Podcast Transcription

David G.: Okay, bebe.

Melina: Just you and me.

David G.: So, what are we…

Melina: I don’t know what we’re talking about. Like, can I go ahead and just start talking? All right. Well, I do have some ideas of things…

Intro: Welcome to “Flippin’ Off,” a purpose-driven podcast about flipping houses and making a difference. Hey, did you know that my dad and I have a song? Did you know that?

David B.: I didn’t know that. Sing it.

Melina: It’s called You’ve Got a Friend. Do you know that song?

David B.: You got a friend in me?

Melina: Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you got to do is call.

David G.: So…what’s his name?

Melina: JT, James Taylor.

David G.: Was that James Taylor?

Melina: Yeah. Yeah. I feel like that’s when you told me James Taylor came onto my mom.

David G.: It could be. Yeah. Yeah, that was pretty funny.

Melina: Didn’t you say that happened? Weren’t you guys, like, in Vegas?

David G.: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, her and Linda Colvin.

Melina: Oh, okay.

David G.: The two of them. We went in a coffee shop. It was real late, I think, like 3 in the morning or something to look for water. So, anyway, we went in this coffee shop and James Taylor came in and sat down across from us and either your mom or Linda asked him if they can have his autograph. And he says, “Yeah, if you give me yours and your phone number.” So they said, “Okay.” So, yeah, it was kinda funny.

Melina: So you just sat back and were, like, “Oh, well. Whatever.”

David G.: Yeah, whatever.

Melina: That’s so funny. All right. Well, so I think, you know, that the longer I get in my entrepreneur journey, you know, my journey as a business owner, the more I recognize how much like you I am and how much I actually learned from you and didn’t really know. You know, they say…there’s this saying about…how does it go? Kids catch more than they learn or something like they, you know, we catch things. So it’s not so much about what we say, more about what we do and how we are, and who we are, and how we show up, I think, as parents, as adults around our children. And we catch things, and we don’t really even know we’re catching it. And so I think now about, you know, as long…my whole life, you’ve been self-employed. You’ve, like, as far as…you know, I don’t ever remember you working for anybody except for yourself.

David G.: That’s true.

Melina: And you’re now 82. And so, like, how…I mean, so I’m 51. I’ll be 52 here. So at least for the last 50 years, you have been self-employed, right?

David G.: Mm-hmm.

Melina: Yeah. So…

David G.: Or more.

Melina: Well, I know it’s been at least that. So, like, how many careers have you had, dad?

David G.: Well…

Melina: Or businesses. How about that?

David G.: Two different types of businesses altogether. I’ve had, you know, more than two businesses but two types. I mean, I was in the hair business for well over 30 years.

Melina: Thirty years.

David G.: And in the RV business over 30 years, both of them.

Melina: That’s right.

David B.: Where did you start before you got into hair? Like, what was your hustle? Like, didn’t you, like, didn’t you have just, like, regular 9 to 5s, too, for a little bit?

David G.: Well, at one point in time, I worked at the Ford dealership painting cars and yeah, that was kind of fun.

Melina: How old were you when you went to barber school? Do you remember? Like, how old were you?

David G.: I was about 20, 21.

Melina: Twenty or 21.

David G.: Right in there.

Melina: And then you and your brother…

David G.: Well, my brother was already in the barber business.

Melina: Oh. So, is that why you got in it?

David G.: That’s why I went in it. And I was going to college, and I wanted to have a part-time job and cutting hair was a really good part-time job. And that was why I went into it to start with, and so I could make a living, you know. And that’s what I did.

Melina: And so then at some point…and that was in Pasadena, right?

David G.: Yes. Yeah.

Melina: You were first working in Pasadena, right? So you were raised in Riverside and then you moved to Pasadena.

David G.: Yes.

Melina: And you were working at a barbershop with my uncle, Dan.

David G.: Right. That was actually in Arcadia.

Melina: Oh, in Arcadia. Okay. Okay. And then so at some point, you decided to open up your own barbershop.

David G.: That was actually in Riverside.

