Tiffany Dauphin and Chantel Jacobs, both of Richmond, have been best friends for years. They went through cosmetology school together, shared the challenges of motherhood together – Dauphin has two children, and Jacobs has four – and always knew they wanted to run a business together.

That dream came true Dec. 5, when they opened Coastal Maine Cuts at 106 Main St. in Wiscasset, in a shop that used to be an art gallery. “That was a bit of luck,” Dauphin said. “There was already track lighting installed, and you know, every haircut place needs track lighting.”

The two worked for other people for 10 years after graduating from cosmetology school, and in their free time researched communities that had little access to basic haircutting services. “We’re not a full-service salon,” Jacobs said. “We don’t do perms, or colors, or up-dos for proms or weddings.” They were looking to become a barber shop for women, men and children, no appointment necessary. “We wanted to serve people who were coming in after work or on their lunch hour,” Dauphin said.

“We chose a nautical theme for our shop,” Dauphin said. Their Captain’s special includes a detailed cut and a hot towel massage. Other services include the Sailor, the Greenhorn (age 12 and younger), the Bearded Pirate, and so on.

The owners also want spouses and children who come with the person getting the haircut to feel at home.

Their man cave, a back room, is filled with leather sofas, streaming videos and video games, has enough open space for toddlers to play in while mom gets a cut, and has enough going on to occupy older kids and keep dad busy. “We’re mothers first,” Dauphin said. “We wanted a place to work where our kids could be with us.” Dauphin’s youngest child is 4 months old.

Currently, the artwork in the front of the shop is Sheena Pinkham’s photographs of historic structures, Dauphin said. Her goal is to help people in recovery from opioid addiction by partnering with Drew Bibber from Art Life, which offers art outlets for people in recovery. Dauphin said Bibber believes people engaged in what they are passionate about can overcome their addictions.

Dauphin has a personal reason to want to help people suffering with addiction. “My best friend, Jesse, died from an overdose,” she said. “I helped him out, but after he relapsed, I had to make him leave. He was getting what help there was available, but there wasn’t much. At the time, there were only four beds for opioid treatment.” She said Jesse had been making progress, but tthe addiction came calling. “He died of a fentanyl overdose, after relapsing just once. When I was cleaning out his things, I found some drugs. I called the police to come and get them. They told me I was extremely lucky, after handling his things, that I didn’t overdose myself. She was told that only a few grains of fentanyl can cause an overdose.

The Art Life works will go in the man cave.

Dauphin said she is also a believer in helping everyone who walks through the door. She told about a young patron who’d been having a bad day. Dauphin and Jacobs gave him a soda, listened to him and, by the time he left, he was smiling. “We’re one of the few professions where people feel free to talk,” she said. “And we’re here to listen.”