If you haven't yet heard of PamperBook, it needs to be on your radar ASAP. The digital platform designed to help you find, book and pay for your next beauty appointment is swiftly taking the beauty industry by storm.
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Created by professional beautician and former beauty salon owner Jody Riley, PamperBook is hailed as a "revolutionary" appointment booking software by both companies and clients who love the ease of in-app booking. "It means no more missing appointments - PamperBook manages the salon's diary sends out reminders and takes customers deposits and payments," explains Jody.
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Speaking exclusively to HELLO!, Jody opens up about why she started the digital platform, and what it means to be a woman in business in 2022.
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PamperBook makes booking your beauty appointments easy
Why did you want to set up PamperBook?
"I wanted to help salon owners and freelancers run their businesses more efficiently," Jody explained. "I created an app that allows salons to make their diaries and appointments available online. It's a software that takes deposits and payments and saves salons a huge amount of time dealing with customer bookings."
Available on smartphones, PamperBook allows salons and freelancers to manage their diaries, while customers can book in their beauty treatments or hair appointments at any time of the day, or night, while also being able to cancel appointments.
Why should salons be using PamperBook?
"PamperBook means no more missing appointments. It manages the salon's diary, sends out reminders and takes customers deposits and payments," says Jody.
"Customers love to use the service as it's simple, quick and easy to book their treatments. You could literally be on a night out and book your hair, nails or makeup appointment at 1 am in the morning from their phone!" Jody continued. Sounds dreamy to us…
Do you think women are underestimated in business?
"Definitely. We are looked upon as not capable of being hugely successful. This is what I am here to do, to prove to women everywhere that we are more than capable!" says Jody, who set up PamperBook as a single mum, while also pregnant with her second child.
"Women are expected to multitask, whether that's looking after children, managing a home or running a business, we are just expected to just get on with it. Dealing with some investors along my business journey, I found myself being told that I was a 'dreamer' and my idea would' never pay off'.
Jody's industry experience and drive led her to start PamperBook
"I found programmers and developers (the people who create the software and apps) looking down their noses at my idea. Yet, as a trained beautician and former salon owner, I knew exactly what the industry needed and what customers wanted As a creative person with ideas and vision I was able to see through the problem and devise the solution," Jody explained.
What has your personal experience of this been?
Having left school with no qualifications, Jody admitted her journey with PamperBook has helped her to "grow so much as a woman."
"I have become the person I always wanted to be, purely through experiences of growing the PamperBook business and learning from people, no matter what their position.
"I have learnt to believe in myself no matter what obstacles have been thrown in my path along the way, to stay true to what you believe in, but also not be afraid to change."
Would you like to change the perception of female entrepreneurs?
"I would like to encourage every female to become an entrepreneur in their own right, to be recognised and revered. I think that women have incredible skill sets, we are formidable, resilient, adaptable and incredibly hard workers," says Jody.
Jody wants women to feel empowered to start their own business
"When you say business entrepreneur, you rarely think of a female entrepreneur by name - your default position is to think of a male role model such as Sir Richard Branson, Lord Sugar etc. We don’t revert to thinking of a female entrepreneur like say Denise Coates (Bet 365) who is one of Britain’s richest women, or Deborah Meaden from Dragons Den. We need to change that perception so it’s not just male entrepreneurs who are celebrated, it’s about equal parity."
What does success mean to you?
"Freedom," explains Jody. "To have time with my loved ones and give my children all of my time, to make their lives better and to give them the opportunities that I was not fortunate to have.
"I work endlessly now so I can have financial freedom in the future. Money and materialistic things are not important, it's the freedom I am working hard for. I want my children to be proud of their mum, to become one of those role models, but most of all to appreciate life and the opportunities they will have.
"Success is also about rewarding hard work and achievement, it’s about knowing the endless hours you have put into a business have paid off. We often forget that we only have one life, it’s about living it, working hard and enjoying."
For more information on PamperBook, visit www.pamperbook.co.uk
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