Most barbers start with a pair of clippers, but Pepe McNeal started with a catcher’s mitt. After a professional baseball career with affiliates of the St. Louis Cardinals and Cleveland Indians, Pepe faced the ultimate challenge: reinventing himself after a career-ending injury.
Today, he is a master barber, educator, and hair replacement specialist who counts his former baseball cards as a bridge to his clients. In this spotlight, we explore how Pepe applied the discipline of a professional athlete to the art of grooming—and why he finally retired his "old school" paper appointment book for the digital precision of Booksy.
The charmed life that Pepe led includes catching thousands of fast balls, calling pitches, and helping to strike out more batters than even he can remember. His professional journey started when he was just 17 years old. During his career, Pepe traveled all over the country to share his athletic gift and prowess for America’s favorite pastime.
Like many professional athletes, Pepe suffered an injury, which brought his career to a close. “So, I love baseball. It was what I loved to do most. But when I got hurt, I had to try to figure out what I was going to do next—what was going to be the next chapter of my life?” said Pepe.
Even though some hairstylists and barbers start their career the moment they’re old enough to hold a pair of clippers or shears, Pepe had to spend time reflecting before picking up the tools of his trade. And through careful thought and introspective soul searching, Pepe found his way.
“It took me over a year to really figure out what I was going to do next. And I remember thinking back to when I was a kid cutting my dad's hair. I was as young as 12 years old, trimming and cutting in our family kitchen. I decided that's what I'm going to do—go to hair school. And that's where my journey in this industry started,” Pepe said.
Making the decision to eventually open the Pepe Experience Hair Studio came from years of experience cutting hair and trimming beards. Pepe grew up perfecting his talent on both friends and family members. So, when he made the decision to pursue a career as a barber, he dove head first at top speed, almost like a trained athlete stealing home base.
After committing to the industry, Pepe made every effort to soak up all things hair and beauty. In addition to perfecting his skills with fresh fades, advanced coloring services, and relaxing facial treatments—Pepe wanted to work closely with like-minded grooming professionals
Over the years, he has been actively participating in conferences and hair shows across the country. To well-known grooming experts and loyal clients, Pepe has a rock-solid reputation as a top notch educator, mentor, barber battle judge, podcast host, and hair replacement specialist.
Even after a few years in the industry, Pepe kept challenging himself to push forward. More specifically, he wanted to fulfill another dream—owning and operating his own space. In his mind, it was important to have a more secluded shop that would let him truly focus on clients. And to make that happen, he started renting his own barbershop suite in the Tampa Bay area.
“I wanted to attract clients who just wanted to chill and relax in a private atmosphere. I feel like when I give a person a more relaxed atmosphere, where it's just one on one, I can connect more with that person, instead of when I’m in the barbershop where I’m talking to five different people at the same time. Now, when I’m with a client, they get my full attention,” said Pepe.
Pepe added that stepping out onto his own was also beneficial monetarily. Even with the overhead costs that he pays to Sola Salon Studios, he was able to earn more than while working at a barbershop, where the overhead costs were higher. And to help him live his dream, Pepe turned to Booksy, instead of using a paper and pencil appointment book.
Today, Pepe has a host of regular clients. Yet, he still takes on new customers, who learn about his work through Booksy. Instead of writing down his schedule by hand, Pepe decided to use our appointment booking software about three years ago. And he hasn’t looked back since.
When it comes to using an online appointment book, as a business owner running a one-man show, the scheduling tools are by far the resources that he relies on the most. He simply doesn’t have time to answer phone calls and that’s where an online appointment book comes in handy.
“I mean, people can just go to my Booksy page. And I can publish my Booksy link onto my social media sites or my website, which takes them straight to my profile. It’s just so much more convenient. It helps me take advantage of my downtime. Now, during appointments, I don't have to take phone calls and send texts or different things like that. So, my clients love it,” he said.
Naturally, Pepe has learned to master some of the other tools that Booksy offers. In particular, Pepe has learned to rely on the Booksy analytic tools that report his income and show how much he’s making on services and which treatments are more popular than others.
In addition to using the online appointment book features and reporting tools, Pepe also speaks highly about the ease in sending out mass messages. After clicking a few prompts, he is able to send a Message Blast that communicates to hundreds of clients. That key feature helped his business grow, because it lets him articulate changes to his schedule and price menu, he said.
Most recently, Pepe has been focusing his energy on making waves as a hair replacement specialist. In addition to performing this intricate service, Pepe also offers small classroom sized teaching sessions, where he can connect with industry newcomers or long-time barbers, who simply want to master a new skill.
“Baldness and hair loss are problems that’ve been going on for centuries. And until recently, there weren’t too many ways to help people. But now, you have more solutions than ever before. There's different key ways to help people—there’s scalp micropigmentation and hair replacement services,” he said.
According to Pepe, these methods have become more popular amongst his African American clients. Decades ago, there was less diversity amongst his male clientele who were seeking out ways to compensate for baldness and hair loss. And now, these methods are being accepted by all types of clientele.
Despite any of the new services that Pepe adds to his long list of specialties, he manages to stay true to his roots. Most of the time, that involves connecting with clients about the sport that was his first passion for so many years, which taught him the skills to succeed in an time honored industry that also requires the use of his truly talented pair of hands.
“A lot of conversations that I have with a lot of my clients, I talk about baseball. That's what some people come to me for. Plenty of times, clients come to me, and they’ve had my baseball cards from when I was in the minor leagues. While they're getting a haircut, they want me to sign a baseball card they’ve had for years and to this day that helps me connect with people,” he said.
As Pepe McNeal discovered, a paper appointment book requires constant manual attention and phone calls. Switching to an online system like Booksy allows barbers—especially those in private suites—to focus 100% on the client in the chair while the software handles scheduling, social media integration, and website bookings.
Transitioning to a private suite, like Sola Salon Studios, requires a reliable way to manage one-on-one appointments. For Pepe, this move was financially beneficial because it lowered his overhead and allowed him to provide a more secluded, VIP experience for his clients, which he managed entirely through automated scheduling.
Professional booking software provides reporting tools that show a barber exactly how much they are earning and which treatments are most popular. This data allows business owners to make informed decisions about their price menu and schedule, much like an athlete reviewing their game stats to improve performance.
