Two of City College Coventry’s ex hairdressing apprentices joined forces three years ago to open hairdressing business Re-Vibe in Tile Hill, Coventry. Rachel Sheen and Emma McKinney met when working at another hairdressing salon together as Stylist and junior stylist respectively.
Rachel said, “I had always wanted more than I had. Opening a salon was a dream I wanted to make come true. Emma and I got on really well and she wanted the same things as me so going into business together seemed like the natural step.”
Re-Vibe opened in 2005, and having had some support from Women in Business and the Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (LEGI) now employ six members of staff and is a thriving small business seeing over one hundred clients a week.
Apprentice of the Year
Emma McKinney won Apprentice of the Year when she was at the college seven years ago and now employs two apprentices of her own.
Emma said, “Being an apprentice is an ideal start to a career in hairdressing. At college you learn the theory and get an opportunity to practice your skills and within the salon environment you learn how the business works from the most basic tasks like sweeping the floor and hair washing through to colouring and cutting and eventually you build up your own client base.”
Clare Gatehouse and Sian Lindsay are both progressing through their apprenticeship training while working at Re-Vibe. Clare is a junior stylist and been training for two years. An ambitious girl herself she is set to enter a National Hairdressing Federation competition later in the year and her bosses have high hopes for success.
Benefits to learning on the job
Sian is just starting her second year of training at City College and admits she always wanted to be a hairdresser. “I was interested in hairdressing when I was at school and worked at the salon on a Saturday. I have really enjoyed my training so far. Going to college has helped teach me some basic techniques and it has enabled me to meet and compare notes with other hairdressers.”
Apprenticeships are the key way to enter the hairdressing profession and either Emma or Rachel hesitated in employing apprentices. “We can see the benefits to learning on the job and going to college one day a week. We would certainly take on other apprentices should the business warrant it.”