The Man Behind The Monkey

For as long as I can remember, I’ve seen this man in a monkey mask waving to me as I drive up Asbury road.  So who is this mystery man?  Today you get to meet Andrew Kirk…

My son Jacob always insists.

“Dad!  Wave to the monkey!”

While I’ve been doing this for quite some time, I decided a few weeks ago to finally stop and meet this person that’s been randomly waving to me and my family for all these months.

After getting permission from the nice folks at Great Clips, I made my way out to introduce myself to the monkey.

His name is Andrew Kirk, a 22 year old guy from Dubuque who’s been waving to cars since Great Clips open their doors at 4840 Asbury Road by Subway.  Here’s what I got from him during our interview:

Me:  Why do you do this?

Monkey:  It was time for me to find a job and I thought it would be a fun first job.

Me:  What is the purpose of you (as a monkey) waving to cars?

Monkey:  I basically do advertising for Great Clips by waving and drawing attention to the store.

Me:  So what does a monkey do when he’s not working?

Monkey:  I spend time at home.  I like to play video games.

Me:  What’s the funniest thing to happen to you while you were out waving to cars?

Monkey:  Nothing out of the ordinary.  People do like to honk and wave.

Me:  So why a monkey?

Monkey:  Great Clips made that decision.

Me:  Does it get hot under that mask?

Monkey:  Sometimes, but it’s not been as bad as last year.  During the 2013 drought we had much hotter days!

Me:  What’s the secret to getting people to wave?

Monkey:  Be friendly and wave!

When I was done speaking to Andrew I stopped back into Great Clips and spoke to the manager Kaitlyn, who told me it’s always fun to see him out on the corner when you’re coming into work.  It definitely brings in customers!

Stop in and see your friends at Great Clips for your next cut… and be sure to wave to the monkey!

~CMF