Charlie Martin always wanted to be a hairdresser, and now she’s living her dream by opening her own shop – despite the threat of the cost of living crisis.
The 35-year-old moved from East Sussex on the south coast of England to Fraserburgh as a teenager.
Her path into the beauty industry came with its own challenges, having her first child while still at school.
But Charlie remained determined, attending college when she was 18 and soon landing a job in a town centre salon.
She worked at Infinity for 12 years, eventually taking over the lease while saving for the day when she could finally get her own place.
On Hogmanay, Charlie beamed as officially opened her newly rebranded Hair Culture shop – a few doors down from her old one.
It’s a distance of a few steps from number 18 to 12 High Street, but it’s a journey that cost Charlie “absolute thousands” and represents countless hours of effort.
Charlie Martin feared for Fraserburgh salon in pandemic
Charlie had been running Infinity for years by the time Covid hit.
Salons were forced shut and people had little choice but to let their locks become a bit shaggy in spring and summer 2020.
But its impact lingers nearly three years on…
Some embraced their grey hair, opting not to return for colouring, while others visited self-employed hairdressers rather then venturing into shops.
The situation has led to many closures, and was a factor when Aberdeen’s Collective shut its Union Street premises this summer.
Charlie, who also lectures at Fraserburgh’s Nescol campus, admits there were some dark times in recent years.
She tells us: “It was horrendous, I was in a position where my income suddenly stopped, and the government support took a while.
“I was really worried in that first lockdown…”
Autumn 2020 was ‘quietest ever seen’
But when her salon opened again in the summer, customers came flocking back.
For the first couple of weeks, at least.
The months that followed were the quietest Charlie had ever seen.
While all this was going on, she took the plunge of buying 12 High Street in September 2020.
It’s something she had always wanted to do, and the ordeal of organising repairs following flooding at Infinity earlier that year convinced her to make the move.
But she concedes the timing might seem curious.
Charlie said: “I’m in my 30s and I want to be doing this for another 35-40 years, so I don’t want to be forking out on rent all that time.
“So I got it between the two lockdowns… What a time to buy a shop!
“Not only that, but I had to completely renovate it.
“I had used all my money on buying it, so I didn’t have anything to fall back on.”
Would business bounce back?
With Christmas came a new surge in Covid cases, and the UK was plunged into another strict lockdown.
The setback left Charlie fearing her business “might not survive at all”.
“It was absolute hell,” she adds.
As before, Infinity’s eventual reopening in April 2021 brought about a stream of customers eager for an overdue trim.
Charlie braced herself though, believing the same drop in trade would soon come.
But she was pleasantly surprised when numbers remained steady.
She looks back: “We came back expecting the same thing to happen… And we didn’t know if we would have the funds to continue.
“I was really scared.
“But we have thrived since then, with a lot of people in Fraserburgh choosing to support local and so many of my clients being so loyal.”
New shop harkens back to town’s past
Charlie linked with the council as part of a renovation project celebrating Fraserburgh’s past when renovating her new base.
Under the scheme, many town centre shop frontages were returned to how they looked many years ago – including 12 High Street.
And the hairdresser took things a step further with a vintage-themed makeover inside too.
Charlie adds: “It took two long years to renovate it to that extent, every spare penny has gone into this shop.”
‘I was worried before, but I’m not worried now’
Having scraped through Covid, doesn’t the cost of living crisis worry Charlie?
The hard-working mum is aware of the challenges before her, but firmly believes that people will still treat themselves when they can.
And her new, larger premises can be part of that.
She explains: “I feel like the town centre is missing that luxurious edge, places that are a little bit different…
“I was really worried before, but I’m not worried now.
“People have been through so much, and now they just want to enjoy themselves… And getting their hair done is a part of that!
“I know things are difficult but lockdown showed people how valuable life is. You have to live it.”
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