University of Utah entrepreneurship student Aiden Leone launched Leone’s Barbershop, a mobile business serving the campus community, with a simple question: “What if I got good at this?”
Leone first became interested in barbering during high school after his barber moved away from California. Left without a barber, he started seeing his mom’s hairstylist. She had no experience with men’s haircuts, and after multiple botched haircuts, he knew he needed to do something different. He asked his mom for a set of clippers, enlisted his brother as his first “client,” and quickly realized he had a lot to learn. He threw himself into barbering, practicing on friends and family, and apprenticing with local barbers who knew what they were doing.
By the time Leone arrived at the University of Utah, he had real skills behind the chair. He found himself cutting students’ hair all over campus. But he spotted a gap; there was no easy access or affordable haircuts on campus, so he quietly built a business around it. He marketed himself on social media and let his reputation do the rest. The experience not only honed his craft, but it also reignited a business instinct that, looking back, had always been there.
Leone’s passion for entrepreneurship dates back to middle school, when he first started selling candy to his classmates. He would bike to the convenience store, buy candy, and then bring it back to school to sell it at a higher price. His teachers quickly caught on and made him stop, but what he noticed was that he loved “running something” and having control. During high school, Leone started a personal swim coaching business. In this role, he learned how to manage clients, schedule sessions, and market himself, skills he would later apply to barbering.
Leone first saw the possibility of his vision coming to life after taking a business core class his freshman year. Leone said that Kathy Hajeb, an assistant professor and director at the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, got students to really think about entrepreneurship. The following summer, Leone reached out to Hajeb, inquiring about the entrepreneurship major, the coursework it entailed, and how to secure funding from Lassonde. Hajeb worked to connect him to the University of Utah, where he worked alongside the auxiliary department to secure his spot on campus.
“It clicked,” Leone said. “This isn’t just something I’m good at; this is a service the University of Utah actually needs.” He took action, and Leone’s Barbershop was born. Leone spent six months finalizing the details, fabricating the trailer, hiring a barber, and building a clientele. His barbershop now operates from an outfitted trailer between the Marriott Library and the Gardner Commons. You can book a haircut online, by either scheduling a set appointment time or joining the queue. Designed with students in mind, the shop offers affordable, high-quality haircuts at $35, led by a barber with over 30 years of experience, while fitting seamlessly into busy class schedules.
Utilizing all of this entrepreneurial training and a passion for barbering. Leone was able to start Leone’s barbershop, which can be found @leones_barbershop_ on Instagram.
