While Patterson didn’t have any formal business training or education, he grew up in a family that used a lot of business sense.

“My mom and dad were both organized people,” Patterson recalled. “Dad ran a youth football program in our city. He was a park commissioner. And he was a guy who ran things. He was the pioneer. My mom was a great supporter. She took care of the bills. She paid the bills and made sure that everything was done. They never flaunted money or overextended themselves. They were always, ‘Let’s look at the price. Let’s make sure we save. Let’s be prepared for the storm.’ I would say it was more innate in me.”

While Patterson and the barbers in his shop project a unified business with each wearing the same uniform, the business is actually Patterson and the barbers who rent chairs from him as independent contractors.

“They pay me weekly for the chair,” Patterson said. “I don’t give any money back to them. They keep their money and pay me. They wouldn’t be considered independent contractors in that sense. They do have their own establishment license. They have their liability insurance. They do their own taxes.”

In 2003, JP Hair Design expanded to eight chairs and offered pedicures, manicures and massage, utilizing a $25,000 loan from US Bank. Everything was going well until some of his barbers began to “age out” and had their own business going inside of JP Hair Design.

“I went from $300 per week from each barber to $150 per week,” Patterson said. “That’s just the way it was. Once you get your license and work for two years, you get your manager’s license and you rent a chair. I didn’t project that out. At that point, the expenses were rising. My income was lower and plateaued out. I would say from 2007-2013, I had to hump behind my chair to make ends meet. The shop was blowing up. We had so many people coming through the shop that it looked like I was making a lot of money. The barbers were. But the money wasn’t coming to me. That was a rough time. In 2013, my 10-year lease was up. And I was able to renegotiate my rent. And then I had a couple of other loans that matured at that time. I would never go back there again. That was my learning lesson.”

Patterson had always wanted to own his own building. And he let his landlord know it.

“The previous landlord knew that I had been looking for property,” Patterson said. “He knew that I wanted to get my own building, even when we redid the lease in 2017. I wanted a buyout clause because I was trying to find my own place. He decided he wanted to sell. He called me and another tenant to the table. He asked us if we wanted to buy. We looked at each other. Her name is ‘Bug.’ We said, ‘Let’s do it. Let’s try to do it.’ The city of Madison had a commercial ownership association grant. It’s a forgivable loan. It’s called the COA. We were able to apply for that and get it. The purchase price for the property was $2.9 million. We were able to get a loan from the city. Then the landlord did a self-finance for 10 percent of the sale price. We got $190,000 from the previous landlord. We are paying him back. But those two together gave us enough for a down-payment with some money that we put in. We were able to come with a down-payment and we also put money together for an emergency fund. Our landlord was excited that we were able to make it work. Bug and I were excited.”

Bug and Patterson formed Patterson & Richardson Properties as the vehicle to purchase the buildings. They purchased the buildings right after COVID-19 hit. And while retail and office vacancies soared during the pandemic, Bug and Patterson were blessed.

“The great thing about this is I was really good with my landlord,” Patterson said. “He shared things with me about the property. I did extra stuff here at the property. He knew that I cared about the property and JP Hair Design. During the time that we were off, none of the tenants in all three buildings missed any payments. Everyone here was solid. We were off for 10 weeks here at the shop. We came back and everyone came back. All of the barbers came back and everything was good. For this property, COVID-19 didn’t affect it. I was blessed all day.”

Even today, the buildings are 100 percent occupied. Patterson has decided to expand by creating 568 Studios, to give others their start in a small studio like he did 25 years ago. And the Urban League of Greater Madison came through with an assist to help make it happen.

“I applied for the Generator Grant,” Patterson said. “I was able to get that. It was for $50,000. That $50,000 helped me open up 568 Studios, so I was able to expand. I was able to get the work like the plumbing, electrical and cabinetry done. I wouldn’t have been able to pull that off without the Urban League’s grant.”

While Patterson feels that he has been fortunate, he has also placed himself in a position to make it happen. He has been frugal with his resources, given back to the community through events like the Back-to-School Free Haircut event at the Alliant Energy Center and knew that customer and public relations were key to business success.

“I always tell my guys here, ‘You are always auditioning,’” Patterson confided. “You are always being watched. Every action counts. You just don’t know who is following you. Everyone is meeting someone. Even if you don’t think you are worth anything, someone is watching you. You can influence someone.’ That’s built into me. Everything I do, I’m liked, ‘I have to watch what I do. I have to watch what I say. People are watching. I want to be good soil to the people around me.’ That’s the thing about my landlord here. He saw how I took care of the business. He saw the shop on the news and the positive thigs. He saw what we did in the community. And I felt he wanted to be a part of it. He wanted to bless me and Bug for what we had been doing. When he was moving slow on the maintenance, I could have called him up and been a jerk. But that doesn’t work, especially when you have a goal to do things. You have to know that your actions mean something.”

And while Patterson is firmly grounded in the present to ensure that JP Hair Design remains successful, he also always has one eye on the future.

“I just think it is important to project out, and find out what your goal is,” Patterson emphasized. “Everything you do should be a part of getting to that goal. One of my professional goals is to be a program director for a barber program at Madison College. That’s one of my professional goals. I want to get there. In order to get there, everything I do, I want to make sure it pads that resume. I teach barber classes. I do consulting. I work on the Wisconsin State Barber Advisory Board. The things that are going to pad that, I’m going to do that even if it is volunteering. So when that opportunity comes, I will be able to lay out, ‘This is the path I’ve traveled along and this is what I have done.’”

While JP Hair Design has had its share of challenges and growth over the past 25 years, it has made it through any difficulties it encountered due to the even-keel approach that Patterson takes towards his business. And it has grown due to the quality of service that Patterson provides through JP Hair Design and out in the community. It’s a winning combination.