WARSAW — A father and son have been running the Conley barbershop together for almost 20 years. As of last week, the duo has been joined by their grandson and nephew, making them a three-generation barbershop.

The Conley barbershop began in 1970 when John Conley Sr. opened his shop. Conley Sr. has cutting hair since then, and has no plans to retire anytime soon, “Barbers don’t retire, they die,” said Conley Sr.

His son, John Conley Jr., was not planning on becoming a barber. “I didn’t intend to,” Conley Jr. said. He was prepared to become a pilot in the Navy before he discovered he could not because he was colorblind. In 1997, John Conley Jr. joined his dad at the barbershop. One of the things Conley Jr. loves about is job is that, “I’ve sat here 20 years and never had the same day twice” he said.

The Conleys say their ability to connect with customers on a relational level is something they appreciate about their job. Conley Jr. remembers how one day a man walked in and the first thing he told him was that his wife of 50 years had recently passed away. “We just love what we do, it’s a passion” said Conley Jr.

As of just last week, Ethyn Bradley joined his grandfather and his uncle at the barbershop. Like his uncle, this was not something Bradley planned on doing. Bradley was a running back for the football team at Warsaw High School where he graduated in 2015. Bradley interned at the barbershop in high school and had hung around the shop for years. During his internship, Bradley was able to interact with the regulars who come in.

Bradley is looking forward to joining his uncle and grandfather in the family business. He’s just completed nine months of training in Indianapolis to begin this new endeavor. Bradley is excited to become the third generation of this barbershop. “There’s always something different happening,” he said.

This multi-generation shop has seen many multi-generation customers. Over the years they’ve seen many of their customers return and children of those customers come into their barbershop.

The three are looking forward to ushering in a new era of the barbershop as Bradley begins his career there.