‘I launched my companies with simply £1k and now I rake in lots of of hundreds’

A single mom from Australia is now turning over lots of of hundreds of kilos after launching her enterprise in London with simply £1,000.

Trish Coulton, 48, founding father of Bondi Body based mostly in Fulham, west London, advised Express.co.uk her monetary success has now given her “room to breathe” after beforehand surviving on welfare advantages and “foraging down the back of the sofa” for cash.

Sharing her story with Express Money, Ms Coulton stated: “In 2003, I moved to the beautiful Byron Bay, and as no one would employ me as I was a single mother, broke on benefits, I decided to open my own salon.”

Initially, Ms Coulton started renting a room from a neighborhood chiropractor in Byron Bay for $150 per week to supply her waxing companies by means of her first firm, The Wax Room, earlier than promoting up and transferring to London in 2010.

Ms Coulton launched that enterprise with lower than $500 – paying for 3 wax kits, a therapeutic massage desk, a bin and a waxing trolley – and unfold the phrase with a “genius” advertising and marketing marketing campaign to show ads on the again of girls’ lavatory doorways.

She witnessed quick success and “never made less than $4,000 a week”, however, craving for a brand new life expertise, Ms Coulton noticed a “fantastic opportunity” for hair elimination in London.

Ms Coulton launched her new salon in 2014 with a brand new title, Bondi Wax.

She stated: “I changed the name to Bondi Wax, which allowed the customer to pretty quickly realise there could be an Australian connection. Australian-trained beauty therapists are known for their waxing technique – 15 minutes from start to finish.

“The concept remained the same. The best wax, an excellent price point with the best customer service, which is really what I feel has been the most important factor to my success.”

Ms Coulton added: “It takes nothing to simply say hello, I am Trish. That, and being open from 10am to 10pm on weekdays. My London girls loved that a service industry business was open after they finished work – and I knew that women talk.

“In my first month of opening, all treatments were £15. It didn’t take long for the word to spread, and Fulham has been my beloved home ever since. Nearly nine years on, I have been through it all with my clients: the dating life, what to wear, the boyfriends, the weddings, the first baby, and for some, the second. This is why I love what I do — it’s the people I am so lucky to meet.”

Four months after opening in 2014, Ms Coutlon had “a minimum” of 10 bookings a day, quickly rising to be absolutely booked most days by the tip of summer time.

Ms Coulton stated: “I started Bondi Wax in 2014 on a loan from a friend of £1,000. In the first year, we turned over £150,000, and we have been growing since then.”

Noticing a shift out there with clients on the lookout for extra everlasting hair elimination options, Ms Coulton launched a laser elimination dwelling system, Bondi Body @ Home, in 2019.

Ms Coulton stated: “While focusing on permanent hair reduction, this at-home device would also reduce sun-damaged skin and pigmentation.

“Taking my knowledge of hair removal and diversifying into online retail allowed me to increase my audience and revenue. Aside from the time during Covid, I have grown rapidly each year.”

Ms Coulton added: “Being financially successful has given me room to breathe. I [used to be] a single mother on welfare, and there were many, many times when I would forage down the back of the sofa looking for coins to buy milk for my son.

“To be honest, while I have mild success the pressure is still there. While I keep a close eye on market trends, I am always looking for ways to improve my technique, my customer service, and my products. I have to make £8,000 a week to break even.

“I don’t think I will ever stop competing against myself – my work is never good enough for me. This is what I believe has, in part, given me some success. That, and my belligerence never to give up.

“As the saying goes – you are only as good as your last week of sales and the only guarantee in life is death and tax.”