Home & Style

2009 Rating the Suburbs - Rocky River

Sean Gormley, 35
owner of the Irish Barber

by Beth Stallings, Lynne Thompson, Andy Netzel, Jim Vickers, Colleen Smitek, Francis X. Bova III, Matt Beargie, Erick Trickey, Kim Schneider, Jennifer Bowen, Beth Troy, Mike Montgomery, Chuck Bowen, Laura Adiletta, Jason Lloyd, Jennifer Gonzalez, Ilana Yerg | May. 31, 2009 | 4:00 AM

- When I immigrated to this country, I was living in upstate New York in a town called Elmira, and I found out I had second cousins who lived here. I came down to visit for a weekend to meet them, and I ended up staying a week. I liked it so much I moved here the following summer in 1995.

- Barbers have
something for everyone;people come in and say, “Hey, do you know a plumber or an electricity guy?”

- Rocky River is a very compact city, I don’t think you can add much more for a town its size; it has the ice skating rink, it has the rec center, the pool, a couple nice parks — everything you’d need.

- There's a large Irish contingent in Rocky River, but the shop brings in people of all nationalities because they all want to experience a little taste of Ireland.

- The Irish Barber is kind of a melting pot.
 
- Rocky River is built on small businesses, and I get a lot of support from the people of the city. They call and write letters of support for my business to grow. We’re going to open up a place next door called the Corner Pub where you can have a drink.

- If you're going
to wait, you might as well have a pint of Guinness.

- A customer
made the mural for the pub. He went to St. Ignatius High School. I’ve been cutting his hair since he was a kid.

Get the Latest in Your Inbox

Whether you're looking for daily news bites, the latest bites or bite-sized adventures, the Cleveland Magazine Daily newsletter experiences have something for everyone.