Every business has a history. Sometimes, however, parts of that history are waiting to be rediscovered.
Recently, Richard Marshall MBE, CEO and owner of Pall Mall Barbers, was looking through old photographs connected with the business when he came across something particularly meaningful: an image linked to the original Pall Mall Toilet Saloon, the name under which the barbershop operated more than a century ago.
For Richard, the photograph represents far more than an old London shopfront. It connects the Pall Mall Barbers of today with a story that began in 1896, long before he became part of it.
What makes that story even more remarkable is that Richard did not know the extent of Pall Mall Barbers’ history when he bought the business.
The history found him later.
Richard Marshall Bought the Barbershop Without Knowing Its Full Story
Richard Marshall’s chapter with Pall Mall Barbers began in 2005. After establishing himself in barbering in London, he took the considerable step of buying an ageing barbershop near Leicester Square. Pall Mall Barbers’ published account of Richard’s journey describes the premises as an old shop that had been in the previous family’s hands for decades and had changed very little over the years.
At the time, Richard was focused on what the business could become. He was not purchasing it because somebody had presented him with a carefully documented history dating back to Victorian London. He did not yet know that history existed. That changed during renovations.
An Old Business Card Beneath the History
While working on the original barbershop, Richard discovered an old business card carrying the name Pall Mall Toilet Saloon.
It was a small object, but it opened a much larger story.
Pall Mall Barbers’ official history records that this discovery sent Richard on a search to understand the background of the business he had acquired. His research eventually established that the Pall Mall Toilet Saloon had been founded in 1896 at 27 Whitcomb Street, close to Trafalgar Square and Pall Mall.
Suddenly, the shop Richard had bought in 2005 was connected to more than a century of London barbering. He had entered a story that had begun generations before him.
The Search for a Photograph
Once Richard understood how far the history stretched back, there was something else he wanted to find.
A photograph.
He wanted to see the original business. Not simply read a name or a date, but see a visual connection with the barbershop that existed before the modern Pall Mall Barbers. He searched. Nothing appeared. Eventually, as Richard described in his recent post, he stopped looking. Then, approximately five years later, an unexpected email arrived.
The Photograph That Came From Australia
Thousands of miles away, a woman in Australia had been sorting through old family belongings when she discovered photographs connected to the historic barbershop.
She searched the name online. That search led her to Pall Mall Barbers.
She contacted Richard and asked whether he would like the photographs.
Pall Mall Barbers’ official history records the same remarkable sequence of events, describing how photographs of the original store reached Richard after being discovered by a woman in Australia while she was sorting through family possessions.
Richard had spent years searching for something like them. Then, after he had stopped searching, the photographs found their way back to the business. It is one of those moments in the Pall Mall Barbers story that seems almost too perfectly timed. As Richard put it when sharing the story: amazing what the universe can do.
From the Pall Mall Toilet Saloon to Pall Mall Barbers
The historic photograph provides a window into another London. Pall Mall Barbers’ documented history places the original Pall Mall Toilet Saloon at 27 Whitcomb Street in 1896, close to Trafalgar Square and Pall Mall.
London looked very different then. The city moved differently. Business was conducted differently. Men’s clothing and daily routines were different. But the barbershop already occupied an important place in men’s lives.
Men still had somewhere to go.
People to meet.
Work to do.
Occasions to prepare for.
And an appearance they wanted to maintain.
That connection between grooming and preparation remains relevant today.
130 Years Young in 2026
From 1896 to 2026, Pall Mall Barbers marks 130 years of London barbering heritage. The anniversary represents another chapter in a story that began with a small barbershop off Pall Mall and continues to evolve around the needs of modern men today. Pall Mall Barbers has described this milestone as a new era of Modern Heritage, celebrating where the business has come from while continuing to move forward.
Being 130 years old is not about recreating the past. It is about understanding the history that created the foundation while remaining relevant to the men walking through the doors today. Generations change, routines change, and London continues to move forward, but the client remains at the centre of the story. That is why Pall Mall Barbers describes this milestone as 130 years young. History provides the foundation, while the clients who continue to choose Pall Mall Barbers help shape its future.
Richard Marshall Became Part of a Story Already in Progress
Richard Marshall’s discovery changed the meaning of owning Pall Mall Barbers. When he bought the business in 2005, he was not simply starting a new chapter from nothing. During renovations, the discovery of an old business card bearing the name Pall Mall Toilet Saloon encouraged him to investigate the history of the shop, eventually connecting the business back to its 1896 origins. That distinction matters. There is a difference between creating heritage and becoming responsible for carrying an existing story forward.
The business card, followed later by historic photographs of the original store discovered in Australia, gave Richard a tangible connection to the generations of barbering that came before him. For Pall Mall Barbers, that history carries a simple responsibility: respect the past while continuing to move forward.
Modern Heritage Means History That Still Has a Purpose
Heritage matters most when it remains relevant. An old photograph can reveal where a business came from, and a date such as 1896 gives Pall Mall Barbers a remarkable connection to London barbering history, but neither should become more important than the client walking through the door today. Pall Mall Barbers describes its 130th anniversary as a new chapter built around Modern Heritage, bringing its history forward while continuing to evolve for contemporary men.