Melina: Yeah. So, can you talk about that? Like, did you do that all? Was that just you, or did uncle Dan…was he involved in that, or it was just you, or what gave you the idea? Do you remember it?

David G.: Well, I wanted to make a living, and it made sense to be my own boss, you know, cutting hair. I thought, “Yeah, I wouldn’t work for somebody else doing that.” Anyway, I went to work… Yeah, I went…I don’t even remember how it went.

Melina: Because originally you were in downtown, downtown Riverside.

David G.: Well, yeah. There was a clothing store downtown. And…well, before that, my brother, Dan, had opened a shop in Riverside Plaza on Merrill Street. And there was a restaurant there called The Hawaiian or something like that. Anyway, he opened up the barbershop right behind it in an office building, and we were there for a while. And then my brother went to work for Joe Vatone selling speed equipment for Volkswagens in the street shops, park spaces. And at that time, then I went to work cutting hair in Newport. We were living in Pasadena and Riverside, but I was cutting hair in Newport at Fashion Island.

Melina: I did not know that. You were, like, the original commuter.

David G.: Pete Myers. What?

Melina: He’s telling me…

David B.: She’s gotta eat the mic.

Melina: I have to talk in the mic.

David G.: Yeah. Remember, you do it in the studio.

Melina: I know. I know. I know.

David B.: You can’t sit back like that.

Melina: It’s hard to…yeah, okay, okay. Don’t worry about it.

David G.: Yeah. It was in…

Melina: At Fashion Island.

David G.: In Fashion Island and Pete Myers opened up a shop there. And I went to work for Pete at that shop and then Pete opened up another shop in…the hell was it? God, I can’t remember the names of the towns.

Melina: Oh, it’s all right. It’s interesting to me that at some point, so you were working for somebody cutting hair, and then at some point, you decided that you were gonna not work for somebody else. You were gonna open up and do your own thing.

David G.: Right.

Melina: And so what I remember, I don’t know if this is right, but you were…one of your first…I don’t know if this was your actual first gig, but probably the one that made you, I’m guessing, is when you opened up the barbershop in the men’s clothing store.

David G.: In The Mark Stevens Shop.

Melina: It was a store called The Mark Stevens Shop, and it was a men’s clothing store, kind of …

David G.: A high-end.

Melina: High-end, yeah, men’s clothing store.

David G.: Very nice.

Melina: Yeah. I can remember the smell of that shop when I would walk in. It smelled like leather and wool and, just, you know, everything nice.

David G.: Yeah, it was.

Melina: Right?

David G.: Everything was very high-end.

Melina: Yeah. And right in the middle of it, there was these steps that you’d go up. And inside, you’d walk up these steps, and that’s where the barbershop was.

David G.: No, that was in the plaza.

Melina: That was the one in the plaza. That’s what I remember.

David G.: Yeah, right. Right. You don’t remember downtown?

Melina: I don’t remember downtown. I must have been too young.

David G.: Okay. Well, downtown was kinda neat because there was no enclosure or nothing. I made it all and took a bunch of shingles and made an enclosure out of the shingles, and the outside-type shingles, you know.

Melina: Inside the shop?

David G.: Yeah, inside the store.

Melina: So far ahead of his time. That would be very in now.

David B.: Sure.

David G.: It was pretty neat-looking. Most people came in the back door which came off the alley and which was…there was a parking lot back there for The Mark Stevens Shop. And come up from the back door, up this long hall into The Mark Stevens Shop. And my shop was along the way.

Melina: I think I remember, like, I barely remember. I must have been very young when that was…

David G.: It was real different looking, you know.

Melina: Yeah. Yeah. So, you moved to the Riverside Plaza because The Mark Stevens Shop moved to the plaza.

David G.: Correct.

Melina: Okay. And so I remember it was a really big deal having that shop. It was really cool. It was up high, right? And it was up, like, up on a stage?

David G.: Yes, it was. Yeah, it was elevated. It was all built for my shop.

Melina: It was so cool.

