By Moses Leos III

Amid the constant buzz of hair clippers, laughter, smiles and discussions are always ever-present in the Ladies and Gents salon near Lehman Road. 

Such a scene is welcome for Lehman High alumnus Tre Abeita, who has had a passion for cutting hair since he began doing so in the garage of his home as a teen. 

And though his passion has led Abeita to cross paths with sports and hollywood elites, the Kyle native continues to cut hair in his hometown to give back to his community. 

“Being from Kyle, it started off as a small town and it’s now grown into what it is,” Abeita said. “Being able to service not only my friends, but their younger brothers and dads, it’s an honor.” 

Abeita’s start in the world of haircutting began as a hobby. The idea came after Abeita wanted to cut his own hair after he got his haircuts “messed up” when was younger.

He soon realized how popular his ability was with his friends and Lehman football and baseball teammates. He soon had the trust of his peers, to where many of them visited the garage in his home in the Steeplechase subdivision to get their hair cut. 

But Abeita was soon drawn to the business aspect of his enterprise. Abeita said many of his friends were willing to donate and “pay toward my service.” 

“When I saw people actually wanted to translate my time into money, it was a good way to not only meet people, but to make some side cash,” Abeita said. 

Kasey Ogbaa, a friend of Abeita’s older brother, came to Abeita’s garage by way of a reference. 

“He cut me up and it was fresher than the barber than I was going to,” Ogbaa said. “I was blown away. I told him, ‘you’re going to cut me from now on.’ For years, everyone started to come into the garage.” 

Afterward, Ogbaa said he often saw the garage was “flooded and packed” with people who clamored for $5 haircuts. He keeps coming back to Abeita as he said his hair cuts look “like photoshop” and they’re “crispy.” 

Abeita continued to cut hair in his garage until he went off to college at Texas A&M Corpus Christi. After his freshman year, Abeita’s network of clients soon grew to new heights when a friend referred former Texas Longhorn wide receiver and U.S. Olympian Marquise Goodwin for a cut. 

“I cut him once and we’ve been cool ever since,” Abeita said. “He put me on the map a lot. Word of mouth was the best kind of advertisement for myself.”

Soon, with the help of his education from A&M Corpus Christi, Abeita learned how to market himself through various forms of social media, including Instagram and Facebook. 

His popularity “snowballed” as he became well known within the University of Texas at Austin network. He was able to build relationship with players such as Goodwin and former Texas and current New Orleans Saints defensive back Kenny Vacarro.

The network grew to include famous celebrities such as actor and comedian Cedric the Entertainer and rappers DJ Khaled and Eminem. Along the way, Abeita said local events such as South by Southwest and the Austin City Limits music festivals helped “build other A-list clientele.” 

His ability has made Abeita into such a commodity that he is flown out to perform hair cuts on his clients. 

In February, Abeita traveled to Santa Clara, CA and Super Bowl 50. Abeita cut the hair of a client who was a member of the Carolina Panthers football team. 

“It was surreal,” Abeita said. “You grow up thinking, ‘I want to go to a Super Bowl,’ but actually being there with my client and his family, friends and teammates, it was a real opportunity.”

His most interesting trip took him to Puerto Rico. While he didn’t speak a “lick of Spanish,” it was an “experience” to be the first of his family to go overseas and see “different cultures and different hairstyles.” 

While his hobby has taken him to new places, Abeita continues to service people in Kyle. He goes back to Lehman High every year during the school’s “Cuts for Cancer” campaign and also gives back to local pep rallies. 

He also has the ability to reminisce with his teammates on a consistent basis. Lehman High alumus Jordan Mora, who is a regular at Ladies and Gents, said Abeita is the “only person that cuts my hair.”

“It’s awesome that he’s cutting famous people’s hair,” he said. “Coming from a small town, that’s good news.” 

Ogbaa said Abeita’s desire to help his community “gives us hope.” 

“I don’t think anyone in Kyle has the accolades he has,” Ogbaa said. “It gives us hope. That he’s one of our own. That we raised him. His success is almost our success and it gives us inspiration to follow our dreams.”

Just to name a few…