The barbershop’s presence in Black American culture is immense — over the years, it’s been the subject of paintings, movies, and even the setting for a talk show. And as a real-life community hub, it’s a vibrant place for men to talk sports, politics, health, and life.

But barbershop culture has been changing over the past few years, and COVID-19 had a lot to do with it.

Evan Harris, a Columbia Business School student, used to pay his barber in Harlem $25 cash before the pandemic. But since 2020, the price he pays for a haircut has risen to about $60, after tip. And amid the rising costs, he had a kind of revelation:

“I used to work in the office all the time,” he said, fresh off a recent cut. “So I would get a haircut religiously, like every one and a half to two weeks. And then the pandemic happened, so people stopped taking care of themselves.”

One of the big reasons the price of a haircut is going up is because barbers are spending more on supplies. Sherwood Dolor has been a barber for 15 years and worked in at least three different Brooklyn neighborhoods. Recently, he’s found himself spending more on supplies — a pack of once-$5 razors is now $10, and a roll of paper neck strips, once 50 cents or $1, now runs about three bucks.

“Cool Care used to be $6.99,” said Dolor. “Now, you go to the store, you probably pay $15 for a can of Cool Care. A pair of clippers runs you anywhere between $150 to 300 bucks.”

As recently as 2019, those clippers could cost as little has $80, sometimes less. And the result of all of this is that customers who once frequented the shop are coming less often.

“I would have clients come in maybe three times a month,” Dolor said. “Now, you get in probably about once a month.”

Rising costs have forced him to up the price of his haircuts by more than 50% over the past five years. Now that he’s charging that much, he said customers want their routine haircut to feel like a luxury experience.

“When you go to see a doctor, he’s always in his white gown,” Dolor explained. “You know, you go to an office, you know he’s dressed properly. Why can’t you? Because you’re providing a service to the public. People want to see a value of standard for your pricing.”

Higher costs are affecting barbershops across the city — not just those in higher-income neighborhoods. Dexter Barrow, a licensed barber of 20 years in Flatbush, Brooklyn, is now charging $40, up from $25 in 2019. With the rising costs, he’s noticed a different feeling in the room.

But now, he sees fewer people simply hanging out in the shop and using it as the community space it’s been for decades.

“A couple years ago, it was like a men’s sanctuary,” said Barrow. “You come and go. Everybody comes to the barber shop — the plumber, the dentist, the lawyers. Everybody becomes one when they come to the shop. Today is just like a more business transaction, is it cut-and-go, get your money and go.”

But in charging more, Barrow gets paid more. And even though the culture may be shifting, he did echo a sentiment shared by several of his peers: The price reflects a serious craft for an essential service — they feel recognized as the professionals they always have been.

Customers, on the other hand, are adjusting to the changes. And some see the new prices as the cost of keeping a community tradition alive.