David G.: Yeah, it really was. Yeah, because the guy that ran the plaza at that time, he…I talked to him about it, and he had told me…he says, “I want you in The Mark Stevens Shop.” He says, “If you’re not gonna be in the shop, I don’t want the shop in the plaza.” Well, I didn’t tell that to Steve and Mark because, Jesus, that would have been a real insult, you know. But that’s what Fred told me. He says, “It’s the way I want it.” He says, “Because you’re gonna be a bigger draw than those guys. So they really need your draw.”

Melina: What do you think it was about your draw? What do you think it was about you that drew people?

David G.: Just good, different people, you know. I don’t know.

Melina: Do you wanna give us …

David G.: I liked all the people.

Melina: Yeah. It’s because you, you know, dad, you had a really interesting clientele. You did everybody’s hair.

David G.: Yeah, I did.

Melina: And it was a real barbershop. It was a legit barbershop. In other words, it wasn’t, you know, it was a legit barbershop where he barbered.

David G.: Oh, yeah.

Melina: And you had men…and did you have female barbers at that shop?

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: Yeah. So, I mean, imagine, this wasn’t…

David G.: In downtown.

Melina: In downtown.

David G.: Yeah, I had a manicurist downtown which was unheard of. And, yeah, when I first opened up in downtown, I used to tell everybody I was booked, and I actually wasn’t. Shit, I didn’t have anything going on at first. And I’d be sitting there twiddling my thumbs, tell people I couldn’t go because I was too busy. But the deal was that I didn’t wanna appear like I couldn’t have enough customers. I wanted to look like I was busy, and it worked. It worked.

Melina: Scarcity selling at its finest.

David G.: It was… just told them, “No, I can’t do you. Maybe next week,” you know. And shit, I didn’t even have money for dinner, seriously.

Melina: See what’s pumping through our blood? See what’s happening through us? Now he never told me that. Remember how I told you we’d catch more.

David G.: Yeah, that was true, yeah.

Melina: We don’t even know, right? Isn’t that interesting? That’s funny.

David G.: Yeah, true.

Melina: And so at some point, by the time you got into the Riverside Plaza, then you had a real business and you had other barbers.

David G.: Yeah. Actually, I had a girl and a guy at that time when we moved into the plaza.

Melina: That’s so funny to think about. Female barber in the ’60s.

David G.: Well, the newspaper did a big article on that.

Melina: Really?

David G.: Yeah. That really put us over the top, was when the newspaper did an article on that.

Melina: Wow.

David B.: Just talking about the shop downtown?

David G.: Correct. Yeah. And about…because it was really unusual, you know…

Melina: To have a female barber. Nobody had…there wasn’t women that worked in…I mean, you have to realize…I know maybe that’s not understandable at this point in time in our lives. But when I listen to my dad, I realize so much of, like, my thought process and the way I view the world is the way he’s viewed the world. But he didn’t tell me, “This is how you view the world.”

David B.: Yeah, he just did.

Melina: He just lived it and so…

David B.: What was racism like then, pop?

David G.: I never really thought about it, truthfully. I mean, it really wasn’t a part of my life.

David B.: Yeah. Just ignored it?

David G.: I just never thought about it. I guess ignored it but not consciously.

David B.: It wasn’t relevant around you?

David G.: No. Uh-uh.

David B.: You think that’s just Riverside?

David G.: I think it was just me. I was probably too dumb to really realize what was going on around me, you know, and I just…because I didn’t feel it. So why would anybody else? You know, it’s kind of what it was, actually.

Melina: That’s just never been a conversation.

David G.: No, it wasn’t. That was just not something…you know.

Christian: Hi, this is Christian Rios. As many of you know, I’ve been a member of New Wealth Advisors Club for over 7 years and got started when I was 17 years old with absolutely no real estate experience. One of the biggest lessons I have learned from being in the industry is the need for authentic relationships. If you’re looking for an actual team locally in Southern California with all the resources needed to close deals, register for one of our free workshops by visiting www.joinnwac.com. Thanks for listening to the Flippin’ Off Podcast.

David B.: So you cut black people’s hair back then?

David G.: Yeah, some, not worth a shit. I’d tell them starting out, “I’m not any good at doing black hair,” you know. “I mean, I’m more than happy to do it, but I’m not good at it,” you know.

