Month: March 2023

Fashions come and go and styles change, but in Chuckery you can find one traditional Barbers shop that been a constant for its customers for generations.

Alex and Sons Barbers shop, in Lincoln Road, Chuckery, has been cutting the hair of local men for more than six decades, with only one brief break caused by the pandemic.

Andrew Bongiovi, 54, runs the shop with dad Alex, who first opened it in 1960.

“Dad’s 84 but still works in the shop now,” Andrew said, “We’ve got generations of families who come in – we’ve still got customers from day one. Dad has been cutting their hair for over 65 years.

“I do most of the haircuts – things like te modern skin fades to classical hairstyles while my dad still does the older patrons.”

The family has a long heritage of hairdressing.

Andrew, who joined the business 20 years ago, explained: “When my dad came to England, his father was already here, and they worked together in Lichfield.

“But dad first started hairdressing as a lather boy in Sicily when he was eight. He would stand on a box in his uncle’s shop, lathering up men to be shaved.”

Alex and Son flourishes as a business because it values customer service, as a traditional Barbers.

 

Andrew said: “Most of our customers come to us by word of mouth. We get a real mix of people from all backgrounds, and we do children and adults.

“There’s a relaxed atmosphere in the shop, and we also pride ourselves on getting that haircut right time and time again for customers. It’s about consistency and understanding what they want to achieve.”

While similar shops have closed, Alex and Son have ensured by sticking to what their clients want.

Andrew said:” We’ve differentiated ourselves by being a traditional British barbers, when around by us there’s nobody else left doing that.

“Our clients want an efficient, friendly and quick service. We’re also very good on pricing.”

Alex has been cutting men’s hair in Walsall since 1960

A Gent’s haircut at Alex and Son costs £10. If the client wants their eyebrows and ears trimmed, then this is included for free.

The shop, which has parking available and takes card payments, also offers beard trimming.

Retaining that traditional approach has seen the shop become a fixture in Walsall, as fashions have changed.

Andrew said: “Years ago, when the Kevin Keegan perm was in fashion, dad retrained and achieved all the diplomas to do those styles.

“It’s not so long ago that we had the Peaky Blinders, come out, and men wanted something like the old ‘short, back and sides’ again.

“So, fashions change, but they come back in too”

Thanks to their traditional approach to providing first class, friendly service, Alex and Son have ensured that they have never gone out of fashion.

Alex and Son Barbers are based at 49 Lincoln Road, Walsall, WS1 2DW. You can find them on Facebook.

A local business is helping residents focus on keeping the cost of living down with a service that provides affordable spectacles.

Affordable Specs, which is based in Aldridge Road, Great Barr, is run by Stephen Alexander, who has more than 35 years’ experience working as a technician in the trade.

He explained that the shop provides a cost-effective way of getting glasses.

He said: Traditionally, people go to their opticians to have their eyes tested, and then go out into the optician’s shop and choose a pair of spectacles, order them and then they’re told they’ll be ready in a couple of weeks.

“But things have change now – people can to an optician for an eye test but then they can take their prescription away with them.

“They have choice now to either buy a pair of spectacles from the opticians, to get them online, or come to a shop like mine to choose their frames and get their glasses made up more cost effectively.

“Basically, the public has a lot more choice, which gives them the ability to get their spectacles at a more affordable price than straight from a high street optician”.

“I think the problem is that us Brits are so polite, we go to the opticians and feel compelled to pay more rather than going down the road to get a better price.

“The thing is the optician gets paid for the eye test anyway, so you shouldn’t feel obligated to buy your glasses from them too – you should do what suits your wallet best!”

Steve said people now order spectacles on the internet, but often had concerns over quality when online shopping.

He said: “Where I’m different is that if someone comes in here and they have broken their specs and they’re desperate, I can say to them ‘right’ let’s see if we can sort you out!”

“Sometimes I am able to use my skills to take their existing lenses out of broken frames and put them into new frames.

“Or, if they come in with their prescription, they can pick a new frame and I can order the lenses in and I can sort them out at an affordable price.

