Kellie Moody tells us about opening her very own salon in Bath!

Hi Kellie! We last spoke to you back in 2019. For those of who don’t know about your work, can you give us a bit of a re cap?

I have been in the makeup and beauty industry for over 15 years. I have worked on things like the BAFTA’s, for ITV and for the BBC such as See Hear, and on many fabulous Deaf productions such as with Deaf Funny, Small World and Magic Hands. I have even taught makeup skills (to both Deaf and hearing students) at the wonderful Bath Academy of Media MakeUp (BAMM).

My main passion though is bridal make up (& hair) because of the relationship I build with my brides and that connection in helping a bride envisage her dream.

What’s happened over the last two years?

Covid hit soon after we last spoke, but I have developed my skills and am now a qualified Nouveau® LVL (Lash, Volume Lift) Technician and HD Brow® Technician. This was due to lots of home study, weird video assessments mixed with some face-to-face learning and assessments when safe/allowed. It wasn’t easy, but I did it.

I have also qualified in providing facials. All these services add to my bridal repertoire as well as being popular stand-alone services I can offer through the salon.

And, of course, you’ve recently opened your very only salon – Noi. How did the idea of opening a hair and beauty salon come to life? Had you always wanted to do this?

To be honest the thought didn’t cross my mind until I met my partner Giuseppe who is a very successful and popular hair stylist. He has a lust for new ideas and had an idea that together; him with hair and me with beauty we’d make a ‘dream team’ as we both had a strong existing clientele.

Then I moved to be with him in Bath but still had most of my work in Leicester and London as a self-employed mobile MUA. Covering so many miles in a week, the thought of being salon based and building up that same connection with regular clients became very enticing. Previously we were not in the position to do it, then fate and an opportunity stepped in and so, we decided to go for it.

What are the services that Noi offers and what do you personally provide?

Noi is primarily a hair salon offering haircuts, colours (tints, highlights and balayage etc) styling and treatments. However, with my beauty services, we offer a near-full beauty package of hair, HD Brows © treatments, Nouveau ® LVL Lash treatments and make up (including bridal, special occasion and event services), with facials and nails to be added as soon as we are able.

As I have a background in hair styling through my makeup and hair business I have been getting involved in the hair side of things while broadening my knowledge. I have been learning more about colouring (which comes naturally to me as I am good with colour from my Graphic Design training and from my years as a makeup artist).

So apart from some of the trickier, more complex colour services, and cuts, I personally provide everything plus I co-manage the salon with my partner and manage my TV and bridal work out-side of the salon. Busy, busy, busy!

Were there any particular challenges or difficulties that you had to deal with when bringing Noi to life?

The speed at which we needed to open (5 weeks to gut, renovate & set up the salon in time for the 1st client) I have never had so little sleep! Myself and my partner cancelled 2 holidays to do this so the other difficulty has been not having any time off. Since opening the salon in July I have only had a couple of days away from the salon and no days when I wasn’t dealing with some sort of business task…yes even over Christmas.

How have you gotten around any communication obstacles in the salon?

Setting up and working in a salon (especially through mask wearing) has thrown up its own unique problems, but the wonders of technology mean that little hurdle has been overcome by setting up my sign support via video and a dedicated reception mic’.

Due to the set up most clients don’t even know they are being signed for when they come in. I think this all helps with me building rapport with them, as there are less perceived barriers if that makes sense.

Access to Work has also helped greatly. My award has helped me achieve things I would have struggled to without it, as it has allowed me to tackle the things I wanted to independently. Becoming a salon owner and Manager has been a huge learning curve, with a whole new set of languages to learn, the languages of hairdressing, of marketing, finances, and apprentice contracts. I don’t have to rely on my partner to do all of that, we can take a share of the responsibilities, as it should be.

Are all the staff in the salon deaf aware / BSL users?

Hmmm, Deaf awareness; certainly more than they used to be. I’m quite proactive in this, as I feel a good person to learn from organically is the person they are working and communicating with: me! I’m also pretty outgoing, open and lively, so I don’t mind encouraging people and people don’t seem to mind asking me their questions.

No, they are not sign language users, but a couple are picking up lots of signs as they go along, especially industry-linked ones such as blow dry, makeup, cut etc, as well conversational booking signs like times and numbers etc. This makes life easier for all of us. Julie, one of our senior stylists, is brilliant. She has picked it up so well and is always hungry to know more. One day, when the team settles, I will set up some proper Deaf Awareness, at the moment though, there are not enough hours in our day.