Melina: Because it is different. Yeah, totally.

David B.: It is very different.

Melina: Yeah.

David B.: Yeah, it is. That’s cool.

Melina: That’s funny.

David G.: So they’d either…yeah…

Melina: Be okay with it?

David G.: Yeah, or not.

Melina: Yeah. Interesting.

David B.: What ended up when you moved on from barbering? Why did you end up closing the shop?

Melina: Well, before we get to that, let me tell you what happened. So at some point, The Mark Stevens Shop…did they move, dad? Was that what happened? They were moving…they sold…because they’re no longer The Mark Stevens Shop, right? It turned in…

David G.: No, they went out of business.

Melina: They went out of business. Okay, got it. So they went out of business, and so you decided you were gonna open up your own place, your own building.

David G.: Right.

Melina: So you decided…you had this brainy idea to buy a house and turn a house, an actual residence, a three-bedroom, one-bath, right? Was that a three-bedroom, one-bath?

David G.: Yeah, three-bedroom, one bath. Yeah, it was.

Melina: House on McCray Street in Riverside.

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: And it was a residential neighborhood, and he got this brainy idea to buy that house and build a barbershop in it.

David G.: It really worked out well. It actually did. Yeah.

Melina: I think now about what…so, did you have to get city permits or…?

David G.: Sure.

Melina: Did they give you hassle or…

David G.: Oh, sure.

Melina: I can just imagine because, you know, the whole driveway in the backyard, he poured asphalt for a real driveway, like, and a real parking lot. It was a massive undertaking.

David G.: Well, there was a detached garage, which, I took that out.

Melina: Demoed it.

David G.: Yeah. I took it out altogether and then put asphalt in the backyard and that became the parking lot.

Melina: I know. I think about it now in my business. And I think, holy cow, you built a business in a residential neighborhood. So you had to get a permit, I’m sure, to do business and then to barber, that’s an entirely different…right?

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: Licensing and permits.

David G.: Well, even when I was in downtown Riverside and put the shop in the…

Melina: Yeah. Oh, in the clothing store.

David G.: …in the original clothing store down there, that was kind of scary because I didn’t have any permits and the city would come. And anyway, I had an old family friend. The guy was a friend of my brother’s and, well, our family named Bill Crouch. And Bill was a plumber over in San Bernardino. And I always thought Bill’s folks were very rich because they owned a furniture store when I was a kid. But Bill was a plumber. And I got him to do the plumbing in the shop for me, and we did it on Sundays and did all the plumbing on a Sunday morning, real early. And got Bill to come down there and right at daybreak, we put the plumbing in and got the shop all going. And we did that, yeah.

Melina: To avoid permits, to avoid getting any…

David G.: Yeah, no permits. No nothing.

Melina: Something so…

David G.: And we dug up the alley behind the clothing store on a Sunday morning, you know, and put all the plumbing in. And I couldn’t go through the walls or anything. So we went up through the ceiling of the store and out the back with the plumbing for all the vents and stuff. It was pretty…pretty wild.

Melina: I can… That’s so funny. I can see that now. Well, I can remember…I’m gonna guess that we built…do you remember what year it was you built the shop, dad? Was it, like, I’m gonna say ’77, ’76?

David G.: No.

Melina: No?

David G.: It was before that.

Melina: Oh, it was? I forgot.

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: What year was it? Do you remember? On the McCray Street shop?

David G.: McCray Street was right around ’70. Yeah, right around 19-, maybe ’72.

Melina: Was I that young? Jeez. So, I can remember that was my first rehab. We rehabbed that house. We gutted it. We did all the work, family, and friends, every weekend, that’s what we did. We did all the work. We gutted it, we did all the rehab. And then you ended up owning that shop. And then people started to follow. Some people started buying houses, and they started getting this idea. He was the first person to put a commercial business in a residential street. And so a few people started doing it.

David G.: True.

