ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — A St. Augustine barbershop reopened Tuesday with a new look and a new call for help from the owners after a fire closed the business.
Investigators say the blaze was intentionally set.
The owners announced a $10,000-dollar reward for information on the suspects.
Everything in the shop from the equipment to the chairs had to be replaced.
“It feels good to be home," Wayland Baker, the head barber at the shop, said.
Baker has been cutting hair at The King’s Chair Barbershop since it opened 8 years ago. For him, it’s more than just a job.
“It means there’s a place for the community to come, sit, gather, talk, pass along information and receive a good haircut," Baker said.
“For six months, nine families had no income coming in," Moses Floyd, owner of The King’s Chair Barbershop, said.
But the flames didn’t stop owner Moses Floyd and with the help of the community, they raised nearly $200,000 dollars to reopen.
“We are here to stay. We are bigger, we are new, bigger and better," said Floyd.
Investigators say the fire was an act of arson. It is believed to have started near a work station at the front of the building
No arrests have been made, but Floyd says he wants justice, and he’s willing to reward those who come forward.
“Ten thousand dollars for any information leading to a conviction of that sick person, that coward who tried to burn this down," Floyd said.
The State Bureau of Fire, Arson, and Explosives is investigating the fire.