The Barber Company styles all hair types

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Terri McCraney, owner of The Barber Company at 710 W. Walnut, says God intended for people to "come as they are" to her shop. |ret||ret||tab|

In other words, McCraney, who is African-American, does not limit her clientele to African-Americans. She said she learned how to style hair of all types after she went to barber school in Independence several years ago. |ret||ret||tab|

Since she opened her shop, McCraney said, a few white customers were unsure if she would know how to style their hair. |ret||ret||tab|

"It's all about (hair) texture, not about black or white," McCraney said. |ret||ret||tab|

She said many barber and cosmetology schools are not comprehensive when teaching students how to cut and style hair, and often black students are taught by black instructors who teach them only about hair textures common to their race, and vice-versa with white students. |ret||ret||tab|

McCraney is a former head instructor at the Academy of Hair Design on Glenstone. There, she said, she taught her students how to cut and style every kind of hair. |ret||ret||tab|

She opened The Barber Company in January after teaching for nearly three years. She co-owned a shop in Kansas City before moving here to teach at the academy.|ret||ret||tab|

"The hair academy hired me to come down here and teach because I can do every kind of hair," she said. "Teaching helped me learn a lot both about the profession and about myself," she added. |ret||ret||tab|

McCraney is looking to fill two workstations in her shop, and she said she has one stipulation about the stylists she hires. "They must also be able to do every kind of hair black, white, everything," she said. |ret||ret||tab|

She said she hopes to begin teaching seminars on different hair styles. McCraney developed her own signature cut, called the twist cut, and uses it to blend short and long layers and avoid what she calls "the triangle look." She also offers straight edge razor shaves and razor lines in the hair. |ret||ret||tab|

"A lot of shops don't do the straight razor shaves anymore; I always use a new razor with each customer to reduce the risk (of infection)," McCraney said. |ret||ret||tab|

McCraney purchased the house she has her business in about a year ago and lives upstairs. She's from Kansas City and lived in Overland Park, Kan., for 10 years after attending The Missouri School of Barbering in Independence. |ret||ret||tab|

Adult haircuts are $18, with a Wednesday special of $14. Children's haircuts are $12 and $10 on Wednesday. Other services, such as beard and mustache trims, shaves, shampoos and eyebrow arches are also available. McCraney charges $30 for her signature twist cut. Her hours are 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. She takes appointments, and walk-ins are also welcome, she said.|bold_on||bold_on||ret||ret||tab|

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