About
My name is Charlotte Fletcher, but please call me Charlie. This is my story of how my business came to be.
A good many years ago I was obsessed with all things art and performing arts. Even at primary school I joined a local amateur dramatics theatre company, and was soon doing the make up for the other extra roles. In secondary school I specialised in art and performing arts - with a focus on set design, make up, costume and acting. In 1996 I started my performing arts BTEC, focusing over the two years on: make up, costume, set design, acting, dance, lighting, marketing, media, script analysis and prop making.
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Then as a teenager life drew me in, so off I went to live it. I worked as a dresser at the Grand Theatre in Wolverhampton for a time. Though eventually the need to make a liveable living took over, and by necessity I moved away from what I loved.
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Then after having my son in 2000, I started working in party plan for three very different but well known companies. It was when starting with one of these companies who did beauty and make up parties. So in 2002 I made the choice to retrain, initially it was to learn more about make up and gain an understanding of beauty, to benefit the company I was working with. I fast discovered that working mobile with my own business in make up and beauty, I would make more money than to continue working with another company...well that''s what I thought then! And so I started my trip back from the other side to the industry I love, with a young child I started focused more on the beauty end, with the clear vision that a route into make up was my goal.
I started to do my early research, meet with the local Princes Trust and Business Link and on doing so I was advised to consider applying for a small business start up grant through NES (New Entrepreneur Scholarship). This was when I realised I had started with my vision blinkered, there were so many unconsidered aspects to what I was planning. Like the mass of paper work just to apply for the grant that would then cover the enormous mounting costs.
Eventually after completing my first beauty course, with the help of the job centre, as at this point I was claiming Jobseekers allowance (JSA); I had to start working mobile earlier than planned and with the blessing of the job centre a little disruption to my claim of money from them, I was awarded a small grant to buy my treatment couch and a few accessories and start treating my first customers. These customers were to start with friends and customers from my days as a party planner, and to those of you I still treat a big thank you. Had it not been for those early days that helped to fund what I was unable to apply for in my NES grant, I would not have got off the ground.
In June 2005 my grant was awarded in full, I had secured a rented room in a Tanning business in Walsall, the owner of which was a new customer! I then entered the test trading period with the job centre and I was now working full time with new customers everyday. But in September 2005 problems hit the tanning salon I was working from went under, leaving me with no premises again. I started to work mobile again as it was what I was doing before had to claim JSA again as I was not working full time anymore. In December of the same year I was lucky to find a building for lease only a few doors away from where I was renting a room before in Walsall.
After a lot of hard work with the help of friends and my husband I opened my salon at 44a Bradford Street, in mid January 2006. Decorating had only finished the day before I opened and the sunbed had not yet been delivered, but having no choice the salon opened with one customer booked in and no shop sign!
Because I had a son how was not of school age through most of the set up period, I was not able to attend college full time to gain all of my qualifications, so instead studied part-time in the evenings and at weekends to become fully qualified. Now originally I wanted to work solely with make up but to be practical with a young child and on the advice of tutors. I owned and ran my business offering beauty, to my customers until my son is of an age where I could become more fully involved in the make up industry. At the same time as studying for my beauty qualifications, I also studied for my make up ones, I have always had active work in the make up industry just not full time or London based.
My vision for the salon however, was to create a business unique and very unlike the stereo types. I wanted a warm yet clean inviting salon, with warmth from the staff as well as the location. Due to the restriction I currently have on employing staff which, is due to the huge additional insurance cost, it is still just myself working "why employ staff to do a job I perfectly capable of doing myself".
I have asked my regular customers why it is that they chose my salon and why they still come, especially those who are not local and will travel in excess of 20 miles to be treated by me. Originally it was to give me content for the first incarnation of this site, but instead I chose to tell my story. Still the answers I got were interesting: You like the warm welcome, my banter, the extreme lack of stereo types, my perfectionist approach to my work and most of all, that you aren''t another number or open purse! I have also been told that I created something posh (with my walsall salon) without the expected atmosphere you would expect to go with it. It was all these things I aspired to achieve and apparently I have. I constantly strive to better myself and my work and I am so pleased that customers such as yourselves especially Saskia, Julie, Julie, Anita, Tracey, and many more including some men still give me your trade after what has so far been 15yrs professionally - THANK YOU ALL OF YOU - it is each one of you who has helped keep my business in existence.
