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‘Make sure you love what you do each day’


COVID-19 completely shut down the beauty industry for months, but thanks to a teenage entrepreneur, people were still able to watch live make-up tuto- rials to practice their skills. Aimee Hobbs (20) owns the first and only make-up studio in Maid- stone, which opened in December last year. She now employs a trainee artist,


Ellie Hawkes (17), and runs her own shop at the Royal Star Arcade. Aimee decided to introduce vir- tual classes to give people some- thing to do whilst stuck at home, which also gave the business an- other source of income.


Miss Hobbs, of Simpson Road, Snodland, said: “During lock- down, every business had to adapt their way of working. “We started to prepare early to


re-open as the beauty industry was given multiple false dates. Unfor- tunately for us, we were in the close contact sector, so we were un- able to open for five months in total.


“This was devastating for us as a business that had only opened its doors in December 2019. However, it gave us the time to reflect on how we could improve and plan new


Young entrepreneurs | News


goals. Not being able to work for such a long time has given us the motivation to come back better than ever. “I had to alter our online book- ing system to allow 20 minutes in between each client to prevent client crossovers and allow plenty of time to sanitise workstations. The former Maidstone Grammar


School student started her business from her bedroom and practised on her friends before setting up an Instagram page to showcase her work and book potential clients. She added: “Having a circle of people that inspire you and sup- port you is key. Making sure you


wake up every day and love what you do for a living gives you moti- vation for each day to better your- self and your business. “Appreciating how far you’ve come and reflecting on the good and bad helps to put things into perspective and how quickly you’re achieving your goals. “I have a five-year plan and


every day I work towards these dreams. You have to work twice as hard as a business owner to keep everything in check and running smoothly, but the reward is defi- nitely worthwhile.”


Go to www.aimeehobbs- makeup.co.uk (01622 290101)


Brothers drive in new direction


A NEW company set up by two brothers has continued to flourish during the Coronavirus lockdown. Oliver (left) and Kevin Tuffney, who spent much of


their childhood in Larkfield, claim the secret to success as young entrepreneurs is to have “resourcefulness, self- awareness, and a love for the journey”. The brothers set up the rateddrivinginstructors.com


earlier this year, when they discovered a gap in the mar- ket where learner drivers can find reputable and de- pendable driving instructors. Oliver (27) said: “The journey to becoming a good en-


trepreneur is like having to pass every subject in school, but with no teacher, no books, and your savings at stake. “Lockdown was one of those right hooks for us. All


driving lessons were halted, tests were cancelled and when lockdown finally eased, we came back to a mas- sive backlog of learners and driving instructors with re- duced capacity, due to the time needed to clean the car between lessons.” Kevin (29) added: “The new industry dynamics of


learner demand outstripping instructor supply inspired us to rethink the way we connect learners and instruc- tors. Now we are implementing the change. “Funnily enough, the new version is shaping up to be


far better than the original. As they say, pressure either cuts diamonds or bursts pipes.”


Making social distancing a


bit of a game A CHILDREN’S entertainer has come up with some innovative ways to keep her business running in times of uncertainty.


Katie Lawrance (28), of Ton- bridge Road, Maidstone, says she has had over 40 jobs, so decided to give her full time attention to her real passion last year. The owner of Vibrant Events


will be introducing zorb football and crazy balloon hats to her events in an attempt to keep chil- dren apart. Katie, who spent the majority of lockdown stuck in Thailand, said: “What better way to socially distance than zorb foot- ball. I used to work at a play centre and I just thought I could do bet- ter. I decided to go full time with my own entertainment company, and I haven’t looked back since. It was so difficult through lockdown as everybody knows children and social distancing do not really work, so I decided to turn it into a bit of a game.”


The former Cornwallis Academy student was voted the best children’s entertainer for the South East at the Entertainment Awards 2020. Go to www.vibrantevents.co.uk (07808 515727)


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