Thank you for all the years & all the support.

| The Barn is closing its doors after almost 15 years

On August 19th 2008, Kelly Hooper opened The Barn as a single mother to a 7-year-old, Jasmine, with a £25k loan secured on her mortgage. Being only 26 years old and with zero business knowledge, she took the plunge and began her dream of setting up a salon in the middle of the countryside. Set out to build a design-led salon, offering the best treatments and products in our industry, and most importantly, a unique experience clients wouldn't forget.

On that day, for the first week and others that followed, The Barn opened without electricity or running water due to the building work running over. Fuelled solely by a generator and gallons of water used for treatments that Kelly had to carry into the salon daily, she was also faced with the immense pressure to make it work whilst opening entirely on her own. In the first week alone, she worked over 100 therapy hours (not including time spent doing admin), as well as perfecting the salon set-up to match the dream she had envisioned. Every night ran into the early hours - she had to make this work, and she wanted nothing more!

Roll on almost 15 years, she has achieved beyond what she could have imagined! Beginning by employing over 30 employees, all women, apart from Piotr, and many of them mothers. Carly who joined in October 2011 and Imi who joined summer of 2015 is still a part of the team today! Kelly has achieved and won numerous awards such as; Salon of the Year nationwide at the biggest industry awards, Most Inspiring Salon, Small Business of the Year, Business Women of the Year, and listed as one of the 40 Under 40, alongside being highly recognised and selected as an ambassador for worldwide skincare brand Dermalogica, and chosen to work with Facebook & Instagram representing Small Businesses.

However, it's not all about the business awards and industry recognition…

It's the thousands of clients that have trusted her skill and made time for her passion over the years who have allowed her to treat them, solve their skin issues, offer moments of calm and retain their confidence. Many of you have treated The Barn as your sanctuary, and we can't thank you enough for the time you have given to the many therapists Kelly has employed and trained over the years. There has only ever been one standard for Kelly; being the best and training the therapists to be the best! She hopes for nothing more than that she has succeeded in her aspirations.

As the business grew throughout the years, The Barn family grew too. At one point, she had a team of 16 employees! During this time, Kelly was still learning, and like she always says 'Every day in business is a school day', which I'm sure other business owners out there will agree with! But that's what has made the past 15 years so special and who we are today.

Then came March 2020…

A time that bought a lot of uncertainty and challenges. Kelly cried (a lot) about having to close the salon due to the pandemic, and was faced with the fear of not knowing what was going to happen; to her, her business, and to her team. At that point, Furlough was yet to be announced, and the immense responsibility for her staff was weighing heavy on her shoulders. Not only did she have a mortgage to pay, but she also had the whole team!

Like for so many, the pandemic was hard, especially for many small businesses trying to keep their heads above the water. Having to close in total for 9 months, and unlike many industries out there (hospitality, food etc) that could do a takeaway option, we weren't so lucky - we couldn't pack a facial into a bag! That same weekend, Kelly spent 36 solid hours building an online shop of all the stock, and it was miraculously live by Monday. Spending every single day of the pandemic doing videos, going live, ordering, and packing up orders in the hope of keeping the money coming in to ensure there was still a Barn for clients to come back to when the time would eventually come around. Yes, there were grants to support us, but no, they didn't even cover the basic costs that were still outgoing for The Barn. 9 months of closure meant almost a whole year's loss of income, and cash flow had diminished. We continued to stay honest and transparent with our clients throughout it all, and today is no exception.

Flash forward to better days, we opened with as much enthusiasm and determination as ever before - a pandemic and a UK Government were not going to beat Kelly that was for sure. The first 6 months were slow, it was a time when the public was still unsure exactly what to do, and the rules were very much 'grey'. Eventually, clients began to realise the importance of taking a pause and prioritising time for ourselves - this was when things picked back up, and we felt like we were moving again. Kelly gave her staff pay increases to keep her team strong, but with that came price rises from suppliers, the landlord increased rent, and more recently, electricity bills are a mortgage in themselves!

Anyway, in short, after bouncing back loans and accruing 9 months of debt from closure, increase in price and cost of living, Kelly was also confronted with ill health, burnout, extreme sudden grief and loss on more than one account. She was left with one question - can we go on?

The simple but very difficult answer is no.

Kelly is making the hard decision to end on a high and close The Barn for one last time on Saturday 20th May 2023.

"I have loved nothing more than creating The Barn for thousands to enjoy, and I'm immensely grateful for everyone who has walked through the door. I have always had the best team behind me, supporting me, and sticking with me throughout the many years. This has been a super hard decision for me to have to make, but life is short and you have to do the things that scare you - don't you agree? We simply can't carry on swimming against the tide, I believe the universe sends you signs, and over the last 18 months, I've had my fair share. My team are the best; literally! I'm closing the doors with the best team I've ever had, and it will be an honour to share these last few weeks with them."

As we've always said 'Make time for your wellness, or you'll be forced to make time for your illness'. It's time for Kelly to do what's right for her, she's venturing onto a new chapter, with many years of fond memories, lessons learnt, and friendships to back her along the way.

I understand this news may come as a shock to some of you, but all I ask is that you're kind and understanding towards the whole team, it's a decision that has to be made and we've all cried many tears. The Barn is a big part of our lives and for some, like Carly and Imi, it's been a 3rd of their entire life! So please come and support us in the last month, we really would love to see you all those last few times. Our standards, experience and quality of treatments will stay the best until we close. Nothing will change, and in fact, it will probably be the greatest treatment you've ever had - we're making sure we go out with a bang!

| Q&A

What is Kelly going to do now?

Kelly is going back to her roots and working solo in her private skin clinic, concentrating on her main love; skin! Her clients will be contacted and offered appointments with her in her new clinic, but if you want to find out more, be sure to follow Kelly along the way.

What will happen to the team?

We will keep you posted on all that the team choose to do. Kelly is fully supporting them in their new paths, whatever road they decide to take.

What happens with my existing appointments booked after the 20th May closure date?

You will get a phone call over the next few weeks from one of the team, to see if you want to bring your appointment forward or if it will simply be cancelled. All staff will be doing extra hours to cover the demand and once the team know what they are doing in the future, there’s also an option to move to them. Don't hesitate to call us if you want to bring your appointment forward before waiting for a call.

What happens with gift vouchers?

Any gift vouchers will need to be spent before we close. These can be used in the salon on both treatments and products. Unfortunately, no refunds on vouchers can be issued and no new gift vouchers can be purchased. We understand this may be frustrating, but as a small business, we don't have the cash flow flexibility and freedom that many larger companies out there have.

What happens if I have a treatment course?

You can still use your course items until we close on the 20th of May. Any unused items on a course will be refunded, and if it’s a facial course being treated by Kelly that you're undergoing, you can move this over to her new skin clinic.

What happens if I’ve paid a deposit?

This can be used on any treatment or product in the salon until our closure date of Saturday 20th May.

Any other questions you may have, get in contact by phone or email.

And lastly, please be kind and respectful to the entire team. The Barn only welcomes good, positive energy, and any rudeness to the staff will not be tolerated. It's going to be a hard month for us all, so we massively appreciate all the love and support we can get!

| So finally…

We want to say an enormous thank you to every single one of you who has visited us throughout the years and shared the love. Whether you knew The Barn when it was just a little salon in Badgworth, or whether you've only just discovered us recently along the grapevine, your support never goes unnoticed and you've helped make The Barn what it is today. A place Kelly can be proud to say she built; a place that will always be a part of her no matter what.

Thank you.