19/07/2026
Ten years ago this week. How can that possibly be true?
In July 2016, The Haven on the Loch was named Salon of the Year for North West England and Scotland at the Professional Beauty Regional Awards.
The trophy may have carried the name of the business, but it belonged to the whole team. It represented years of hard work, training, creativity, laughter, occasional chaos and a shared determination to make every guest feel genuinely cared for.
By then, The Haven had grown from one therapist and two treatment rooms into three locations, with 14 members of staff and a rather crowded awards shelf. What made me proudest was that we were recognised not only for our treatments and business growth, but also for the customer experience we created together.
The Haven chapter closed in 2022, but everything it taught me has stayed with me: how to build a team, create experiences people want to return to, communicate with customers and understand a wellness business from the inside rather than simply looking in from the marketing department.
Still proud. Still grateful. And still slightly alarmed that 2016 was ten years ago. Where did that decade go? š
