The 10 Most Ambitious Women in Business to Follow, 2022
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veryone deserves to feel great about the way they look. It was this belief that led Diana Jenner to found Orchids Retreat.
Diana turned her passion for beauty into a boutique Beauty Salon that genuinely cares about the wellbeing of its clients. From starting her career by working in a Spa to running an award-winning salon, she has come a long way. At Orchids, she creates tailored programs to suit each client's individual needs of Chemical Peels, Mesotherapy, and Customised Facials to promote and maintain healthy skin. Inspired by her urge to take beauty industry to the new heights, we at Insights Success caught up with Diana to learn more about her journey and Orchids Retreat. Below are the highlights of the interview: Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at Orchids Retreat. What challenges did you overcome to reach where you are today? My career in the beauty industry began working in a Spa at the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas whilst attending University Nevada Las Vegas. I always wanted to own my own business, and as a lifelong passion for beauty, I wanted to have my own salon. My Dad told me that I couldn't go to beauty school as I needed a formal education not just to learn a trade skill; he wouldn't even let me attend an evening massage course whilst at university. Instead, I got a job in the spa whilst studying at UNLV to gain hands-on experience. Fast forward a few years, and I moved to England to be near my Mom. In Europe they offer Beauty Therapy courses that teach you a variety of skills, so I enrolled in every course possible. For a year, I attended holistic, beauty and advanced courses full-time during the day as well as
evening and weekends, so I completed three years of courses in one year. Now it was time to gain some experience in the industry. I started my own business called Orchids Hideaway and set up a treatment room in my bedroom at home. This expanded to a two bed house with one room just for salon use; while building up my own clientele, I was working in a salon and managing a bar and restaurant to make ends meet. I then took a job with Virgin Atlantic to see the world and visit spas and salons around the globe. In 2008, I gave up my wings and bought my first salon on the top floor of a hair salon. I was enjoying training and sharing my passion as I grew the team, so I gained my teaching qualification from Greenwich University to enable me to teach beauty. Teaching, running a salon, and growing a family proved to be too much to juggle, so the next chapter was to be a solopreneur. I kept a treatment room on the coast and took up a residency at the Soho Hotel in London, which gave me the opportunity to host seasonal skincare events for beauty magazines, bloggers and treat celebrity clientele. It was a fantastic experience, and I'm so grateful to Kit Kemp for the opportunity. The pandemic proved difficult for many, but with grit and motivation, I was determined to swim upstream and provide wellbeing for the community. Last summer, I opened a sixtreatment room beauty and wellbeing clinic. And, we now have a team of twelve to offer beauty, holistic, wellbeing and advanced aesthetic services. Tell us something more about Orchids Retreat, its mission and vision. Orchids Retreat's mission is to help others put their best face forward. To educate our team and clients about how to care and maintain a healthy body and glowing skin all year
April 2022 | 26 | insightssuccess.com
