Day 5: Stepping out of Education and into the Working World

Considering coming into the Spa Industry? Paula shares her journey into the industry and advises how you can yourself apart as a newly qualified therapist.

Paula, Senior Therapist at the beautiful Spa at Carden Park shares her experience having come into the industry later in life. She now supports less experience therapists in the spa and ensures they’re enjoying their day of work.

How did you come into the beauty spa industry?

I worked abroad for a long time on private yachts. When I came back, I didn't really know what I wanted to do. I fell into event management and then set up my own beauty business in the evenings. Eventually I decided I wanted to change career and work in a spa.

What qualifications did you do?

I’d taken lots of individual qualifications in beauty (nails, lashes and brows). When I decided to change my full-time career, I went back to college and did a level three in massage therapy and electrical facials.

How long did it take you to qualify?

I worked and did the qualification at the same time. It took probably about eight or nine months in total.

What do you love most about your job?

I’ve recently been promoted to a senior therapist and one of the big things for me, is making sure that the girls love their day, and that they've always got somebody there on hand to help them with any questions about the treatments, or about the products that we use in those treatments and how they can give the best service to the client.

What advice would you give to newly qualified therapist?

It can be quite hard going in and learning all of the different treatment routines. It's quite a fast paced industry. And it's just stick at it, it's so rewarding. You get to learn so much and speak to so many different people.

How can they set themselves apart?

My advice to lots of the girls that start here is, even though you might have six or seven clients a day, it's about making that client from the minute that you pick them up to the minute you drop them off, about making them feel special.

Does the myth of less experienced mean a therapists cannot perform a quality treatment?

I think it's not so much about the time it's about commitment about how much commitment you put into learning and how much you take away from your work colleagues.