University of Kansas - Jayhawker Yearbook (Lawrence, KS)

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artin Marty Wat- son, owner ofWat- son's Barbershop, hovers about his storefront shop chatting with customers as he styles a man's hair, clip- pers buzzing. Watson never seems to touch the ground, despite the fact that he's been standing all day. Watson, 24, jokes back and forth with a steady stream of custom- ers flowing in and out the door. Business for him is as good as usual, something he attributed mainly to ,ww quality work and profes- J' sionalism. Ifl sit anybody down I know they're coming back, Marty said. With- in 15 minutes you get good conversation, a quality cut and your time -- my full attention. Watson, also the Lawrence 2008 NAACP Minority Businessman ofthe Year, said he has somewhat of a monopoly in Lawrence. Watson says only two licensed black barbers reside in Lawrence: him and his employee Tim Nellie' Nelson. Marty serves about 15 to 20 customers a day, ranging from KU athletes O8 - O9 l JAYHAWKER LOCAL BARB ER WINS BUSI NESSMAN AWARD and coaches to business professionals. No matter who the customer is, Marty's gift ofgab will put them at ease, Kasey Cullors, Wichita senior and Marty's roommate, said. Marty is the same person at home as he is at work. uMarty is probably the youngest old person I know,', Cullors said. You think this person has got to be SO. Equally important to some patrons is Marty's role as a counselor. Earle Mosley, a former KU football coach, said most coaches and players do not live a normal life. Coming to Marty's provides him and his players a comfortable place to relax, often with talk about sports, women, politics and the occasional gossip. L'Everybody needs somebody to talk to, someone they trustf Mosley said. He also said that the players can find some normalcy. Martyas outgoing personality and eagerness to get to know people, is what Camellia Watson, his mother, said made him a special child. As a child she said he could talk to anyone. His sister, Kendra Watson, 30, watched as he started up his Hrst business, Watson's Back-Porch Barbershopf, as an eighth grader in Parsons, Kan. There, Kendra said she saw Marty's personality and haircutting skills culminate. Every day after school, friends, family, teachers and community members lined their backyard for Watsonis S2 haircuts. People came from across southeast Kansas for haircuts. People still ask for him, Kendra said. People come all the way from the Pittsburg area because they remember he cut hair. His brother, Ronald Watson, jr., 27, said Marty was always the most creative one in the family. He said when he and Marty weren,t playing base- ball or basketball or wrestling each other in a heated exchange, Watson would always draw designs for his customer's hair. He has always seemed to be his own free spiritf' Ronald, jr., said. He kind of made his own path ofhow to do thingsf' Camellia said her husbands death in 2000 devastat- ed Marty. He was so distraught, his grandmother bought him a car, just to keep him motivated to graduate from high school. She said Marty began working harder than usual to compensate for his dad not being around. He took up a job at a local printing press. Suddenly, Marty felt like the familyis provider, the man of the house. His brother and sister were already in college. His mother was in a state of shock. Three weeks after graduating from Parsons High in May 2002, Marty moved to Wichita to attend Old Town Barber and Beauty College. Only nine weeks later, Marty graduated from the barber school as the youngest licensed barber in Wichita at 19. Marty moved to Lawrence in 2004 and worked as a barber in several shops. He opened his own shop in 2005. i'When he starts something he'll Hnish it, Camellia said. And he Hnished it in a hurry. ', Patrons say Marty,s get-it-done business style as well as his fun-loving attitude and the overall friendly atmo- sphere at Watson,s Barbershop, keep them coming back. Marty said he has only been able to do this by getting their respect, not just their money. 'fThey don't have to choose me, Marty said. The fact that they do is an accomplishment.

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