We Closed, We Cried & We Climbed the Scaffolding
Ah, 2020. We all remember how that unfolded. After just six months of trading under Liams ownership, the salon was forced to close its doors thanks to the arrival of Covid, with no idea when, or even if, we’d be opening back up.
So on Monday 23rd March, Liam was forced to officially shut up shop, sent the team home, and sat at the front desk calling clients to reschedule their appointments. In classic optimistic (and let’s be honest, slightly naive) fashion, Liam assumed we’d be back up and running in a couple of weeks.
Fast forward three months, Liam and the team were still making those same calls. Still pushing appointments back. Still waiting for some kind of reopening date that just wasn’t coming.
Rather than sitting around twiddling our thumbs, Liam and Tony used the time to start renovating the salon. The scaffolding went up over the iconic Clock Tower and the work began. And in the middle of all the uncertainty and grim headlines, climbing up to the top and taking in the view over a silent Portsmouth & Southsea was one of those rare, calm moments.
The city stood still, and it was strangely beautiful.
When we did finally reopen in July, it was full steam ahead, three months of back-to-back appointments, a waiting list out the door, and a team working at full throttle. Business was booming, but behind the scenes, it was intense. No one could’ve really prepared for what that return would feel like.
It was during that chaos that something clicked for Liam, running a salon isn’t about the owner, it’s about the people in it. The team. The ones on the floor, showing up every day, doing the work you see on our socials, and bringing their energy and creativity to every single client. Without them, and without the support from all of you, the salon simply wouldn’t be what it is.
Of course, just as we were finding our rhythm again, another curveball hit: another lockdown. This time with the added joy of a tier system that put Portsmouth businesses in limbo all over again.