“I can also make glasses in just a few days, which is not something the internet can offer”.

Ultimately, Steven believes a caring approach to his work, and a dedication to customer service, is what brings customers to his door.

He said: “A lot of it is just about keeping folks happy and going the extra mile to help them. It’s about being professional but also providing that extra customer service to help them.

“It’s about the personal touch. A lot of people like to talk, especially after lockdown. They really value that personal, face-to-face side of business.

“We’re in a cost-of-living crisis now and people have to find the best deal for themselves when it comes to their spectacles – and that’s what I can help them with.”

Affordable Specs is based at 905b, Aldridge Road in Great Barr, B44 8NS. They can be contacted on: 0121 448 6066

Disclaimer: This original article appeared in the Great Barr Gazette (March/April 2023) and was part of a paid advertisement. However, Pioneer Magazines has purchased glasses from Affordable Specs and attests to both their affordability and quality.

Jayne Howarth speaks to members of Greenacres Model Aero Club, which has criticised the council for the planting of trees at Aldridge airport.

A club that meets at Aldridge Airport is reporting Walsall Council to the Local Government Ombudsman, claiming it has failed to consult locals over the planting of thousands of trees at the park.

Children with model aircraft at Aldridge Airport

Greenacres Model Aero Club has used the Bosty Lane leisure facility since the early 1990s – although a model aircraft club has used the site since 1947 – but its members have expressed their anger after approximately 19,000 trees were planted there last year without public consultation.

The 30-acre woodland is a Severn Trent Water initiative to create 2022 acres of Commonwealth Forest across the Midlands as part of its social and environmental legacy following last year’s Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The Commonwealth Forest comprises native, UK-grown broadleaf species and is an extension of Hayhead Wood, creating a nature corridor between Walsall Arboretum and Birch Wood, behind Sutton Road.

However, Mark Travers, treasurer of Greenacres Model Aero Club, said the council did no public consultation on the planting.

The club, which pays the council about £3000 a year to enable it to fly its model aircraft there, has spent the past year complaining to the local authority about its actions, to no avail, and has now been forced to contact the Local Government Ombudsman.

“It was purely by accident that we found out the afternoon before planting started,” he said.

Aldridge airport planting

“As we have to pay to use the park we believe we should have been consulted, and ideally there should have been a public consultation, but this never happened. I’ve been told that no consultation was done due to there not being enough time to hold one and as the land is owned by the council then they can do what they want.

“We are all in favour of planting, but trees must be planted in the right place. As far as we are concerned, eliminating over 60% of the park area from leisure activities is not the way to go about it.

“In emails, members of the council have admitted mistakes were made and we have submitted complaints over the actions and behaviour to the council. As nothing has been done, we are left with only one course of action and that’s to the Local Government Ombudsman.”

The club claims to plant the trees, permission was required from the Forestry Commission via an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which states how the land was used and what was planned.

Jim McHugh, chairman of the club, said: “In complete breach of their own consultation process documents, and the Forestry Commission guidance, Walsall Council did not tell Severn Trent, which was preparing the EIA for the Forestry Commission, about any of the paying users of the park.

“Because of this, the ‘recreational use’ section of the EIA was left completely blank, even though we pay the council to use the site. In my opinion, this represents an incomplete or misleading EIA submission to the Forestry Commission.”

A spokesperson for Walsall Council said: “This scheme forms part of the creation of 2,022 acres of Commonwealth Forests, as well as 72 tennis-court-sized Tiny Forests across the West Midlands to leave a social and environmental legacy following Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

“As the land being planted did not include the area used by the club for taking off and landing it was assumed that any impact would be minimal.

“The tree planting was paused when the council became aware of the concerns of the club and a compromise was worked on which involved moving the planting away from the club’s take off/landing area.  It quickly became apparent that this was not acceptable to the club and the planting remained on hold.

“Consideration was given to the assertion by the club that the planting would have a significant impact on the club’s activities as the planting matures. This was weighed against the council’s pledge to plant more trees and the need to take action to mitigate climate change and it was concluded that the revised planting should be completed.”