Laurie Jones and Company Hair Designers Closing After 36 Years in Peterborough

Laurie Jones and her company Laurie Jones and Company Hair Designers are setting down the scissors and closing up shop, announcing her retirement after 36 years of business in downtown Peterborough.

Photo courtesy of Jonathan Jones.

The salon, located at 165 Sherbooke St., has always been Jones’s sanctuary.

“It’s comfortable here and it’s homey,” she said as she motioned to her space. “It’s always been my comfort zone.”

The salon doors opened in 1986 and offered brow waxing and various cut and colour hair services.

“It was a little scary, but my family was really supportive so I went for it and never looked back,” says Jones. “You kind of wonder if you can actually do it and I remember my dad saying ‘if you don’t ever try it, you’ll never know if you can,’ and with the support of everybody, I was able to.”

After being closed for nearly seven months during the COVID-19 pandemic, Jones says she got used to having some downtime.

“I sort of just went ‘you know what? I think I want to try out this retirement thing,’” she laughed. “I’m closing because I want to, not because I have to and that is a big thing to say.”

Photo by Felicia Massey.

Her nephew Jonathan Jones noted that his aunt took great pride in her business.

“Laurie prided herself on getting to know her clients and their families. Her shop was a family-friendly spot filled with laughter and good stories,” he said via e-mail.

As she wraps up her 47-year career, she reflects on the community connections she’s built along the way.

“I’ve had customers for years,” she explains. “In one family I’ve done five generations of hair which is pretty amazing.”

Laurie plans to work until the end of the week, saying she is looking forward to spending her new-found time off with her nephews and family.

“Everybody asks ‘what do you want for your retirement’ and I say people have been loyal to me for 45 years, what more could I want? You can’t get better than loyalty,” says Jones.

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Local Man Raises Over $2,100 With Haircut Towards Cancer Research

It may be the most rewarding haircut for Justin Armitage as he raised over $2,100 in support of Peterborough Regional Health Center Foundation for cancer care on Tuesday afternoon.

Armitage is a former coworker and a longtime friend of Couture Candy PTBO owner Lisa Couture. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The money is going towards Couture Candy PTBO’s fundraiser campaign with a goal of $10,000 (which has already been reached).

Armitage raised money as a tribute to a friend he lost to cancer roughly a decade ago.

“It was a hard thing to deal with,” he said. “This is just a great way to make me keep his memory alive and makes me feel like I'm contributing to something.”

@ptbo_canada Justin Armitage raised over $2,100 to help @couturecandyptbo and their $10,000 fundraiser for the Peterborough Regional Health Centre Foundation for Cancer Care! #ptbo #ptbocanada #cancer #haircut #fundraiser #fundraise #hair #couture #candy #cancerresearch ♬ Whatta Man (feat. En Vogue) - Salt 'N' Pepa

Armitage began his haircut by getting his ponytail cut off in front of Couture Candy PTBO. The rest was completed at men’s clothing store, barber, bar and café Providence.

He reached out to friends, family and other potential donors roughly a week and a half prior to the haircut.

“I'm sure my family and friends are tired of hearing from me over the last few days so there were a lot of texts and phone calls,” laughed Armitage. “But a lot of it was social media and run through that with peers, friends and whoever wanted to contribute.”

He plans to donate the ponytail to Locks of Love to help children suffering from medical hair loss by making a hairpiece from it.

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Crowdsourcing A Haircut In Peterborough On Social Media

When it comes to deciding on where to get my haircut, I rarely stray. With a great local barber located less than a block away in my neighbourhood, all it takes is a quick walk and I’m in and out. No harm, no foul.

Recently, I was faced with an unexpected dilemma: my barber had taken holidays! And I needed a haircut bad.

Naturally, I turned to Twitter. Social media in Peterborough is always buzzing, and I thought if I sent out a quick tweet asking for suggestions, I might get a few replies. I wasn’t expecting much, but boy was I ever surprised when my mentions feed started to blow up! Within minutes, I had so many responses with people sending me names and salons that I just had to check out in the city.

This told me a few things. 1) We have an awesome city filled with a ridiculous amount of selection, and 2) I need to get out a little more. These shops were all locally owned and operated.

Just a few of the responses I received: Bloodline Parlor, Tonic, Henry’s Barber Shop, Kouture Hair Studio, and Salon 5thirty1. The best part about these shops are that they’re located within walking distance of each other!

With so much choice, it came down to personal preference because from what I can tell, each shop offers a unique atmosphere and style. No two places are alike, and they are all obviously doing quite well, because let’s face it: a haircut is something everyone needs at some point or another. You can only avoid the scissors for so long!

In the end, I ended up taking @jacksoncreek's advice and took my hair to the great chaps at Henry’s Barbershop to deal with. It had such a welcoming down to earth feel and I would recommend them to anyone.

This was a great first step in experiencing the world of haircutting outside of my safety net. I know I can’t be the only guy in this boat and suggest you all get out and try someone new!

Peterborough is filled with a lot of talented hair dressers, so what are you waiting for?

—By PtboCanada's Aaron Elliott

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