cry might be for visibility, visibility, visibility. Two Beachwood institutions possess the former without the latter, and despite this dis- advantage, along with little foot traffic and no signage due to zoning restrictions, they have succeeded for decades across the hall from each other in the Chagrin Richmond Plaza. of Cuyahoga's County's busiest intersections at Chagrin Boulevard and Richmond Road. Built in 1969, the structure is filled primarily with professional service businesses, but it also houses two remarkably long-time and legendary tenants in highly competitive in- dustries Ristorante Giovanni's and Alfredo's Hair Salon, making good on their leases for a combined 80 years. Defying most longevity standards, the owners reveal here how times have changed, and how they have survived and thrived in Beachwood. a $20,000 investment in Russell's, a three- year-old salon in the spot he now occupies in the Chagrin Richmond Plaza. But even at that young age, he was no stranger to the hair-care business. Beginning at age 10, he worked in his cousin's salon, shampooing women's hair. School. At 16 ½, he was eligible to take the state licensing board test and passed. Then he bought his first salon for $10,000 in Euclid, and ran it for two years. At that point, he wanted to travel the country, so he bought a Winnebago and hit the road for six months with three friends. and after three months, his cousin there wanted him to open a salon in Rome. Alfredo told his father back in Cleveland, to which he was instructed: "Get your a-- back home!" So Alfredo did just that. had been hanging out at the popular disco, occupied by Giovanni's. Don King, owner of the club and president of King Properties, the party responsible for developing the build- ing, gave Alfredo prophetic advice. "You need to be here," he said. road. Our Gang restaurant was a truck stop in the space now occupied by Yours Truly on Chagrin. A chunk of land not far down the street on Richmond was home to a spot where model airplane hobbyists flew their craft. And across from that location was a U.S. home to Eaton Corporation. Despite the lack of commercial density, marketing and social muscle. He advertised in Cableviews magazine (the local television bible) and introduced himself to people ev- erywhere, but especially to those at the Touch of Class club. the mid `80s. He later scrapped the spa and used the private space for services that in- cluded hair extensions, wigs and hair pieces. He tended to 20-30 clients daily, every 15 minutes, from early in the morning until late at night. Saturdays could total 40 clients. He kept up that pace for 15 years. He still retains a dependably positive role player for his many clients. He smiles frequently, speaks with candor and calm, and is genuinely interested in other people's issues. Also, he sports a high/low style, with dapper sport coats paired with jeans and athletic shoes. skills draw a range of people from all over town, and they often share as much with him as they would a psychologist, sometimes more than he says he wants to know. He un- derstands, though, that styling people's hair and touching them for extended periods of time breeds familiarity and comfort. some degree of cross-pollination. Also, foot traffic from other tenants helps. But many years ago, a request came out of nowhere. He received a call from the management of entertainer Prince when he was in town to perform. His crew wanted to borrow the salon after hours for a styling session in complete privacy. Alfredo gladly left the salon unlocked, and they took care of business. The crew returned the favor by leaving auto- graphed pictures and other gifts. man held several people hostage in his space. The stand-off lasted 11 hours, involving numerous Beachwood policemen and SWAT team members. Alfredo was instrumental in helping the police, at their request, by design- ing a replica of the salon space in the parking lot, using masking tape, to better plan for saving the hostages. Eventually, entry was achieved when the police smashed the front doors and launched smoke and concussion (aka percussion) grenades. age amounted to $50,000, mostly addressed by insurance but it was a serious setback professionally. in 2003 and located in the U.S. Bank building on the corner of Mercantile and Chagrin, but due to conflicts with his business partner, the salon closed after a year and a half. Right now though, he still loves going to work, a short commute from his home in Twinsburg. He enjoys how every day is different, and he continues to look forward to each client. He says that people often wonder how he remem- bers the details in their lives. "There's only one you," he replies. And Alfredo's salon remains a singular sensation, as well. the restaurant business. Although retirement might seem like the next logical step, he wants to know why he should stop now. "So I can do the Facebook thing?" is more interested in emulating his mother who worked in the restaurant business until she was 94, then died when she was 99. "I like to accomplish things," says the reserved, both of mind and spirit, seem to compel him forward as well. which he ran for 20 years. He added Trescalini next door where everything was cooked tableside ("too complicated I don't do that anymore"). In 1976, when the club A Touch of Class was for sale in the Chagrin Richmond Plaza, he bought it and shut it down so he could open Giovanni's. "It was busy from the first day we opened." brought lots of acts to town, and after their shows, many dropped in to Giovanni's. Carl rattles off names of guests including Sammy Davis, Dinah Shore, Bob Hope, Mickey Rooney, Phyllis Diller, Engelbert Humper- dinck, Pat Boone, Shirley MacLaine, Florence Henderson, among plenty of others. This was back when the restaurant was still filling up at 12:30 a.m., reservations were booked until 10:30 p.m., and men dressed in jackets. ni's remains in operation. To do so, he stresses the importance of change, especially in the restaurant business. "You need to keep evolv- ing or you will die." In 2000, he closed the restau- rant for six weeks to remodel it; then three years ago, he undertook a 16-day remodeling, |