More than a barbershop at Freshly Faded with Derrick Banks
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Written by James Quinn
The African Americans of North Park, San Diego only make up 3% of the population. As such, there aren’t many businesses or establishments that are specifically catered towards them. However, Derrick Banks has changed that with his own barbershop, Freshly Faded. One might think they know what to expect in a place called Freshly Faded, but Mr. Banks wanted to exceed everyone’s expectations with good vibes, entertaining events, intellectual conversations, and bringing attention to the importance of mental health in the African American male community.
Derrick Banks established his barbershop in 2016 after completing barber college where he was trained on hairstyle techniques, barber work ethics, and proper sanitation to receive his barbering license from the state.
Derrick Banks was born and raised in North Park, San Diego and wanted to create a different experience for Black youth that wasn’t present in barbershops before his. Banks criticized most barbers from his own experiences growing up in North Park, stating they weren’t particularly family-friendly, weren’t conscious of giving their barbers reasonable hours for work, and even in some instances, their bodily hygiene wasn’t too great. Giving the Black community a warm and loving experience, while also giving barbers a reasonable work/life balance are important factors for the business he has created.
Freshly Faded operates from Tuesdays to Saturdays with hours from 7:30 A.M. to 2 P.M. Customers make appointments through an online scheduling system to avoid long waits that men normally must endure to get haircuts. Banks does the online marketing for Freshly Faded and has breaks already locked in for his barbers.
Derrick Banks not only wanted to establish a cool and more aesthetically pleasing barbershop for the youth, but he also wanted to spread mental health awareness for men throughout his community. “For a lot of people the barbershop is like therapy for them, and a lot of people have been missing that therapy during the pandemic,” said Mr. Banks when asked about the impact of his shop. Freshly Faded also has noon mental check-in times or periods of time for employees and youth to express what they’re grateful for. Mr. Banks calls these gratitude check-ins, and their purpose is to evaluate how everyone is feeling at the moment and call them to appreciate the time they have. There are also men’s meetings for the youth to go further in-depth about growing up and making a positive impact.
Freshly Faded also provides entertainment and the arts so the youth can be exposed to new things. Entertainment includes open-mic comedy, poetry readings, and vegan food events to further expose young males to a culture they might not see often.
When asked about what he has learned from his 10 years as a barber, Mr. Banks explains that he often learned a lot from common strangers. “It’s almost like being a taxi-driver,” he stated. “You meet all of these different people, hear their stories, and learn so much about different parts of the world through conversations.” The Black barbershop has been a staple in African American culture for a long time. Barbershops, along with churches, used to be the only two spots where former slaves could speak freely and express themselves amongst each other. Not only that, but many people didn’t want to be barbers, and thus a lot of African Americans were pushed to do the job. Urban barbershops have also been a staple for the Black economy as well, according to Mr. Banks, as it is the one business that keeps thriving throughout the changing times and makes more services accessible for the Black community.
In his experience, Mr. Banks also finds it important to be a representative of the Black experience and of Black hair for those that are outside of the community. Freshly Faded is one of the many barbershops that is listed for adoptive families to bring their Black children in to not only get their haircut, but to gain a positive African American experience. Mr. Banks tells us of an experience he had with a white mother who called her son’s hair “crazy”, but one of his customers corrected her on how to properly speak about Black hair.
Another service that Derrick Banks provides can be seen on the Freshly Faded website in the form of blog posts. Mr. Banks started blogging for his business to establish a language for barbers and customers to discuss Black hair. Not only does Mr. Banks write about the many different hairstyles and fades, but he also discusses some of his favorite styles from pop culture, mental health, and fatherhood. Haircuts from Marvel’s Black Panther Movie and Barbers are Psychologists are a couple of the many interesting topics Mr. Banks covers on his blog. Mr. Banks also expresses some of his favorite hairstyles and artists, most notably Ruth E. Carter who did the styling for Black Panther and Coming 2 America.
When asked about the future of Freshly Faded and where he might want to go as far as his career is concerned, Derrick Banks said that staying in North Park, San Diego would be best. “I thought about franchising and opening up other shops around the city,” said Banks. “But I didn’t want to lose the personal touch that Freshly Faded has developed in the community.” Derrick Banks believes that it’s not the fresh haircuts or sharp fades that make his business so special, it’s the feeling and good vibes that people receive when they visit his shop.
“I hype people up. I want them to feel good about their haircuts and to be able to express how Freshly Faded made them feel,” Banks said.
For information, please check out Derrick Bank’s shop at his website and his instagram for more clean cuts and good vibes.
