Antica Barbieria Colla

Barbershop Wisdom

Shot near Teatro della Scala, Milan, Italy

Franco Bompieri was born in 1934 in the sleepy northern Italian town of Volta Mantovana. At the age of 15, with only 5,000 lire (£1.87) in his pocket, he left for Milan to become a barber. That was more than 65 years ago; he has been cutting hair ever since.

Now, as the owner of Antica Barbieria Colla – a barbershop opened by Dino Colla in 1904 – the venerable Mr Bompieri presides over a hairdressing institution that counts among its clientele the crema della crema of Milanese society.

Actors, musicians, politicians and even presidents have sat in his barber’s chair and they leave with more than a haircut. With its vintage seats, array of lotions and potions and walls lined with signed photographs and old newspaper clippings, a trip to Antica Barbieria Colla is a chance to experience one of the last remaining vestiges of a long-forgotten Milan.

A truly impressive character who carries with him all the experience that 80 years of life can muster, we can’t think of anyone more qualified to dispense a little barbershop wisdom. In this short documentary we to hear from the man himself.

Music - Gioacchino Rossini, Il Barbiere di Siviglia