Rudy's Barbershop Brings Hip Haircuts to Downtown Redmond

The routine trip to the barbershop just got a bit more hip in downtown Redmond.

Rudy's Barbershop, a Seattle-based hair styling company, opened its 16th location on Cleveland Street last month, and lead stylist Sarah Kowalick said the new shop has already begun to draw in a steady stream of clients—some of whom have patronized other Rudy's locations and others who are band new to the barbershop but impressed by its "funky and cool atmosphere."

Kowalick, who is fully aware that her last name looks somewhat similar to the word for a common hair problem, said the Redmond shop is Rudy's first new location in five years or so. The company primarily owns stores in the city of Seattle, along with a handful of locations in Portland, Los Angeles and New York City.

Kowalick said Rudy's was drawn to Redmond in part because of the residential and commercial growth happening downtown, as well as the fact that many Rudy's clients at the Bellevue and Seattle locations live or work in Redmond. The barbershop opened about the same time last month as its next-door neighbor, Top Pot Doughnuts.

"This area is being really built up," Kowalick said. "It's kind of exciting to see where it's going to go."

At the same time, Kowalick said the new shop is making an effort to channel some of the tech-iness that has formed a key part of Redmond's identity since the 1980s. A "coming soon" sign announcing Rudy's arrival featured a so-retro-it-might-be-cool vintage photo of Bill Gates, and the shop's main interior decoration is an art piece with PacMan-like "space invaders" and a quote from Albert Einstein.

Rudy's is located at 16095 Cleveland St. and serves men, women and children on on a walk-in basis. Store hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

For more information, call 425-497-3858 or visit rudysbarbershop.com.