Our Barbers & Braiders

It all started out as a joke. I lost my maintenace job and walked in to my cousins shop to chop it up with the fellas when a friend walks into the shop for a shape up both barbers were busy at the time so I sarcastically said I got you and he said come on just clean me up I did such a good job I said this is what I want to do from that day on. I learned the trade for 4 years as a Master Barber. Corona Barbershop opened in 2001 and then Corona Barbershop Plus in 2003. 15 years later we are still here doing what we love..

One day, out of boredom, with nothing else to do, I picked up a pair a clippers in the bathroom of our Bronx apartment and asked my brother if he wanted a haircut he said ok so I started cutting my brother’s hair. That was about 33 years ago. From that day forward, I was convinced that it was going to to become a master barber. So I started cutting all of my friends and family hair.

But unfortunately, the call of the streets was too strong I was hanging out with the wrong people and making bad decisions– I dropped the clippers for nights out on the streets & it became my life. Inevitably, I was sent to prison. I served my time and paid my debt to society. But during my time in the penitentiary I picked up the clippers again and as I kept cutting hair I became better and better…

In 2017 I was released on Parole and I voluntarily went to a work shelter called Ready, Willing and Able while I was there I got my certification for cooking but I did not feel that was my true passion. I did it because I had to integrate back into society as a productive member. I was, still cutting hair on the side.

After being home a year or so, I met a very special woman. She eventually became my wife. She helped me realize that it was possible to pursue my true lifelong passion of having a career as a barber. With the help of a very close friend of mine, named Bruce, I received my apprentice barber license. I went to work at a barber shop called Straight Cut. Things were great until Covid-19 forced all of the barber shops in New York to close. I ventured into mobile barbering but eventually barber shops in Long Island started to reopen and for a short while I went to work at one called Vintage Talk of New York business was not good enough to justify the long commute to Suffolk County from Queens! I started scrolling through Instagram and saw Deo and his crew at Corona Barbershop Plus. I applied for a position and was interviewed with Deo and we agreed that I work there on a temporary basis during the Christmas season to see if the shop and I were a good fit. I can honestly say, that the fit is great, the guys and I have become friends as well as coworkers. P.S. this is only the beginning

Hello everybody, my name is Vianyeli but you can call me vian or V. I’m from Dominican Republic and I’m 19 years old. I have 5 years living in the United States and I started doing hair since I was around 9 years old. My passion of being in the beauty industry comes from my mom best friend that has a salon in Dominican Republic where I used to go everyday and ask her to teach me different techniques & styles. That’s when I my interest grew & I told my mom that I wanted to buy a mannequin so I can practice everyday after school, then when I moved to the U.S.A I started doing my own hair. At first I I was not too serious I just wanted to feel cute but as time passed it became a passion of learning different hairstyles so I started doing my hair like 3 times a day. One day I just got tired of just practicing with my own hair so I started using my cousins and my mom as models, that’s when I realized that I love doing hair and that I really need to trust my instincts and keep learning so when I graduated from high school and I got the opportunity to choose a college I did not feel like college was really what I wanted to do so even though some family members criticized me because I just wanted to be in the hair & beauty industry I made the decision of signing up for Cosmetology school in Empire Beauty school located in Astoria Queens I later graduated and started looking for places and that’s when I got the opportunity to be part of the Corona Barbershop Plus Family where I feel welcomed. In the future I see myself with my own shop, traveling around the world and just having the opportunity to do hair for everyone who’s willing to trust me.

I’m always learning from my coworkers & I promised you that in this barbershop you can always learn something new from each one of us and will also feel welcome.

We might not be the best at everything but we know that we are the best at what we do, come and see it for yourself!!

My name is Jhon Ricardo, I am 29 years old and I have been a barber for 13 years, I specialize in fades, tapers, simple designs, facials and hot towel shave. Barbering caught my attention because there was a barbershop right in front of my house and I saw how the barbers cut hair I watched this one particular guy since he was always by the store front window I was mesmerized watching how they cut hair and one day he surprised me with an imitation yellow stripe Wahl clipper he was the first person who I started practicing on and I also practiced with my cousins ​​and friends and as I got more comfortable I began to spend more time at the barbershop where they were constantly cutting hair and I watched and learned their techniques and I asked questions and then I started practicing on my family and little by little I got better and better then I got a job working in a barbershop in Venezuela called Fernando Shot where I worked for 7 years and there I learned much more and thank God today I am a professional barber with a lot of experience and wanting to continue growing and learning more every day I thank God for giving me the joy of learning the art barbering here in the United States working at Corona Barbershop Plus with the team

Well, it all started as an idea from my grandmother that I ignored until she gave me my first clippers, then I began to practice with my family and friends until I started to work at my friend’s mother’s salon, in time improving myself working in different barbershops until I started to work at one of the most popular in the sector of my country Chile slowly making a name for myself becoming known by many people and now I am here in Nee York City I want to do the same thing alongside the crew here at Corona Barbershop Plus delivering an excellent service while I enjoy serving them in hopes of building a clientele and one day opening my own and possibly multiple locations to help as many people possible.

Hi, I’m Leslie. My start in braiding hair arose when I was younger, I learned from my mother watching her great work it was something I didn’t expect because I was not too interested in learning but as time went by, I started helping her with some things and slowly gained interest and started learning and now here we are, thank God, following her example and learning from her talent and I hope to on day be as great as her in her work ethic and her talent. She is my hero I want to follow her foot steps and I want to be as great as she is, in the future I see myself with my own braiding business and much more next to my mother and my sister I want it to be something historic and although at some point in life We are no longer here, our children continue this legacy. My interest arises when I see that it was a talent that God provided me to be an entrepreneur, independent and above all doing it at my own pace, I thank God and then my mother, God for giving me the talent and my mother for helping me use it and teaching me that everything you want in life you can have and that there is nothing difficult If you put your mind to it and thanks to my clients, friends and etc who believe and trust in me this is just the beginning and we are going for much more.

Hey my name is Brenda. I am of Peruvian decent I have been into art and design my whole life. Im a self taught home based artist. I got into braiding hair and tattoos since the age of 19 but I have been on and off. At some point I left it alone for a year or two. Made some bad decisions, procrastinating and investing my energy into the wrong places but I soon got back into it at 21 and haven’t looked back ever since, perfecting my craft is what really matters to me and being able to create great work for those who appreciate it. Through life’s ups and downs I have always ran back to what I know how to do best. This lifestyle I wouldn’t change it for anything else. I am now working here alongside the Corona Barbershop Plus crew looking to grow and perfect my craft looking forward to seeing you.