Melina: Quite a few people did. And so you had that shop until, let’s see…I mean, that was a very successful…and that was The Rustic Razor, and The Rustic Razor was the name of the shop. And it was so far…like, I look at it now and go, “That shop would be very in today.”

David G.: It would.

Melina: It was so far ahead of his time because you had these crazy barber chairs…

David G.: Old.

Melina: …that were old. They were red felt with, like, white porcelain. They were so beautiful. And they were probably from the ’20s, I’m gonna guess?

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: They were from the 1920s. They were just beautiful. And on the arm, they had built-in ashtrays. So you’d sit in the barber chair like this, and it had an ashtray in the arm. And they used to smoke, you know, as they were getting their hair done.

David G.: No, everybody smoked.

Melina: Everybody smoked. Dad would be smoking, and he’d have a cigarette hanging out of his mouth as he was cutting hair. And I can remember…

David G.: Everybody did.

Melina: Everybody did. He was booked every 15 minutes. And we would…I spent a lot of time after school, you know, at the shop. And then at some point, I’m gonna guess in, like, it was in the late ’80s, dad, late ’80s that you decided you were ready to retire. You were ready to sell the shop, actually.

David G.: Yeah, about, more like mid-’80s.

Melina: Mid-’80s, yeah. So he decided he was gonna retire. He would work, by the way, six days a week, 12-hour days, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., period. And he was booked every 15 minutes.

David G.: Yeah, long time.

Melina: For a lot of years.

David G.: Lot of years. Lot of years.

Melina: Yeah. If you were gonna name, like, some of the things you learned about working like that and having that business, like, I don’t know. What was your favorite thing about that? About owning The Rustic Razor and, like, at that time, The Rustic Razor on McCray Street, what was your favorite thing about that business?

David G.: Well, the fact that it was all mine. I wouldn’t, you know, there was no sharing with anybody. And, I mean, the people that I had working for me, really, they were as much into it as I was. So, in other words, it wasn’t like my saying “it was all mine,” it was really ours because we all worked together. And…

Melina: Did you have booth rentals? Did you rent out booths to them, or how did that work?

David G.: No. I did both. I did both. And I didn’t really much care for booth rentals, but I did some.

Melina: Interesting. And what was the worst part of that business? What did you hate the most?

David G.: Being confined all the time and not being able to go anywhere. Being stuck inside.

Melina: How interesting. So, at some point, you decided you were gonna retire, and you were gonna start in the RV business. You were gonna start in the used RV business, right?

David G.: Well, yeah. Well, Katrina was already in it.

Melina: Oh, that’s right.

David G.: She was already in it. And she was working for her dad and selling RVs, selling used RVs, and we had to have…they were taking in trade-ins, and they’d need a place to sell them. And so they opened up a lot, and she was working, you know, weekends and all the time. And anyway, I didn’t like the idea that she was working by herself out in Perris, you know? So I started going out there and helping her, and that was how that all started.

Melina: So I think what’s fascinating to me is that you decided to retire, and you decided to sell the shop. And so ultimately, probably your biggest…you made a very good living cutting hair, but you were working really, really hard to create the living that you did.

David G.: Oh, yeah.

Melina: And you really made your money in the real estate, didn’t you?

David G.: Well, as far as lump sums, yeah.

Melina: Yeah. That was like your nest egg…

David G.: Oh, yeah. Sure.

Melina: …was the barbershop, was the actual shop. So it’d be really cool because maybe we can get some pictures of what the shop…because it’s still a business today. In fact, I think the same people still own it.

David G.: They do. The same ones.

Melina: The court reporters, huh?

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: They still own it. Another business bought it from him and they’ve…

David G.: It looks good.

Melina: It looks great. I drive by it, and I still see it. Every time I can, I drive by it and look at it, and it still looks really great. So you sold the shop, really made a lot of your money there, big lump sum. And then you kind of…did you take that and invest it basically in the business, in the RV business? That was the idea?

David G.: Yeah.

Melina: Yeah. So now, you’ve had this, running this RV lot where you fix and flip motorhomes since the ’80s, the late ’80s, right?

David G.: Mm-hmm. Yes.

