AARON BARCLAY, TIFFANY BLACK, MANNY TORRES, DJ HIPNOTIK; PART OF THE FADE LAB STUDIO BARBER SHOP IN BLOOMFIELD. (PHOTO BY ROB TAYLOR JR.)
Black-owned businesses are hard to find in Bloomfield, which is known as “Little Italy.”
But Manny Torres is ready to fit right in.
The 2014 Moon Area High School graduate earned his associate’s degree in criminal justice at Pittsburgh Technical Institute, then earned his barber license from Pittsburgh Barber School in 2020. He was a barber at another location in the Bloomfield area for six years before he took that leap into ownership.
“Starting it was definitely hard,” Torres told the New Pittsburgh Courier. “Not knowing if it’s going to be successful or if it’s going to fail.”
So far, Torres has weathered those first six months of a new business, and the “Fade Lab Studio” is primed for the holiday season as boys and girls, men and women aim to look fresh for those Christmas family photos and functions.
“Fade Lab Studio” is located at 506 S. Millvale Avenue, a stone’s throw from Liberty Avenue in Bloomfield. He opened the business in early March 2025.
DJ HIPNOTIK
In late August, “Fade Lab Studio” hosted a “Back to School Free Kids Cuts,” where kids were able to get a free haircut just in time for school. DJ Hipnotik was providing the Hip-Hop soundtrack that Saturday afternoon.
“Just giving back to the community, put a smile on kids’ faces,” Torres said.
For Torres, 30, he wants his barber shop to not just be a place to get a “clean, consistent cut” as it’s stated on the barber shop’s Instagram page, but a place for people to explore their creative side. The shop is filled with different works of art. He calls “Fade Lab Studio” a place where he and others can “create,” and “do a lot of community” events.