Wacky, wavy inflatable tube men get me to smile every time I drive by.

Like carnival barkers of old, those flailing inflatables grab the attention of passersby and suggest there’s something inside they won’t want to miss.

While driving through the city this week, I was entertained by two fan‑powered, barbershop‑themed Air Dancers — one on North Fifth Street and another on Schuylkill Avenue. Neither corridor is exactly hurting for barbershops or styling salons.

I counted seven barbershops and salons in the 200 and 300 blocks of North Fifth alone. You could call that stretch “Barbershop Row.”

There are plenty of reasons behind this concentration of barbers and beauticians.

For one, barber schools are enrolling aspiring stylists in nearly every corner of the city: Reading Barber Institute at 810 Oley St.; American Barber and Beauty Academy at 733 Lancaster Ave.; and Berks Barber School — formerly Charlie G. Haynes Barber School — at 432 Schuylkill Ave. Just north of the city, Empire Beauty School offers cosmetology training and a salon at 2302 N. Fifth Street in Muhlenberg Township.

Many graduates naturally aspire to open their own shop after renting a chair elsewhere and earning their chops.

Storefront availability at an affordable price is another major factor in the clustering of hair shops on North Fifth. If you’re opening a barbershop, you want a highly visible location near other businesses — a place where your façade can catch the eye and walk‑ins feel welcome.

Fifth Street has that traditional Main Street feel, unlike corridors such as Washington Street, which decades ago were converted into one‑way thoroughfares designed more for cars than pedestrians.

Fifth Street also has metered parking on both sides. No one wants to park in a multilevel garage for a haircut. You want to be close enough to see your car — and the approaching parking‑authority meter checker.

It’s a net positive that so many stylists are investing in small businesses downtown, filling storefronts that might otherwise sit empty. But not all of these start‑ups survive. Behind some barber poles sit a vacant shop.

The two‑block stretch is a mix of sturdy row homes — many converted to apartments — along with office buildings and churches. The potential for a meaningful economic revival is easy to see.

The most prominent structure is the Depression‑era Medical Arts Building at 230 N. Fifth. Designed by Frederick A. Muhlenberg, founder of Muhlenberg Greene Architects, the Art Deco high‑rise once housed doctors and dentists. Mostly vacant since the 1980s, it’s on the home stretch of a multiyear renovation by Schuman Development Group, transforming it into luxury apartments and retail space.

The Medical Arts Building will include 55 offices, a first‑floor pharmacy, and a coffee shop in the basement.

On the not‑too‑distant horizon, prospective barbershop owners may find it harder to secure a storefront on North Fifth.

And that would be a sign of progress.