Melina: Yeah. Yeah. So, yeah. And so now you…so interesting to me is we’ve been talking about this. I think it was Andrew who said, you know, I just realized, and this was probably, you know, maybe 10 or 11 years ago, Andrew said, “Papa and Grammy do the same thing to motorhomes that we do with houses.”

David G.: That’s right. That’s right.

Melina: I was, like, “Huh, I never even thought of that.” That is absolutely true. That’s exactly what you do. And so if I think back now, you know, things that you’ve taught me about my business and that is, you know, you make your money on your buy. And I think that if I look at you and I go, “What is the best thing that you think you brought to the RV business?” Do you think it was that, that you knew how to buy them right? And, you know, you built relationships, and you built a reputation for yourself in this business.

David G.: Right. Yeah. Your whole life in business is about relationships. It’s all about relationships and being honest with people and not, you know, just don’t bullshit people. Just tell them the truth, and it’ll work, you know. It’s a lot easier telling people the truth than it is trying to build up a bunch of lies. I’ve never been able to do that.

Melina: It’s exhausting.

David G.: It is. Way too much trouble.

Melina: Yeah. Yeah. So, that’s totally true. I think that’s, you know, I can remember things that you’ve said to me over the years, you know, when I first started building my business and you would always tell me, “Take the high road. Always take the high road, and never let money stumble you.”

David G.: Right. Well, yeah, you don’t start looking at a customer as a dollar sign. If you do, you’re gonna lose, you really will. Better off looking… They are people first, you know, and treat them like people.

Melina: Yeah. Yeah. It’s funny to hear you say that because it’s how, you know, clearly that’s how I run my life and run my business and it’s…

David G.: I know it is. I know it is.

Melina: Yeah, it’s funny now.

David G.: But it’s true. It’s really true.

Melina: Yeah. What do you think is your best accomplishment, dad, like personally, like, professionally, like, in your businesses? What do you think is, like, if you were to say, “Ah, the one thing I’m…” not the most, “The one thing I’m really, really proud of that I did,” what would it be?

David G.: You.

Melina: Aww.

David G.: No, true. It’s true. Yeah. It’s true. Best accomplishment. Certainly. And it’s not bullshit.

Melina: That’s not bullshit.

David G.: Nope.

Melina: …

David G.: No, it’s true.

Melina: I love you.

David G.: I love you, too.

Melina: …

David G.: I don’t know.

Melina: The jury is still out?

David G.: I’ll let you know.

David B.: Fair enough. I’m still trying to figure it out, too.

David G.: Are we done?

David B.: Wrap it up, mom.

Melina: All right. So, anyway, I’m Melina Boswell.

David G.: I’m not.

Melina: You are not, and this is my hero. This is my hero, my dad. I call him my “Daddy,” still, and he always gets…he looks so cute whenever I call him “Daddy.” I think he’s always shocked when I call him “my hero,” but he is my hero. He is somebody that I’ve always…I can truly look up to, especially in life and in business because he always tells the truth. Always tells the truth. So, thankful for that. I’m thankful …

David G.: Well, they go together.

Melina: What do you mean?

David G.: I mean, telling the truth in life.

Melina: I’m thankful for that. I’m thankful for you.

David G.: Yeah. Yeah, it makes life a lot easier.

Melina: A great word choice there.

David G.: Yeah…

Melina: All right. Anyway, Melina Boswell flipping out. Peace.

David G.: Bye.

Melina: Okay, bye. I’m Melina Boswell, your host of the Flippin’ Off Podcast. I really hope you enjoyed it. If you did, we’d love for you to subscribe. Give us a five-star rating and tell your friends all about us. You can find more episodes of the Flippin’ Off Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever else you like to listen to awesome podcasts like this. If you like what you’ve heard, we’d really appreciate it if you’d follow us on Facebook and Instagram and tell us the stories that you’d like to hear.

Tim Jackson is our senior producer. Luke Jackson is our editor. Brothers. Josh Mauldin is our producer. Sound design by Frequency Factory. Our executive producer is Mind & Mill. This was all created by Dave Boswell for New Wealth Advisors Club.