Best Haircut in Ginza (Updated May 2023)

A Brief 1 Minute Summary of Ginza's History

Ginza is a true mix of old and new. Being founded in the 1600s during the Edo period, the story of Ginza is one of great prosper as well as great tragedy.

In 1603 the Tokugawa Shogunate decided to move the silver coin mint to the area, naming the building Yakusho Ginza. The original name of the town was something along the line of New Coin Exchange Town but colloquially the government buildings name stuck. Ginza prospered greatly at first. Being home to many traditional Japanese art forms such as Noh, and also being home to many artisans.

One of the many shopping streets you can find walking around Ginza.

Ginza rose quickly but then wavered for a time until a huge fire in 1872. At this time Ginza was just starting to rise again, however the fire stifled things. During reconstruction the government took on a more western feeling using brick buildings that could not burn so easily, and this new feel attracted many people, especially the more open and western style shopping areas. At this time people still removed their shoes to enter shops laid with tatami mats, however now there was no need to remove their shoes. Window shopping also became popular, and the word “Gin-bura” became common meaning to walk about Ginza with no particular purpose. However once again Ginza was struck and this time along with the rest of the Kanto plane.

In the most devastating disaster to date at the time, the Great Kanto Earthquake destroyed Tokyo and surrounding areas, killing over 100,000 people and destroying the area. After this Ginza rebuilt once more, keeping the more western style. New buildings were constructed and Ginza continued to be a popular place for shopping, eating and culture.

Continuing with the tragedy however, Ginza was yet again flattened in 1945 during WWII when multiple air bombs brought the city down. Shortly after the occupation began as well as the Meiji Restoration, Ginza along with the rest of Japan boomed and by 1969 Japan’s economy was second only to America. Ginza’s long dramatic timeline has greatly contributed to the feeling of old and new, and the rich history felt by walking through the streets.

The famous Ginza station building

Something was always special about Ginza and continues to be as people can’t stay away. Nowadays Ginza is still on the rise as the population rate continues to rise, as well as marriage and child population growth rates compared to the rest of Japan. Ginza is still known for the great shopping, wonderful food and drinks, and as a place you can enjoy a long walk in.

Today, Ginza is home to nearly 500 salons with an extremely high density compared to the area of Ginza. As the fierce battle ground continues to hash it out, we’ve selected some of the best spots to get a cut in Ginza. This list avoided listing the large salons.

As some businesses grew more successful in Tokyo, they opened branches with 20-30 seats available. While there’s nothing wrong with this, we focused on smaller more affordable salons where you can enjoy a more comfortable experience without sacrificing quality. If you’re interested in getting a great cut in one of Tokyo’s most historic areas, then keep on reading.

SOZO Ginza

Coming from the super popular salon in Omotesando, SOZO, SOZO Ginza was recently opened and is already a hit in the area. The two owners started SOZO to create a salon that not only puts out outstanding and professional quality styles and cuts, but also fosters a creative and diverse community in Tokyo. Since opening nearly 15 years ago, they’ve achieved much including opening a school for stylists, and now they are on to expanding their reach here to Ginza.

The staff here are all highly trained, having worked overseas at top salons in places like London and Sydney, the staff are familiar with many types of hair and people. If you decide to book an order you can specifically ask for a stylist that is able to communicate with you in English. This is a big pull for many foreign customers, and is why nearly half of the people who regular these salons are from outside of Japan. Definitely give this salon a shot.

Bloom Sweet

This salons has become popular for it’s coloring and hair treatments catered to people with sensitive skin and/or allergies. The owner is concerned themselves with this problem and have created a safer environment with people experiencing the same concerns. There are also many anti-aging focused treatments. The idea is that beautiful hair starts with maintaining beautiful hair. This salon isn’t focused on quick fixes but creating long lasting results by trying to treat hair correctly depending on everyone’s individual needs.

BRIGHT

BRIGHT is one of Ginza’s premiere salons, with customers not just from Tokyo, but from around the world. Voted first place for 8 years in a row by the “Ekiten” word-of-mouth ranking system in Ginza, BRIGHT continues to beat out the other 500 salons every year.

With services like masterful gray dyes, digital perms, and straightening services, the loyal customer base speaks for itself. You can expect to get a great cut each time from the wildly popular stylists here at BRIGHT.

ANTERET

This salon is well known for their short styled cuts. A short cut can fail easily and its quite difficult to achieve with a flattering shape and balance, however the owner here has trained all of his employees here on the best way to perform a dry cut.

After our team interviewed Mr. Yoshida the owner, we were especially surprised as his natural knowledge of what looks fit what individual the best. The types of cuts in the world are just as unique as the people. You can trust that after the counseling the staff will move in a direction that will bring out the most flattering results rather than just the best looking hair cut.

hair & beauty STORIA Ginza

A fashion-forward and trendy salon, the focus here is working on creating the best look for NOW. What are your plans, going on a first date? Focusing on work this month? Looking to chill out in cafe’s this week? STORIA wants to focus on the now to create a style that can really bring out your personality as well as your lifestyle and goals. Hair is more than just hair at this salon. The hours here are convenient and the service is great, give this one a try.

PLAISIRS

Run by a talented woman, PLAISIRS is a small salon with a delicate and girly atmosphere. Focusing especially on treatments here, a shiny and healthy texture is the goal here. Of course treatments are important in achieving this, but the way the hair is cut is also a big factor. If hair is cut incorrectly it can also cause damage and long lasting effects. This is careful considered at PLAISIRS.

This salon works to make small and precise changes to hair cuts to really accentuate and flatter each individual. The cutting techniques here are unparalleled, try this cute salon in Ginza and support your local business women.

hair & life design TREE

This modern salon is relaxing and luxurious. This salon specifically caters to busy workers. With complementary spa treatments to settle down after a long week, to creating cuts specifically to minimizing styling efforts. If you’re looking for a style that only requires a quick dry, this is definitely the spot for you.

This salon also has a nice selection of products for care that you can purchase and bring home with you. Maintaining the health of your hair is important for keeping easy to work with styles. If you’re looking for a relaxing salon that you can wind down at after work, this is salon for you.

7 inch

7 inch is run by a well-known stylist RYU who is known for his cutting techniques. He strives to create minimal, basic designs that never go out of style, and are easy to work with. Specifically this salon likes to create shorter hair styles. 7 inch says around 70% of their customers actually only come for a cut, and nothing more.

The sleek, metal and concrete interior is very clean and modern, with soft electronic music in the background you really can feel why many younger people are attracted to this salon. If you’re looking for the ultimate everyday wear style, try out 7 inch.

Fortuna

This salon is run by and operated only by women, and the owner Sunohara has won numerous awards for her works and her salon. This salon employs a unique method coming from Italy, where the hair is cut after twisting it to create styles with more dimension and flow.

An interesting point of this salon is they don’t use tap water here. The piping was completely renovated and replaced with a store wide filtering system. They believe that pure water helps ensure healthier hair during washes and treatments. Give this business a try and you won’t be disappointed.