Melissa “Mel” DeLuca Rivera, and her husband and business partner Jose Rivera, are professional barbers at their locally owned and operated Mel’s Old City Barbershop at 2116 Gulf Gate Drive in Sarasota, Fla.

Melissa “Mel” DeLuca Rivera, and her husband and business partner Jose Rivera, are professional barbers at their locally owned and operated Mel’s Old City Barbershop at 2116 Gulf Gate Drive in Sarasota, Fla. They opened the shop more than a year ago after a family vacation in Siesta Key and determined the market area was ready for a new, highly specialized and customized service barber shop. Mel Rivera is a licensed cosmetologist and barber, and Jose is a licensed barber. They are trained in all facets of men’s hair care to use a straight razor while creating current and fresh designs and fades, and traditional gentlemen’s haircuts and shaves on the head, face, and neck along with color styles. To receive a Florida barber license, the Rivera’s each completed 1,200 school hours and passed a highly specialized accrediting exam.