Meet Marquan Henderson and Terrell Solomon

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marquan Henderson and Terrell Solomon and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marquan Henderson and Terrell Solomon, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
It has always been a dream of ours to own our own barber shop. Both Terrell and I as customers have experienced great barbers as well as not so great barbers. This is usally due to the overall professionalism or lack there of in the individual. We wanted to create business where people can come in and get great service while maintaining the professionalism and integrity of the shop. We like to keep the barbershop atmosphere and feel without giving up the ability to be on time, consistent, and respecful to everyone. Our model is simple: Give the old school feel to a shop with a new school twist.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Terrell and I have known each other since 2014 so for about 10 years now. We both went to the University of West Georgia and crossed ino the Tau Chi chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Inc. We have talked about opening a shop for years and never followed through with the plan originally. During 2020 when everything was shut down an opportunity presented itself to go to barber school so we both jumped on it. It took alot of time and energy to complete barber school in 9 months but we both were determined and knew what our end goal was. Once we both graduated we both worked in a shop together for a little over a year and a half. I took a couple of months off once my wife had my second son and I began to do research on locations and putting the business side together because owning our own was still the goal. Once we found the location that we wanted to be in it only took putting together a plan to get it which we received help from my father in law to get us started. This was a blessing and allowed us to focus on advertising the business and making sure we had everything we needed starting off instead of havning to piece together everything over a couple years.

When the shop was fully opened we wanted to make sure that we kept our vision on what it would be. We devloped an app with ATL Techies who were very helpful and wanted to keep everything we did professional and easy to access. We as a business want to dispell the myth that barbershops are unprofessional which is why society does not take the occupation serious. We want to show that you can come in our establishment, have good conversations, and also get quality service without sacrificing a welcoming environment.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If a person has never been to Atlanta there are alot of places that I would suggest throughout the week. On a regular day just to grab some good food I would definitely say we have to hit an American Deli or Hungry AF. Both are great places that you can find throughout the city that can get the job done. Im a brunch person so of course if we were going we would have to go to Suite Food Lounge, Fin & Feathers, or Ms Iceys. Each location has its own vibe and the most important thing to me is the food is always on point. Of course Atlanta is one of the hookah capitals of the world so we would definitely have to go to Cru Lounge or House of Hookah for the chill vibes and good hookah.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
We would definitley like to thank our wives who have supported us throughout this journey. Starting barber school in 2020, there were alot of obstacles and alot of time away in order to finish in 9 months. Secondly we would like to thank Mr Jermaine who believed in the our vision enough to help us covere the building out of our shop.

Website: https://goldroomgrooming.com

Instagram: @goldroomgroominglounge

Facebook: Gold Room Grooming Lounge