I asked him why not. He told me that he used to take bookings, and stopped for a few reasons:
1. A lot of people book appointments and don’t show up, or show up late, causing him down time and reduces his income. If a regular client shows up late for his 30 minute appointment does he make another customer - also booked - wait?
2. He can cut some people’s hair in 15 minutes while others it might take 40. By having booking it limits this flexibility. He can also charge more or less depending on how long it takes.
3. Walk ins are self regulating. People know when it’s likely to be busy and when it’s likely to be quieter. If they don’t mind waiting they come at a busy time. If they want to be in and out quickly they go off peak.
I switched to a place that's more expensive but has appointments. Not wasting 1-2h is worth an extra $10.
Perhaps if your barber is that busy (because I assume he's that good), you could stop by and make an appointment in person?
sure, you could. but that also means interrupting him while he's working - if he doesn't have time to answer the phone, he also doesn't have time to deal with you in person. it's just ruder to ignore you when you show up in person.
Anecdotally, I have heard that some people will get a homeless person to hold their spot in line at a locally popular BBQ spot.