When I first started sharpening for groomers and salons, one thing that I noticed was the strained business relationship that we have with one another. Groomers are, of course, very busy people. Dogs barking, blowers blowing, bath time happening and hair a flying! On the other side of the fence, the blade sharpener is covered in steel dust and still has another sharpening appointment to get to. And most sharpeners spend a lot of time on the road which wears you down.

This is the typical scenario when I pull up at a grooming salon:

I get my stuff together and head inside. If it’s my first appointment of the day, then it’s quite common that everyone is busy with people dropping off their pets and explaining ALL the details of what they want for their furry family member. While one groomer is dealing with the customers, other groomers are rushing back and forth taking the dogs to the back, cleaning up after the one that wasn’t walked before being brought in, one is washing a dog and others may be already clipping away! During all of this commotion, everyone has to scream at each other to be heard over all of the excited dogs barking! This is just Monday morning folks. Still a full week to go!

Needless to say; groomers have to get tough quick, be able to pick up heavy dogs all day, think on the fly, and constantly reassess situations and not get stressed out. Oh yah, and be able to do a good grooming job on a dog. So when I walk in to all this going on, this old southern boy aint about to butt in and throw a wrench into all the commotion. I just wait patiently on the sidelines and wait until there are no more customers at the front. 

O.K., it’s my turn now. I start collecting everything that needs to be sharpened and get any info about anything special that’s needed, which scissor has been dropped, this clipper is acting wonky and so on. If this is my first time sharpening for this groomer, then quite often I will be given only a few things to test me out. Usually it’s the scissor that’s been run over by a dump truck and the clipper blade that’s been in the back of the drawer for a few years and the cutter and comb have actually bonded together and become one solid piece because of the rust. And then of course I’m handed one particular scissor while the groomer tells me, ” See if you can fix this one. The last sharpener ruined it!” Can I blame them for trying me out in this manor? Absolutely not! I just smile and say “Certainly!”. No pressure right? I head out to the van to start sharpening. This is, hopefully, the beginning of a long business relationship with a new client.

 I’ve said this many times before. “My hats off to all you groomers!” And I mean that sincerely. On top of a very tough job that you guys have, you have to deal with us sharpeners. Sometimes, you’ve been dealing with the same sharpener that you’ve been pleased with for years but he has retired. But quite often, you’ve been burned over and over again by sharpeners that aren’t doing things up to par for whatever reason. I’ve heard a LOT of horror stories! So when the new guy comes in, your hoping that this guy knows what he’s doing. But your prepared. You’re not handing over your good stuff to somebody you don’t know just to have it possibly ruined by yet another bad blade sharpener! And so my relationship with a groomer always starts off with a certain tension in the air.

Now that we’ve gotten past that first sharpening we can get down to business right? Well sort of. I completely understand that yall are very busy. You guys need to be able to just give me a call and get booked for scissors and clipper blades to be sharpened and have your clippers repaired and then I come out, sharpen and repair and yall can get back to work. And  I agree that that’s the way it should be. But I can’t help but to recognize a problem here. There is a lack of  communication that somehow needs to happen.

As a sharpener, I know a lot of things about scissors, clippers, and clipper blades as do groomers and hair stylists as well but from two completely different ends of the spectrum! I know much more about the different steels that are used, what the difference is between a cast shear and a forged shear, blade edge geometry, a beveled edge and a convex edge, when to oil and how much, etc. and of course, I can sharpen just about anything! You guys however know how to manipulate those same tools to create a wonderful work of art!

Your sharpener can be of much better use to you besides just sharpen it or fix it! We have a lot of useful info that can benefit you and your line of work. Many times I’ve noticed problems  with equipment that can easily be fixed by the groomer but it’s hard to talk to you guys when I bring your blades back in because, of course, your busy and don’t have time for that sharpener guy. What can I do to be of better service to my clients who are so busy? I needed a way that I could help my clients more. That’s why I started Edge of the Shear!

Edge of the Shear has really opened the doors of communication between myself and all of you guys. I have learned so much more about you and your needs with your work and I hope that this group has been just as beneficial to y’all as well! Not only has it been a learning experience but very fun. I will continue to do as much as possible to keep building the group to be an asset to the industry.