It’s been a while since a speakeasy opened on West Colfax. Now over a century removed from the early days of Prohibition, there’s a new clip-joint of the rather literal kind. A barber shop, that is, and like the speakeasy days upon which it draws inspiration, also a place for like-minded folks to gather.
Or such is the plan of Denver artist and entrepreneur Meredith “Phee” Avery, who has just opened her 1920s-inspired speakeasy barber shop called The Urban Hideout in Lakewood. The shop carries with it the slogan “Barbershop. Blues. Community.” and follows through on all three, offering up a black-leather-and-chrome experience replete with music and an old-fashioned commitment to culture, community and service. And now Avery is relying on that selfsame community to help keep the shop’s dreams alive. Because there have been challenges, and much like the rum-running days of yore, the government is sort of the problem — specifically, the Small Business Administration and its record-long closure during the shutdown.
“I’d started the loan paperwork back in July,” Avery says. “The SBA guy I was talking to was assuring me that everything was on track, that I was already approved and we’d be able to get some of that startup funding by October. So we could open in November, no problem, and be ready for the holidays. So I went ahead and signed the lease, and now we’re locked in…and then the government shut down.”…