A SMALL brightly coloured barber’s pole announces Barber Mario on William St, Northbridge.
The narrow barber’s shop and adjoining tailor’s premises have been in business opposite the Brass Monkey for more than 30 years.
But the gentrification of the area has led to rising rents - to the point where a $10 barber seems out of place among the clubs and bars.
Mario Moferdin works on his own in the barber shop. His old friend Joe and a young traveller helps out, but it’s basically a one-man business.
“There are very few traditional barber shops and tailors left in Australia” explains Mr Moferdin.
“With me you get real service. You go to the pub now and they ask you what do you want, I ask what would you like, that’s real service” he laughs.
The tailor has recently fallen ill and there’s a hand written “for lease” sign stuck up in the window.
“My priority is to lease the tailor’s shop now, I can’t survive paying all the rent myself,” he said.
Mr Moferdin claims the rent on his William St shop has jumped by more than 30 per cent over the past year.
