Shops / Shop of the Week
Shop of the Week: Essential Maintenance
Rebecca Porter’s gender neutral beauty salon is thriving. Located on East Street in Bedminster, Essential Maintenance uses only vegan and planet-friendly products.
Rebecca, alongside her colleague Freddy, provides beauty services four days a week, which will rise to five in March, using 100 per cent biodegradable and locally supplied vegan products.
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The journey started for Rebecca five years ago, while working as secondary school teacher. She decided to develop her interests in hair removal and, for six months, she juggled her day job, hair removal courses and raising her son, to achieve her diploma in beauty therapy.
After receiving her diploma, Rebecca quit her job as a teacher to start her own beauty business, which she initially launched in her own home. Essential Maintenance continued to grow, however, and Rebecca moved moved the business to Windmill Hill City Farm in 2018, before settling at 13 East Street in 2019.
Rebecca Porter, director at Essential Maintenance. Photo courtesy of Rebecca Porter
To achieve the lowest waste footprint possible, Rebecca and Freddy remove hair using sugaring. Using a gel made from sugar, lemon and hot water, sugaring is a method of hair removal that pulls hair out of the roots and only sticks to the hair and not the skin – a game changer for those with sensitive skin.
“The paste we use isn’t tested on animals, is organic and whats best is that all of the ingredients in the mix are natural, so they dissolve,” says Rebecca. “Meaning less landfill, result!” The beauty salon also offers nail, brow and lash service.
“Taking hair off people, I love it,” says Rebecca. “Thus, it really isn’t a hard job at all.”
Photo courtesy of Essential Maintenance
13 East Street, Bedminster, BS3 4HH, www.essentialmaintenancebeauty.co.uk.
Main photo of Rebecca and Freddy courtesy of Rebecca Porter
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