About Empire Barbershop
Behind
the Empire. — About Empire Barbershop, Melbourne's #1 AMBA Barbershop of the Year 2025 in Oakleigh.
Melbourne's #1 barbershop. Open on Station Street since 2020. Every chair trained inside the shop.
The Empire standard
We opened with one rule.
No shortcuts.
Empire opened on Station Street, Oakleigh in 2020 — in the middle of the pandemic — with one rule: no shortcuts. Every service starts with a proper consultation. Every barber is trained inside the shop.
In 2025, the Australian Men's Barber Awards named us #1 Barbershop of the Year and #1 Educator of the Year for our School of Barbers program — the training system that keeps every chair calibrated to the same standard.
The shop
Station Street, inside and out.
What we stand for
Four things we never skip.
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Precision
Every measurement matters. Every line inspected. Every finish signed off before the cape comes off.
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Consistency
Trained inside the shop, cut to the same standard. Any chair, any visit — same result.
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Craft
Old-school scissor work meets modern clipper technique. Nothing shortcut, nothing skipped.
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Community
Built by Oakleigh locals, for the men of Melbourne's south-east — since 2020.
The journey
Five years, one standard.
- 2020
The first chair
Empire opens on Station Street, Oakleigh — in the middle of a pandemic — with one rule: no shortcuts.
- 2022
The floor fills
Regulars come from across the south-east. The team grows to eight chairs, all trained inside the shop.
- 2024
School of Barbers
Empire launches its industry training program to share the standard with the wider trade.
- 2025
#1 in Australia
Named Barbershop of the Year and Educator of the Year at the AMBA Awards — same night.
Come by
3A Station Street, Oakleigh.
A two-minute walk from Oakleigh station. Two doors from Eaton Mall. Walk-ins welcome — appointments recommended, Thursday to Saturday especially.