A passion for prospering the beauty business

Women in Business by Ruwanthi Abeyakoon

BEAUTY BUSINESS: She walked away with the Woman Entrepreneur of the Year 2005, award, once again proving the excellence of her work. This award added a glow to the many awards she had won before.

" It is great to be recognized at this awards ceremony, organised by the Chamber of Commerce. It was the first time they had the award for a woman. I have won several awards before, but winning this award made me feel great," said well known beautician and hairdresser Ramani Fernando.

She believes that the passion for the job paved the way to success. "I always look forward to the day's work. It keeps me going. The passion I have for my job makes it interesting and I enjoy doing the work," she said.

"There is a huge demand for training. I spend a lot of time training young people who are interested in hairdressing. People should not enter this business without a proper training," she said.

Gathering the experiences of her career spanning 30 years, Ramani opened up her Academy to train the many youngsters that look up to her.

"I see a huge change in the industry today. It was an industry confined to a limited number of people at that time. At present people are aware of various beauty therapies and techniques. Many travel abroad and get exposed to the latest beauty techniques and products. This creates a demand for professional services from the local industry," she explained.

Ramani has ventured into the international arena with her creative work. She owns two saloons in India and two in Bangladesh. "I have saloons in Bangalore, Culcatta and Dhaka. I train local people and send them there. Time to time I get them down and have workshops for them. I visit these saloons once in three months," she said.

"It was not easy to cope with the business in the early days. Having four kids it was not easy to run the saloons. But my family supported me. My husband and my mother-in-law were always behind me. Their support gave me the peace of mind to continue my work. I consider it a blessing to have their support," she said.

"I balanced my work even though I was busy. When I was occupied with my work I gave hundred percent concentration. It needs a lot of concentration. You have to focus and enjoy what you are doing. When my children were small I dedicated the evenings to them. I kept myself away from social events. Everyone should identify the priorities in life then you can achieve what you want," she added.

Ramani is also involved in grooming programmes. "I am the beautician for SriLankan Airline in-flight. I spend a lot of time with the crew sharing my experience and knowledge with them. I am hoping to get myself involved more in grooming," she said.

"I like travelling. It gives me lot of inspiration. I also train staff for competitions. It gives a different outlook. If you are disciplined you can achieve heights. You must never do what you cannot do. You should balance your work to be successful.

Being a beautician is an interesting business and it has been a good experience. As a beautician, I have enjoyed it and I still do enjoy it. I find a lot of self-satisfaction," Ramani explained.

Ramani hopes to open up a saloon in Kandy and to improve the academy to accommodate many more. "Its amazing to see how people are keen. It is fantastic and they are talented. They have a lot of commitment. I am planning to expand my business in the future," she said.