An offer of a free beer may have paid off when Pieri Mazzone opened up his first barbers in a town centre.

Thirty five years later he may not be offering pints on the house, but he is still serving some of the same customers at one of the longest established businesses in Chatham.

The first to walk through the door of PJ's in the High Street was Mick Kiernan, who was working at Chatham Dockyard at the time.

Like many, the health and safety manager, had spotted the flyer advertising a cut and blow dry for and beer – and he has been going for his monthly trim ever since.

The two men have become friends over the years and Mick's son Daniel heads for a haircut as soon he lands off the plane from Australia where he now lives.

Pieri, 61, whose family moved from Italy to Gravesend, left school and got a job as an accountant for three years before helping out sweeping floors at a local salon.

He said: "I hated working in an office staring at four walls and doing audits.

"Suddenly I had contact with people and I loved it. Perhaps if I'd walked into a restaurant the same thing would have happened."

Pieri trained at a Vidal Sasoon's salon in London's West End and soon picked up his coiffeuring skills landing a job in Gravesend.

He initially took over a shop across the road with wife Jane and the couple came up with the name PJs the day before opening on Saturday February 20, 1988.

The stylist moved into his current premises, a former chemist, a few years later as trade boomed.

He recalled his first day: "I thought the beer might encourage people to come in. It was 10.30am and I already had a shop full of men."

Over the years he has had to keep in top of the different trends particularly when he went from a traditional barbers to a unisex hairdressers and more women came in.

In the early days, many of them dockyard workers, would favour a flat top and women in the 80s would plump for a layered bob or perm.

When David Beckham played in the 2002 World cup he had a queue outside his shop with lads requesting the mini mohican he sported on the pitch.

"I thought the beer might encourage people to come in. It was 10.30am and I already had a shop full of men."

Today, most males go for a skin fade while ladies are favouring long coloured locks.

His loyal clientele has built up and he has seen generations of families using his services.

His clients include TV'S Dr Ranj who was born in Chatham and has worked at Medway Maritime Hospital.

The resident This Morning GP, who has appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, has since moved to London, but he and his family still come in to be styled by Pieri.

Craig Mackinlay, Conservative South Thanet MP, who grew up in Medway, was a councillor and has a house in Rochester, and is also a regular.

Pieri, a father of four and now recently a granddad, can't imagine doing any other job and has no plans to retire any time soon.

He added: "I've been through recesssions and Covid. It was unbelievably busy after lockdown.

"We were working seven nights a week up until 9pm catching up and correcting home cuts.

"I am so eternally grateful to my customers and my staff. I could not have made it for so long without them."

His fellow stylist Clare Durrant has worked with him for the last 30 years.

And one things for sure Mick, his first customer all those years ago, still thinks he's a cut above the rest.