One thing which has helped recently however is Rose’s appearance on Strictly. OMG! Firstly, isn’t she amazing and wasn’t her win so wonderful!? Secondly, (and I wonder if others have found this), but her appearance has done wonders for people’s awareness and has helped break down some of those initial communication barriers as clients actively engage with me to ‘chat’ about her. It’s so wonderful to be an equal part of these conversations. As I have worked with her in the past, this only fuels their keenness.

Has anyone in particular supported you in the process of making the salon a reality?

It’s been a team effort. My partner and I support each other. I think that’s number 1 and so important. My family have been supportive in their own way and are very proud of us both, but Giuseppe’s family are not only supportive but practically hands-on. They have helped with the renovations and some now work in the salon along-side us.

Giuseppe’s dad and mum in particular from the crack of dawn until way past bedtime got involved with it all; they are a very giving, and very talented family (building, plastering, electrics, plumbing, soft furnishings to name but a few).

I use a few signers but have one regular signer which really helps with the consistency of what I do and hitting the right tone with my communications, if that makes sense? She is also really flexible and can adapt to my weird hours which could otherwise be a challenge.

I have been able to negotiate flexible annual AtW hours which also really helps, as previously this was not the case and so my award did not reflect my needs. I am hoping to be able to keep this flexibility with my new award reapplication this month. I know lots of people are experiencing problems with their AtW and I hope that my experience last year with them being so open to flexibility continues.

AtW is an important part of me competing on a more level playing field. I was always so frustrated when it was so restrictive. Flexibility helps as I never know exactly when I might need support to help me cover reception or be on location.

 

Can I ask about the name ‘Noi’ – what does it mean? Is there a BSL sign for this that you’d like people to use?

Noi means ‘we’ in Italian. Many at Noi are family members; Italian brother, sister, mother and father, but we have wonderful, intertwined circles of extended family in the Noi Team and with our clients.

The idea started as meaning ‘we’, the team of Noi professionals, which came from the idea of our common goals and aspirations, plus the Italian family connections. However, from clients repeatedly saying, ‘you make us feel part of your little family’, Noi now has a far deeper meaning.

I have to be honest, I have been fingerspelling Noi. Part of this is because it’s actually an Italian word (so also hard to lip-read) and part because I have been playing around with things like the sign for ‘we’ as in a group of people or a way to use the open ‘O’ from our logo. I would LOVE readers to come up with something though! Please any ideas can be shared by tagging me on @noisalonbath on Insta’.

 

What would you say is unique about Noi compared to other salons?

Firstly, the team. One of our USP’s is the family feel of the team, and as I say the clients. Some have been coming to individual stylists for 25/35 years, so there really is a family feel at Noi as in that time team members have had a window into people’s lives. They have started businesses and families of their own, had children go off to uni, who have kids of their own, all of which come to Noi – including their family dogs (although not for any treatments) as we’re dog friendly too!

I also think we have a unique mix of complimentary services and a way of presenting them which is just ‘us’, such as our spa hair-washing room. We are wanting to create an experience, not a simple service and a little bit of ‘them time’.

Many of our clients are put off by the loud music and young staff at other salons, which they can’t identify with. They say they don’t feel the fit there. Here at Noi, we welcome all. We have men that come for brow treatments, mature women having lash lifts (which they thought were only for younger women) and same sex couples requesting wedding make up services. We offer a calm experience which is as open and inclusive as we can make it, reflected again in our open ‘O’ logo of Noi.

What sort of feedback have you had so far from people attending the salon?

It’s been fantastic. People love the salon, the feeling they get from coming and love coming to us. Although I have a suspicion this could be because of our dog, Luca….He certainly has pulling power. He’s a Sproodle with oodles of love.

What’s next for you, any more ambitions?

To make Noi salon the number 1 salon in Bath! Then expand…

For other budding business owners or deaf entrepreneurs what advice would you give them about going for their dreams?

Go for it. Don’t over think it – especially the many, many problems that you will face, some people are put off with the smallest things straight away. Deal with them one at a time. First just look at your strengths and what you are naturally good at, these are the points for success. Oh, and keep going. Build on each success, keep the momentum going.

 

Find out more about Noi here:

https://www.noisalon.co.uk/

If you have any suggestions for the BSL sign for Noi, send your ideas via Instagram @noisalonbath