I am sure I will still add to this story as time passes. I successfully completed my first and second years of my Certificate in Education and also completed my A1 Assessors Qualification, which meant I graduated in 2009 as a qualified teacher. As a bonus in the academic year 2008/2009, I was awarded ''Student Teacher of the Year'', which came as a shock to me and involved being presented with lovely award which I cherish along with my other two.
In September 2008 I started part-time teaching in make up and beauty, at two different colleges of further education. Then again in 2016 at yet another college.
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Thank you again all of you for your support, thank you for your reviews on the bestof.co.uk/walsall which saw me presented with a certificate in 2007 and again in 2009.
Unfortunately due to circumstances beyond my control in July/Aug 2010 - which later we all realised was the financial crash. The salon had to move. Finding new shop premises in an affordable bracket was impossible. So I moved my full business to my home and made arrangements with a Walsall hairdressers, local to my old location to offer lunch time appointments for a skeleton service. Meaning those customers who came to see me in there work lunch breaks could still do so. Eventually the hairdressers closed as the own wanted to semi retire, meaning he could work nearer to his home. I have carried on working from home and doing mobile visits, I now see people in their offices at lunch times or at their homes, if they can't get to me.
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The move to working from home, prompted the shift I had always planned to make. My son grew up understanding work commitments and demands - he is in the Army now for those of you who remember him. And I started to take on more and more make up jobs. I have had the pleasure of working with the music industry on music videos, TV entertainers, film actors, reality TV stars, huge corporate companies, magazines, new models, military organisations, but the area I do the most for is national news papers with their stories about everyday people.
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Qualifications to date
BTEC National Diploma Performing Arts
NVQ Level 2 Cosmetic Make up & Beauty Therapy VTCT
Level 2 Eyelash Perming VTCT & Amirose International
NVQ Level 2 Ear Piercing VTCT
NVQ Level 2 Fashion & Photographic Make up VTCT
NVQ Level 2 Wax Depilation VTCT
NVQ Level 2 Nail Treatments manicure & pedicure VTCT
NVQ Level 2 Nail Enhancements extensions VTCT
NVQ Level 1 Threading Depilation NOCN
NVQ Level 1 & 2 Mendhi/Henna Skin Decoration NOCN
NVQ Level 2 Beauty Specialist Techniques VTCT
Level 2 Fake Bake Training Course
Level 2 Gerard's Prescriptive Facials Training Course
Level 2 Bay Professional Acrylic & Gel Nail Extension Training Course
Helionova Sun Bed Operator Training Course
NVQ Level 3 Beauty Therapy Make Up Route + Electrolysis C & G
NVQ Level 3 Swedish Body Massage VTCT
NVQ Level 3 Health & Safety VTCT
Year 1 Level 4 Certificate in Education PGCE
A1 Assessors Award
Year 2 Level 5 Certificate in Education PGCE
QCF Level 3 First Aid at Work
I am regularly CRB checked by several organisations I work with and for, so hold several clear check certificates.
I also hold professional memberships with the following:
IFHB - International Federation of Health & Beauty Therapy
IHBC - International Health & Beauty Council
IIHHT - International Institute for Health and Holistic Therapies
BECTU - Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematograph and Theatre Union
Pro Make Up Artist - Make-up Artist Magazine
NASMAH - National Association of Screen Make-up Artists & Hairdressers (application being processed)
I am a professional practicing member of the FHT - Federation of Holistic Therapies (IFHB), I have insurance with TIS - Therapy Insurance Services Ltd, for more information on the FHT visit their site, if you do a postcode search on WS10 you will find me listed as Mrs C J Fletcher.
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