Why can’t the guys be pampered a little too?

“D.C. men have come a long way,” said Antoinette Wysocki, vice president of The Grooming Lounge, a downtown male-oriented hair salon. “The horrible labeling of metro-sexual isn’t around any more. Men are now much more open to taking care of themselves.”

Wysocki attributes much of this to the influx of men’s magazines and grooming product lines. The comfortable experience and great feeling at the end of a visit is the company’s goal, Wysocki said.

Founders Michael Gilman and Pirooz Sarshar opened the downtown D.C. shop, at 1120 Connecticut Ave. NW, in March 2002. Gilman grew up around his parents’ grooming products distribution business. Sarshar worked as a hairstylist and also created a line of children’s luxury hair products before working with Gilman to create the Grooming Lounge.

The two turned their reputation as grooming consultants to their buddies into a company, which now has three stores — in downtown D.C., Tyson’s Corner, Va., and Atlanta — as well as an expanding product line.

Wysocki said that the clientele is “men who just want to look good and feel good — those who value the idea of a luxury experience.”

Certainly athletes, entertainment stars and politicians accompanied by Secret Service agents are among the common clientele, but their wishes to go undetected are respected.

“That’s who we are,” Wysocki said. “We let them have their secrecy.”

Wysocki understands that many men wouldn’t seek out the pampered treatment on their own. “A lot of it starts with wives and girlfriends buying gift certificates,” she said. “There’s always a woman behind something successful.”

The Grooming Lounge’s services include shaves, haircuts, massages, hand and foot treatments, and waxes (including the “Rock & Roll back wax” which, Grooming Lounge staff believe, warrants a shot of whiskey and a bit of heavy music). They also offer several packages, including the combination manicure/foot treatment/facial/hot lather shave known as “The Inauguration.”

Wysocki anticipates that the Grooming Lounge product line will also expand to meet men’s demand for not only hair products, but also products for eyes and skin. Shave products, including the best-selling Beard Destroyer Shave Cream, are offered now, but a new haircare line, which includes shampoo, conditioner, and, well, “goop,” is set to launch next month. Grooming Lounge also offers products from lines like ZIRH, Geo Trumper and Jack Black in its stores and online.

“The stores were our babies,” Wysocki said. “The product line was created after experimentation in the shops. Men can use the same products [at home] that are used in our services.”

Wysocki mentioned a blog feature on the company website, www.groominglounge.com , which was launched about a year ago. “The blog has different hints on what’s going on in the grooming world,” she said.

A major goal of Grooming Lounge is to educate men on how to better care for themselves. “That’s the whole piece of who we are,” Wysocki said.