and the guy who used to spend all that money at the salon, well, he's over the moon.

Q: Has the national spotlight hit Birds?
Birds was the focus of a story on Newsweek.com when we first opened. We've sonce been menitoned in Elle Magazine, appeared in a reality show on the Oxygen (airing in January) and got picked by mastercard as a do not miss experience on its site priceless.com (up in December).

Q: Could you have ever imagined you would earn the following in such a short time?
We knew that Birds would resonate well with Austinites, since we are local and showcase the local music scene.

Q: When did you realize you had a hit?
It must have be when locals voted for Birds as "Best Barbershop" in the Austin Chronicle. That, more than any of the national coverage, was the best validation of all.

Q: What will you do to keep things fresh?
We are really excited to be sponsoring the Alamo Drafthouse's air guitar championships and the Texas Roller Derby (be sure to watch out for the holy rollers this year!). But if you ask my husband, the most exciting thing of all is that we have our very own little league team. We now sponsor a team in Barton Hills that plays behind Barton Springs.

Birds Barbershop 2110 S. Lamar, just south of Oltorf. M-F 10am-8pm, Sat 10am-7pm, Sun 11am-5pm. 512-442-8800

(img source: Birds Barbershop)

Daily Dish
posted - beth / 9:25 AM / 11.22.06