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Finalists announced for Britain's leading Beauty Awards 2017

Forty years of promoting, supporting and celebrating the beauty industry are being celebrated at this year’s sector-leading national beauty awards. Each year, the BABTAC (British Association of Beauty Therapists and Cosmetology) & CIBTAC (Confederation of International Beauty Therapy and Cosmetology) Awards recognise and reward outstanding contributions to the sector: the talented and the trail-blazers, from exceptional students to established business owners, from extraordinary therapists to the inspiring centres that train them. An impressive list of 61 finalists, each hoping to win one of the 40^th anniversary Awards, have just been announced in the run-up to the glittering award ceremony on 18^th June.

This year, to mark BABTAC’s special anniversary, the new award for ‘Lifetime Achievement/Contribution to the Industry’ throws the spotlight onto those people whose efforts, passion and commitment over the years have advanced the professionalism and status of the sector to the level it now enjoys. As a marker of how much support and commitment the beauty industry and BABTAC attract, there are seven finalists (normally categories have 2-4 finalists): Diana Jenner, Sally Durant, Suzanne Henson, Kim Ford, Julia Leone, Jenna Bailey and Carolyne Cross.

A number of other new categories have been introduced this year:

Business Management Award – in today’s digital world, what it takes to run a business changes rapidly, from how to keep accounts to how to advertise to potential clients. This award recognises how beauticians these days have to be masters of many skills, not just the beauty ones they trained in. However, for small salons and sole traders in particular, keeping up-to-date and learning new techniques and tools can be extremely hard. This award will not only recognise achievement but also provide role models and help to shine a path that other beauticians can follow. Finalists: Beauty at the Bay, HKBHA Academy, and The Foot Health Clinic.

Advanced Aesthetician – these therapists are non-medical skin care specialists who advise clients on the most suitable skin care regimes and products for their skin types, including skin problems such as acne or eczema. They assist with rejuvenating the skin, performing treatments such as skin peels, laser & light therapy, skin needling techniques (incl. Mesotherapy), advanced electrolysis, micropigmentation and microblading. Finalists: Jody Taylor, Martine Jarman, and Suman Jalaf.

Innovator Award – new ways to boost customers’ confidence and satisfaction with how they present themselves to the world are developing at a rapid rate. The finalists in this award are pushing back the boundaries of new techniques for rejuvenating ourselves, helping the sector keep fresh, meet customers’ needs, and ride the storm of the recession. Finalists: Katherine Tonkinson, Diana Jenner, and Martine Jarman.

Brow Specialist – customers’ fascination with the artistry of the eyebrow has rocketed so much in the past couple of years that BABTAC felt this category was needed to represent this new, burgeoning aspect of beauty therapy.  Finalists: Brittany Beck, Misty Crew, Suman Jalaf, and Sita Gill.

These new categories show how much the sector is flourishing and constantly responding to customers’ needs and new opportunities. BABTAC represents professional side of the industry and the practitioners that make it such a success. 

CIBTAC is BABTAC’s sister organisation, working with Governmental departments and professional organisations to develop qualifications that meet required standards, and provide the highest quality training at centres around the world for all aspiring therapists and those wishing to keep up to date with the latest techniques. CIBTAC offers a wide portfolio of courses including beauty therapy, spa, well-being, diet and nutrition, sports therapy, and a number of complimentary and holistic qualifications.

The CIBTAC award categories reward the best training centre, the most outstanding student, and the best inspirational tutor.

The winners will be announced at the beauty industry event of the year, with gala dinner and ceremony at Banking Hall in London at 7pm on Sunday 18^th June. The host for the evening will be Gill Morris, a well respected industry professional, responsible for introducing many new treatments to the UK including Blend electrolysis and gel nails.  Gill is currently the Director of Commercial Development for Sterex and has been a lifelong supporter of BABTAC.

SOHO Coffee Co. celebrates Bank Holiday with new store opening

SOHO Coffee Co. has this weekend opened its fourth store in London, at the O2 Centre on Finchley Road. The store, which follows just three weeks after the outlet on Baker Street, is the second opening in London this year, and the fourth store in the Capital. It is also the first London store to carry the SOHO Kids Range, with perfectly-sized sandwiches, fruit & veggie pots and the famous SOHO gingerbread figures. 

Penny Manuel, Managing Director, SOHO Coffee Co. comments “Openings in London are a recent undertaking for the brand, but ones which are outperforming expectations and targets. We’re delighted with the positive responses from our customers to the design of the stores, our signature food-led coffee offering, and our in-store teams who are working hard to create the right atmosphere.” 

The artisan coffee brand continues to eye expansion across London in 2017, with fitting already underway in yet-to-be-revealed new locations for the owner-managed chain. SOHO has eleven outlets opening this year, of which O2 Centre is the fourth.