Since 1934, people could often be seen walking out of Sullivan’s smoker's shop in Cudahy with a cigar in their mouth.

That can still happen today, but only if a customer of the new Sullivan’s Barbershop orders the "Gentlemen’s Package," which comes with a complimentary cigar (not sold by the shop and for those 21 or older only).

Owners Christopher and Lauran Ripstein said they chose to offer the package, which includes a haircut, scalp massage, beard trim (if needed) and straight razor face shave, to honor the building’s history.

Joe and Mary Salvatore built the shop at 4714 S. Packard Ave. for shoe shining, hat blocking and smoker supplies, according to the Ripsteins. The original owners named the shop Sullivan’s because at the time an Italian last name could negatively affect success, Christopher Ripstein said. The new owners chose to keep the name and the classic sign out front, which will eventually be illuminated again.

“Their dreams and ambitions were bonded with this name,” Christopher Ripstein said.

Before snipping her way to success, Lauran Ripstein was a personal trainer. An attraction to the art of straight razor shaving led her to carve a new career path. She's the only barber at Sullivan's for now.

Trained in the traditional style of barbering and cosmetology in Florida, Lauran Ripstein said she prefers the old way of doing things, which is much more scissor-focused, to the new “urban barbering” style. After thousands of hours of training, she started cutting hair about a decade ago.

“I go the extra mile to be sure all the details you want are there,” she said. “You can stay in my chair until every hair is in the right place.”

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All the chairs at Sullivan's are antiques; one came from the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee. Customers can expect to get a 30- to 40-minute haircut compared with the typical 20-minute service at most establishments, she said.

Lauran Ripstein said she wants to create the “old, open community feel.”

After working for a few “corporate” barbershops “focused more on profit than the customer,” Lauran Ripstein decided to branch out and grow her own barbering business at the behest of her husband. She wanted a location that would complement her traditional style.

Christopher Ripstein, who works for Harley Davidson, said a friend who is “fifth generation Cudahy,” introduced them to the building they now call home — in this case literally, as the couple live in an apartment above their business.

“It was a really cool place that had been empty for years,” Christopher Ripstein said.

Six months of negotiations later and they were the owners. That was three years ago.

While the foundation was strong, the building needed a lot of work and the couple did most of the renovations themselves. A few things, such as a plumbing system and all new electrical wiring, were professionally done.

“Every aspect of the build-out was done with the heritage in mind,” Christopher Ripstein said.

While going through the remnants of rubble inside, the couple unearthed a cash register from the 1800s that now sits in the shop atop a custom countertop built by Christopher Ripstein. All the counters in the establishment were created using wood from an old bowling alley in Missouri.

“One single lane somehow made (all the countertops),” he said.

There are many other unique finds on display in the shop including a large pipe that was part of an advertisement the Ripsteins made “smoke” by installing a diffuser, and an old jukebox that sounds authentic but doesn’t operate. Instead of repairing it, the couple installed a Bluetooth speaker inside allowing for more than the typical number of records to play.

In the future, the couple hope to hire on some additional barbers and staff, but they aren’t quite ready for that yet.

They are ready to give clipper or scissor cuts, beard trims, head and/or face shaves, waxes, trims and more, by appointment, on their website www.sullivansbarbershop.com.

They’re also ready to hear more stories from their customers about the history and happenings at Sullivan’s including tales of the famous poker games once held in back.

Contact Erik S. Hanley at erik.hanley@jrn.com. Like his Facebook page and follow him on Twitter at @ES_Hanley.