The building at 1102 Kansas, among other things, has been a drive-in beer joint and a filling station. But for the last 10 years, Jared “Mouse” Chansler has been cutting hair there.
In 2012, Chansler opened Shortstop Barber Shop on the northeast corner of 11th and Kansas after purchasing the building from Dana Drake, who had operated the building as a beauty salon.
For Chansler, just getting the building ready to cut hair meant encountering much of the building’s past. In the process of construction, Chansler took out a drive-up window from the building’s beer joint days, as well as countless pop tabs from the foot and a half of dirt that had accumulated over the years.
The biggest transition in the shop, however, was Chansler himself.
Though being a barber was something he’d always thought about doing, it was not his original career path.
In 2010, Chansler was in school at Fort Hays State University to become a vocational agriculture teacher. However, he left school after his uncle passed away, and his mom suggested the career change. He enrolled at Old Town Barber College in Wichita two weeks later.
After completing school, Chansler moved back to Great Bend and began his career as a barber at Al & Mary’s Barbershop on the U.S. 281 Bypass. After a year there, he decided to strike out on his own, and bought the building he is currently at in October 2012.
Over the years, Chansler has added on to the original building in the hopes of bringing in more barbers, but the most notable additions are from his customers.
The shop is decorated with a variety of sports and military service memorabilia, most given to him by customers, and he jokes, “I always tell people if they don’t see their favorite team, just bring something in and I’ll probably put it on the wall.”
He said its the opportunities to talk to people on a daily basis that keeps him cutting hair everyday.
“You get to know people really well in a barber shop,” he said.
Along with Chansler, the only other barber currently in the shop is his brother-in-law Aaron Huskey.
The shop is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, with haircuts available on a walk-in basis only. The shop can be reached at 620-786-8974.
