A 22-year-old beauty technician has doubled the size of her Kidderminster business less than a year after moving into her first premises with the help of commercial property agents John Truslove.

Hollie Bedford spent three years working from home, building her experience and client base, before opening her Lash Huns eyelash extensions training academy and beauty salon in Lower Mill Street in January.

Initially based at Unit 2, at the rear fronting on to Blackhorse Lane, Hollie soon found growing demand meant she couldn’t cater for training and beauty sessions at the same time.

Then the business occupying Unit 1, fronting Lower Mill Street in Kidderminster town centre, moved out.

“It was a big step, but business has just kept growing; it was too good an opportunity to miss out on,” said Hollie.

“I got in touch with Ben Truslove at John Truslove, who had handled the property when we first moved in, and he was really nice and very helpful. We got the keys, redecorated – nice and pink – and opened in November. It’s proved a great move.

“The last four years or so has seen a real growth in demand for beauty treatments like lash extensions, eyebrow sculpting, facials and massages. And lots of people want to learn how to do it as a way of earning a living – you are self-employed so you work the hours you want to.

“We now have space to offer a broad range of beauty treatments at the same time as running the training sessions. We have also won two awards this year for the academy and salon, and I have received two personal awards, which shows the quality of the service and training we provide.”

Hollie started out working from home at 18, qualifying as a lash technician and then as a trainer before deciding to open her first set of premises.

Ben Truslove, joint managing director of commercial property agents John Truslove, worked with Hollie to secure first one unit and now the second, on a four-year lease. Unit 1 provides 401 sq ft and Unit two extends to 468 sq ft.

The Lower Mill Street property is now fully let and managed by John Truslove – part of the Redditch-based agency’s growing presence in the Kidderminster area.

Ben Truslove said: “Our agency has traditionally been dominant in the Redditch and Bromsgrove areas of Worcestershire, Warwickshre and the south of Birmingham.

“Building on that strength we are now expanding our reach into the Kidderminster area and into the Black Country, offering our unrivalled experience of the regional commercial property market and our strong links with a broad range of landlords.

“It is always a pleasure to provide a platform to help a new business start out. For one so young, Hollie Bedford is a highly capable businesswoman and her flourishing salon and training academy is an ideal tenant for our landlord client.”

The Kidderminister branch of mfg Solicitors provided legal advice to Lash Huns in the tenancy negotiations.

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For more information, contact:

John Truslove, Daralbee House, Archer Road, Redditch, B98 8DJ

01527 584242

Editor’s Notes

Redditch-based chartered surveyors and valuers John Truslove was established by John Truslove in 1981 and has become the market leading independent agent for commercial property in North Worcestershire and North Warwickshire as well as the wider West Midlands.

For the year 2021, joint managing director Ben Truslove was ranked second most successful dealmaker in the UK in the 2021 EG Radius On-Demand Rankings. He negotiated 89 sales and lettings during the year in a top ten dominated by partners from all the UK’s leading property agencies. He was the top industrial and commercial property agent in the West Midlands.

The agency, John Truslove, came first in Worcestershire and third in Warwickshire.

It follows on the success from 2020 and 2021 when the firm was named Most Active Agent in Worcestershire for two years in a row in the Radius Data Exchange survey produced in conjunction with EG, the commercial property market magazine.

Joint managing director Ian Parker was also named Worcestershire Dealmaker of the Year AND Warwickshire Dealmaker of the Year for 2020. The survey year, which runs from August to August, saw John Truslove record a 36% increase in deals negotiated over the 12 months.

Issued by Andy Skinner of ASAP PR, mobile 07990 978257.