Demi Brown and Olivia Summers didn’t let age get in the way, when they decided to launch their own beauty salon five years ago.
The business minded pair may have been in the early twenties, but they knew exactly what Peterhead was in need of.
A little bit of glam, and a sprinkle of what the duo like to term as “extra”, Sheer Beauty on Kirk Street has been a huge success.
Demi, 29 and Olivia, 26, offer a range of services and are busier than ever having reopened following the pandemic.
But they didn’t just sit around during lockdown, and believe they may well have the answer to dry hands caused by hand sanitiser.
Jungle Fever is their very own range of cuticle oil, and comes in three different scents.
From preventing rag nails to keeping your manicure in tip top condition, the product has already had to be restocked since it launched last month.
We caught up with Olivia and Demi to find out why they’re passionate about the beauty industry, and what could be next.
Team work makes the dream work
It’s clear that the pair are more than just business partners, having forged a fierce friendship during their time working together.
“We actually used to work together at a different salon, before we ended up taking this place over,” says Olivia, who was just 21 when she came on board.
“Now we have a makeup artist and a Saturday girl, we both love what we do.
“I think we’re very alike, we love making things extra and we both love a theme.
“We’re just on the same page, and we’re always bouncing ideas off each other.
We will often send each other voice notes at night, just constantly sharing ideas.”
Although the salon was closed during lockdown, Olivia and Demi soon put a plan together to launch Jungle Fever.
“So we both had the idea and we started playing around with oils,” says Demi .
“We got safety assessed, designed the boxes and the labelling. Everything just came together.
“If your hands are really dry, which is quite common now due to hand sanitiser, oil soaks in better than cream.
“We did three scents to go with the theme of Jungle Fever, so we’ve got dark coconut, tropical and banana.
Sell out success
“The uptake on them has been fantastic, and tropical in particular has been really popular.”
Better yet, the pair have made sure that their product is convenient to use. Alongside dropper bottles, it also comes in the form of a pen, meaning it be easily carried about.
“We wanted our oils to be affordable for our clients and customers, as making sure their nails are healthy is our number one goal,” says Olivia.
“We’ve worked so hard on this over the past year getting our packaging and labelling just right.
.”We wanted to create a product we could recommend to clients, and know exactly what benefits we were providing.
We are very proud to be able to make all our oils in house, all bottled and labelled by hand.”
Although the pandemic has proved a challenging time for the beauty industry, that hasn’t stopped Sheer Beauty from being in the running for an award.
In the running
“We’ve been shortlisted for best salon and rising star at The Hair and Beauty Awards UK,” says Olivia.
“We’re so excited, and we feel that we’re different because we think outside the box.
“We’ve done a couple of themed days and we’ve also offered joint treatments, where you can come along and have treatments with your friend.
“Throughout the pandemic, it felt like all the salons came together. Not just locally, but across the UK.”
And it’s not just Peterhead where Sheer Beauty has a loyal fanbase, with clients travelling from Aberdeen and Ellon to name a few.
With restrictions lifted, Demi and Olivia believe there is even greater appreciation for the beauty industry.
No regrets
“I think people have realised that it’s not just about getting your nails or lashes done anymore,” says Demi.
“We feel like we have a friendship with our clients, especially if we see them regularly.
“It feels like we part of their family.
Although social media plays its part of the running of the business, both Demi and Olivia prefer to let their expertise speak for itself.
“We do use social media to spread the word, but having a lot of followers doesn’t necessarily mean you will have lots of clients,” says Olivia.
“We work hard and we’re flexible with our clients, particularly as an evening appointment is often better for people who have work during the day.
Our advice to anyone who is thinking about opening a salon is to just do it.”
“We have absolutely no regrets.”
You can keep up to date with Sheer beauty on their Facebook page, @sheerbeautybyolivia
This article originally appeared on the Evening Express website. For more information, read about our new combined website.
