David Hardin Jr.'s Heavy Weight Cuts barbershop is open every day in Detroit

Scott Talley, Detroit Free Press
Updated ·4 min read
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Wayne Strong is the definition of a hardworking Detroiter.

On a typical day, it is not uncommon for Strong to work at not one, but two Detroit restaurants — Townhouse and Seva.

However, after learning about the death of an uncle in November, Strong suddenly had more added to his plate. The New Jersey native who has called Detroit home for 42 years found himself in desperate need of a haircut for his uncle’s funeral services. And the only way he could squeeze a haircut into his work schedule was during a slim window of time between the late morning and early afternoon hours on a Monday, which is a day most Detroit barbershops are closed.

"Dave is a blessing to the neighborhood," said Wayne Strong, as he sat in the barber chair of David Hardin Jr. on Nov. 13, 2023. Strong, who works at two Detroit restaurants, came to Hardin that morning in desperate need of a haircut that would fit into his work schedule and allow him to be properly groomed the next day for his uncle's funeral.
"Dave is a blessing to the neighborhood," said Wayne Strong, as he sat in the barber chair of David Hardin Jr. on Nov. 13, 2023. Strong, who works at two Detroit restaurants, came to Hardin that morning in desperate need of a haircut that would fit into his work schedule and allow him to be properly groomed the next day for his uncle's funeral.

Strong would literally find an answer to a prayer right off the corner of Van Dyke and Kercheval. There, a two-story, brick storefront houses Heavy Weight Cuts, 8008 Kercheval, a barbershop in Detroit’s West Village neighborhood operated by David Hardin Jr.

“Dave is a blessing to the neighborhood,” the 50-year-old Strong said as he sat in Hardin’s barber’s chair at 10:28 a.m. Monday, Nov. 13 — the day before his uncle’s funeral. “For people who don’t have transportation, Dave is in the neighborhood. And when you get here, it’s clean and safe. Dave is a good host, too; he’s knowledgeable and you can come here and get some stuff off your chest. I didn’t know what I was going to do if he wasn’t open, so I appreciate Dave for being here.”

The business card that Strong received after he stepped out of Hardin’s chair with a neat Mohawk cut summed up Hardin’s availability to the entire neighborhood in four short lines: In clear black type, the card notes that Hardin’s shop is open seven days a week, including holidays.

And throughout the holiday season, Hardin expects to serve another role for the neighborhood.

"This ain't the typical barbershop," says David Hardin Jr., who operates Heavy Weight Cuts in Detroit's West Village. Hardin opens his doors seven days a week, including holidays.
"This ain't the typical barbershop," says David Hardin Jr., who operates Heavy Weight Cuts in Detroit's West Village. Hardin opens his doors seven days a week, including holidays.

“During the holidays, someone might say to a family member or friend, ‘I’m going to get my hair cut.’ Then the other person will say: ‘Oh yeah, I’ll meet you up there and I’ll bring the kids.’ And then they meet up here and sit, and chop it up,” explained Hardin, who is open from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays; and from noon until 4 p.m. on Sundays and holidays. “But honestly, for me, it’s no different. I treat the holidays like a regular day. So, it’s no different until the people come in and start talking about the holidays and then it becomes kind of festive.

“The customers help to pull me back into the spirit of the holidays.”

Just as Hardin relies on his customers to get him into the holiday spirit, the 1992 honors graduate of Finney High School takes pride in providing his customers with an “inviting and cool” space, where they can feel comfortable bringing “moms, grandma, granddad” and more for fellowship — without profanity — to go along with the expert barber skills that Harden has been perfecting since the age of 12.

On Nov. 13, Hardin cut hair while wearing a navy blue and white striped smock with a “Black Lives Matter” button attached, gray sweatpants, dark sneakers and a Detroit Red Wings cap. Two days earlier, Hardin was decked out in University of Michigan gear to show his support for the Wolverines football team and head coach Jim Harbaugh. Hardin also makes a statement by what he posts on the walls of his barbershop. A close examination of those walls — bearing images representing Detroit’s professional sports teams, along with community resource information and awards Hardin has received for his service to the neighborhood and city — reveals a man with concerns that go far beyond the grooming needs of his customers.

The walls inside Heavy Weight Cuts in Detroit's West Village speak to David Hardin Jr.'s commitment to his neighborhood from a holistic standpoint, which includes providing community resource information to his customers.
The walls inside Heavy Weight Cuts in Detroit's West Village speak to David Hardin Jr.'s commitment to his neighborhood from a holistic standpoint, which includes providing community resource information to his customers.

“This ain’t the typical barbershop as you can tell, and I strive to be that way; I invite you into my world,” explained Hardin, who has been known to make his 23-year-old shop available for workshops that empower and enrich residents of the neighborhood that borders Detroit’s Islandview neighborhood. “My thing in the barbershop is that we’re here to do what we can to help others. If you have information and knowledge, what good does it do to keep it to yourself? What good is having knowledge if you can’t share it? What good is having riches if you can’t share them?

“That’s how I feel.”

Scott Talley is a native Detroiter, a proud product of Detroit Public Schools and lifelong lover of Detroit culture in all of its diverse forms. In his second tour with the Free Press, which he grew up reading as a child, he is excited and humbled to cover the city’s neighborhoods and the many interesting people who define its various communities. Contact him at: stalley@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @STalleyfreep. Read more of Scott's stories at www.freep.com/mosaic/detroit-is/. Please help us grow great community-focused journalism by becoming a subscriber

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: David Hardin Jr.'s Heavy Weight Cuts barbershop open every day