News - July 28th 2025
A reflection of the last two decades
I can’t believe that this year, 2025, marks my 20th year in business at The Edge Health and Beauty in Wotton-under-Edge. It’s a landmark that I’m immensely proud of, and worth the hard work and constant challenges that are inevitable with setting up and running your own business.
So, it’s not been easy, but deciding to work for myself came quite naturally because I grew up with family members who set that example. From the age of 11 I worked with my late dad at his fish shop in Dursley and later at Bunter’s in Wotton, with both Mum and Dad.
My parents were great at customer service, and I hope I have followed their example. By the age of 16, I was taking quite a bit of responsibility and, looking back, I’m quite proud of doing that at such a young age.
I wasn’t at all academic at school, and I don’t remember any constructive careers advice, so I went with what I wanted and enrolled on a three-year hair and beauty course at Brunel College in Bristol. I finished the course in 1999 on a high with ‘student of the year’ award.
My first job, while I was still training, was at The Clifton Beauty Company in Bristol and then I moved away for my first spa therapist role at Hoar Cross Hall in Staffordshire, followed by a couple of amazing years in salons aboard cruise ships during my early 20s, which was a blast! After that I felt I needed a career break, so I enrolled on a fantastic 12-week personal development programme with the Prince’s Trust, which sparked my interest in the mind. As a result, I went to university to do psychology, but left after a year (too much maths!!) and returned to the Prince’s Trust to run the personal development programmes for 16 to 25-year-olds as assistant team leader
Then, aged 25, I had the confidence to start my own business, treating my first client on my birthday on 28 July, 2005, working initially from my parents’ house in Haw Street, Wotton. Alongside this I began teaching health and beauty to young NEETS (young people not in education or training) at Gloscat College and working in a local salon. Already, I was learning to juggle several workstreams.
January 2007 was a big moment – when I had sufficient clients to move the business into Chipping Manor in Wotton, where The Edge Health and Beauty salon remains to this day. At first, I worked alone in just one room, but now the salon has five treatment rooms, 12 staff and a wide range of products.
More recently, I’ve had two children, Molly in 2013 and Luke in 2017, and in 2023, with my former salon receptionist, Deb Maers, opened a second business, Edge Therapy Rooms, in Dursley, where therapists with a variety of expertise come to rent rooms. I’m conscious that it can feel lonely running a business, and I wanted to open a place where they could connect and support each other.
I have also undertaken further training for myself, so I now offer specialist laser skin treatments, and, following a foundation year in psychotherapy and counselling at Bath Centre for Psychotherapy and Counselling (BCPC), I run coaching sessions and workshops for women from the Dursley property. I have always believed that, by investing more in myself, I can feed my passion for helping people, particularly women and young people. The coaching proves that point and I absolutely love bringing women together in the workplace to share what I’ve learned over the years and advise them on handling impact versus burnout (and yes, I am still learning about that!).
Over the years, I have forged a solid link with Kathrine Lady Berkely School (where I was a pupil) which has sent students to gain life experience and new skills working with my team and I at the salon. Over the next few months, I’m hoping I can use this experience to launch a new project, a more structured programme of support for young people who need a new way of learning, who might not be getting along well at school, or who are at risk of falling out of education altogether. For the time being, this project must remain up my sleeve, but when I have an idea driven passion, I’m determined, so watch this space.
Looking back, I’ve packed a lot into the last 20 years and I’m proud of my achievements. Everybody’s different, but there are certain aspects of myself that I’ve realised have been key to success. Firstly, I love my work, I am passionate about helping people and I remain fascinated by people.
Secondly, I work really hard and I’m immensely curious – always looking for ways to improve the business and myself – definitely a chicken and egg situation.
Finally, I’ve accepted that running my own business will never be smooth, so I’m not put off when things don’t go to plan. It helps that I’m tenacious, driven and goal orientated.
My best advice to people starting out in business is to view setbacks as learning experiences and to seek advice wherever and whenever it’s available. It’s not been easy, but I’m still standing.
I wonder what the next 20 years will bring?