A client may arrive because his haircut has started losing its shape, his beard has become difficult to manage, or he is preparing for an interview, presentation, wedding, dinner, journey, or important meeting. Whatever brings him into the barbershop, his needs remain at the centre of the experience. The history provides the foundation, while the client gives that history a continuing purpose.
The London Around the Barbershop Has Changed
London has transformed enormously since Pall Mall Barbers traces its beginnings to the Pall Mall Toilet Saloon at 27 Whitcomb Street in 1896. Generations have passed, working life has changed, transport has evolved, fashion has moved through countless eras, and technology has reshaped almost every part of daily life. Yet men continue to make time for grooming because appearance remains connected to preparation.
A haircut travels into the meeting, a beard becomes part of how a man presents himself at an interview, and personal grooming accompanies him to a wedding, dinner, presentation, or everyday working day. The surroundings may be completely different from those of 1896, but the fundamental desire to feel prepared before stepping into the next important moment remains familiar.
The Photograph Represents People, Not Just a Building
Looking at an old barbershop photograph, it is easy to focus on the architecture, signage, clothing, and details of another era. For Pall Mall Barbers, the photograph also encourages us to think about the people who once walked through those doors. A client visiting the barbershop generations ago would have had his own work, responsibilities, ambitions, and occasions to prepare for. More than a century later, the details of those lives have changed, but the importance of the client has not.
Pall Mall Barbers’ documented history shows how an unexpected collection of old photographs eventually reconnected Richard with the original store after they were discovered among family belongings in Australia. Those images therefore represent more than a building. They represent generations of people who formed part of the story.
From One Generation of Clients to the Next
A business can carry a long history only when new generations continue to find a reason to choose it. Pall Mall Barbers may trace its roots to 1896, but every appointment takes place in the present. Today’s clients are helping shape the next chapter: the professional maintaining his haircut before another working week, the man preparing for an interview, the groom getting ready for his wedding, the traveller fitting grooming into a demanding schedule, the client reconsidering his beard style, or the regular simply maintaining an appearance that helps him feel prepared. Pall Mall Barbers can preserve the history, but the clients are not simply observing it from the outside. They are helping continue it.
More Than a Piece of Pall Mall Barbers History
For Richard Marshall MBE, rediscovering the historic photograph offered another opportunity to reflect on how unusual the Pall Mall Barbers journey has been. He bought the business in 2005 without fully knowing the history behind it. An old business card led him to investigate the Pall Mall Toilet Saloon and discover the connection to 1896, while the photographs he had hoped to find eventually arrived through an unexpected connection with a woman in Australia.
Some parts of a business story are created through decisions, resilience, and years of work. Others appear unexpectedly and help reveal that the story began long before the current generation became part of it.
From 1896 to Today
The Pall Mall Barbers story traces its origins to the Pall Mall Toilet Saloon, founded at 27 Whitcomb Street in 1896. Richard Marshall became part of that continuing story when he acquired the barbershop in 2005, and in 2026 Pall Mall Barbers marks 130 years since those beginnings. The name has evolved, London has evolved, and Pall Mall Barbers has evolved, but the connection with its history continues.
An old business card helped reveal where the story began, photographs discovered thousands of miles away gave that history a visual connection, and the clients walking through the doors today are helping determine what comes next. From the Pall Mall Toilet Saloon in 1896 to Pall Mall Barbers today, what a story. And it is still being written.
Keep Sharp, Every Day.
PALL MALL BARBERS LOCATIONS
PALL MALL BARBERS FITZROVIA
45 Fitzroy St. Fitzrovia
London, W1T 6EB United Kingdom
+44 20 7387 8787
PALL MALL BARBERS KINGS CROSS
68 York Way Kings Cross
London, N1 9AG United Kingdom
+44 (0) 207 112 2372
PALL MALL BARBERS PADDINGTON
23 Sheldon Square Paddington
London, W2 6EY United Kingdom
+44 (0) 207 112 2373
PALL MALL BARBERS LIVERPOOL STREET
1 Finsbury Avenue, Broadgate
London, EC2M 2PF United Kingdom
+44 (0) 207 626 0123
PALL MALL BARBERS TRAFALGAR SQUARE
27 Whitcomb St. Trafalgar Square
London, WC2H 7EP United Kingdom
+44 (0) 207 930 7787
PALL MALL BARBERS WESTMINSTER
11 Palmer Street Westminster
London, SW1H OAD United Kingdom
+44 (0) 203 267 0001
PALL MALL BARBERS SOHO
Intimissimi Uomo | First Floor
266 – 270 Regent St | Oxford Circus,
Soho, London W1B 3AH
+44 (0) 207930 2592
DISCLAIMER: Some images, videos, and voices on our website and marketing materials may include AI-generated or digitally created people, also known as synthetic performers. These visuals may be used for creative, marketing, or advertising purposes. They may not show a real client, barber, or models.
