It has been another amazing month with so many incredible milestones this July. I fully intended to have this blog ready a couple of months ago, but I have had so much going on that I am playing catch up with my content!
At the start of the month I almost forgot that, this July, NU-U LAB (formerly Black Stone Laser Clinic / NU-U Laser and Aesthetics) is 8 years old this month! Yup… the clinic has been so busy, and with a couple of personal projects on the side, it only occurred to me last week that it was the clinics 8th year anniversary.
Things are much calmer this week and I’m glad I have this time and head space to sit, realign and write this blog.
On reflection, this has not been an easy journey, and it was born out of quitting my job for a huge law firm and searching for something that gave me purpose and job satisfaction.
When I left my job, I started cleaning for friends. It was the perfect antidote to the stressful career I had. I wasn’t having a great time, and cleaning was a no brainer on many levels. I did this for a couple of years whilst trying to figure out what my next move would be. My husband at the time (hugely successful tattoo artist) suggested that I learn how to remove tattoos, so that we could work together and create a one stop shop. It was a great idea and I set about studying for 8 months to get my basic laser qualification to get going. I carried on cleaning and juggling clients in the laser clinic, which initially, was a purpose built cupboard under the stairs in his tattoo studio!
Slowly I began to build a client base. Then I moved into laser hair removal…. the rest is history. I struggled to find the right place for the clinic for a long time, and moved into a friends place for a while, then into the town hall in Hebden Bridge with other practitioners with various backgrounds and services. It worked well. I was able to steadily build on the lasers I had purchased, upgrade one and buy new machines including a cryolipolysis machine and my absolute star treatment - hydrafacial.
Unfortunately just before covid my husband and I decided to separate, and then in 2020 covid hit. No one could have anticipated this. It was devastating for everyone. It was the start of a very stressful period in my life. I moved house, got divorced, my dad died alone in lockdown, I had a serious accident and nearly killed myself falling down stairs, both my cats got run over… and I had no income or savings, and lets not forget the hideousness of having to home school for 12 months.
I had invested everything I had into new lasers and equipment and I was broke. Looking back, I have no idea how I survived that 12 months. It was horrific.
My industry was the first to lock down and the last to open. I knew if the business was to survive post lockdown I would have to make some bold moves… so I did and, to be honest, I really didn’t have anything else to lose at that point. I took on a premises on the high street, used the grants I had in lockdown to start again, I rebranded and just got on with it. It was literally a case of sink or swim.
Every penny I made went back into the business. I took on a leading skincare brand (that they discontinued 12 months into me working with them) I upgraded equipment, bought new equipment and, eventually branched out into medic led skincare and aesthetics myself. I had some awful experiences with outside practitioners, so I retrained as an advanced aesthetics practitioner so I never had to deal with those kind of issues again. It was tough going, hugely expensive… but I did it.
Coming out of lockdown I also resurrected HOT GOSSIP (my women in business networking events) to raise up other women in my community that were also facing similar issues, stepping back into work after lockdown.
In January this year, I felt like I needed to realign the business. Recalculating is so important to me. Moving and changing direction is essential to business growth and purpose. Being authentic in your mission transcends.
I further studied to be a menopause wellness coach in a bid to add value, support and guidance for my clients on their menopause journeys. Starting with peri-menopause is just another thing I am trying to overcome on my own personal journey. as a single, self employed mum. Being of service to other women is so important to me, and I am wildly passionate about women raising up women. I know how much I have struggled with hormonal issues since the age of 15, and becoming a menopause coach felt like the missing piece in the jigsaw to complete and make sense to my business model. I have been non stop studying for the past 3 years really. I now work with a leading menopause coach in my community to offer free support to other ladies at our menopause meet up club every 6 weeks.
What has come from all this has been miraculous. I now have my own podcast with industry experts, features in leading industry publications and, gaining a business award for best laser clinic in Calderdale.
Sat here writing this, I can see just how far I have come and how much resilience I have had to keep the business going and moving forward.
Today … I feel super proud. I would love to hear from other women with similar journeys…
Here’s to the next 8 years x