(Photo above of Martin "Marty" Watson by Molly Adams/Lawrence Times)
LAWRENCE -There is more to getting a haircut than having one’s hair clipped and styled. At its core, it’s about relationships — moments of connection built over time.
That sense of connection is why some people, like Lee Reliford, regularly make the two-hour drive from Parsons to Lawrence just to sit in a chair at Watson’s Barbershop. While the quality of the haircut matters, it’s not the sole reason customers are willing to travel that far. For many, it’s the welcoming atmosphere and the experienced barbers. But even more, it’s the way community and family history remain intertwined with the present.
Marty Watson, owner of Watson’s Barbershop, understands that connection deeply. A native of Parsons and a 2002 graduate of Parsons High School, Watson says every barbershop has its own personality.
“You have to find the barbershop that fits you, where you can just go and be yourself. People accept you for who you are. Every barbershop is different. The majority you just get to go and hear what’s going on in the community. It all comes in. It’s a one stop shop,” he said. “As a barber you become a part of people’s family, because you get to see the growth of young men and women.”
Watson’s path into barbering began early. Growing up in Parsons, options were limited.
“When I was growing up (in Parsons) we only had one barbershop there, Sportsman’s Barbershop. They didn’t really cater to everybody though, so I picked it up in the eighth grade. I started messing up my friends,” he said, laughing. “By the time I got through high school, I was cutting everybody’s hair — teachers, classmates, friends, family, everybody around Parsons.”
Those years were shaped not only by opportunity, but by community support. Watson credits the people around him for helping him persevere after the devastating loss of his father his freshman year. It was that support that helped him fulfill everything he wanted to do.
Coaches like Rob Barcus and the late Riley Cartwright played a key role in that support system.
“Those two coaches always talked good to me and prayed with me in times when I was down and hurt.”
Another influential figure was Lou Martino, whom Watson credits with helping him take the next step.
“I would say my biggest fan and teacher was Lou Martino. He was the one who showed me how to get to the barber school. He was the first one to believe in me and tell me, ‘You can do this, man. This is you.’ I had the charisma.”
Watson attended Wichita Old Town Barber Beauty College, where he earned his license, and stayed in Wichita for a year working at Franklin’s Barbershop — one of the city’s longest-tenured shops. Their professionalism, business skills and community focus became greatly ingrained in him through their mentorship.
“Then I moved to Lawrence, Kansas to be with my sister and help her out with her life and child. Everything just started rolling.”
When he arrived in Lawrence, Watson again leaned on mentorship, seeking advice from elders who were willing to invest in him without expecting anything in return. He recalls a pivotal opportunity early in his career.
“When I got here, the mayor of Lawrence, Mike Amyx, owned a barbershop downtown. He gave me the opportunity to work with him when I got here and within 9 to 10 months, he gave me my own barbershop. He said, ‘Son, you can do way more things than working for me. You can work for yourself and do this on your own.’ Him and Mrs. Joda (owner of Joda and Friends salon) gave me a shot. I didn’t have to go to a bank and get a loan. They just saw my work ethic. That is how I got started.”
At just 19 or 20-years-old, opening his own shop was a major step, but Watson says his upbringing prepared him. His father owned Watson Cleaners in Parsons, giving him an early view of business and community relationships. His grandfather, a pastor, also influenced his ability to communicate, which is basically what barbering is, he said.
He started small and now has six people working for him and just graduated to a new shop in a local Walmart.
(Photo by Molly Adams/Lawrence Times : Watson's Barber Shop employs six barbers to manage all its new and repeat customers. )
“It’s been very prosperous for everybody. I’m just blessed to be in a situation, be in a community that supports and likes the work that I do. The types of services I do,” he said. “I became the household name for a barbershop in Lawrence, Kansas for the past 20 years.”
Watson attributes much of that longevity to his commitment to continued learning. Besides seminars he likes to visit other barber shops, watch them cut and see how they do things. He will then take what he has learned back to his own shop.
“Every year there is a new haircut or trend going, so I have to stay on top of my game," he said.
Today, Watson is barbering the third generation of families in Lawrence — a testament to the trust he’s built over time.
Over the years, his chair has also been occupied by some notable names. Watson has cut the hair of numerous Jayhawks and other athletes.
“I have to say my most celebrity client that I was in awe of, was Mr. Gale Sayers, himself. That was somebody my dad and everybody talked about forever. He became a legend,” he said.
He’s also worked with basketball stars like Mario Chalmers and Wayne Simien during their time at the University of Kansas, along with track and baseball athletes, Olympians, and others.
“I’ve been blessed to touch a lot of people who became famous, but I knew them before they became famous,” he said. “That is my claim to fame. I knew some of them when they were snot-nosed kids trying to find their way like everybody else.”
Watson has often used those connections to give back, bringing well-known figures to Parsons for youth camps, autograph signings, and community events. He has also taken Parsons youth to games in Lawrence, working alongside community leaders like Lee Reliford and Roger Thompson.
“I do it just to give them that vision that Parsons is not your ending stage. It’s your steppingstone,” he said. “But that was my really big thing being from Parsons, is I stand on being from Parsons. In all my stories and interviews, I tell them I am from Southeast Kansas, a small town called Parsons, where some of the best people in the world come from.”
His message to graduates and students reflects those roots.
“For all the graduates coming up, I would tell them, never forget where you come from and never forget the morals that were set coming from a small community,” Watson said. “The world is big and it’s totally different, but the morals that are set coming from a small town are way better than what the world has to offer you when you jump out there. Stay true to who you are, and what you were taught — the respect, the responsibility, the hard work.”
He believes rural youth often develop resilience early, learning to work harder for what they want, as they have less opportunities and amenities than city youth.
For those still in school, Watson emphasizes discipline and consistency, that will translate to diligently practicing one’s craft in adulthood.
“You’ve got to get good at it. You have to be consistent. That’s what sustains longevity and what has kept me in business for the last 20 years,” he said.
“Whatever you like to do in your spare time, make that your wholehearted thing. Do it two hours a day no matter what. That will teach you repetition and consistency and after that it’s not work anymore. It’s a part of you and you can do it with your eyes closed and better than anybody and people will pay for that.”
“You have to develop yourself and build a craft that you love and then eventually you are doing something for the rest of your life that is not considered work, because you love it and you’re good at it,” he said.
And above all, Watson encourages young people to take chances.
“Be a chance taker. Dare to be different and do something different that everybody else isn’t doing and don’t be scared to seize the moment and take the opportunity when it comes. Opportunities come all the time.”
