Date published: 01.09.08 - not release date

British Beauty & Spa Awards 2008 Finalist Announced

The individuals, salons and spas who have achieved finalist status at the 12th annual British Beauty & Spa Awards have just been announced.

Health & Beauty Salon magazine launched the British Beauty & Spa Awards in 1997 to raise the profile of the professional beauty and spa industry by recognising and rewarding innovation and excellence throughout the profession. They rapidly became the Oscars of the beauty industry.

"Dedication and commitment to excellence has been shown by every finalist," comments Health & Beauty Salon Publisher/Editor-in-Chief, Jayne Lewis-Orr. "All finalists represent the best the beauty industry has to offer in their chosen area of skill - whether it is body therapy, facial therapy, customer care, marketing or retailing. Success in this market is not only determined by practical skills, but also by business acumen - and the British Beauty & Spa Awards are designed to reward and recognise both."

Salons, spas, and individual therapists have to meet the criteria set for the category they enter. Their work is presented in a dossier, along with corresponding evidence to back up any claims, and sent to the event organisers for verification.

Judging for the British Beauty & Spa Awards takes place over two days. During the judging process, representatives from the sponsoring companies along with industry experts and members of the beauty press, are split into groups and read through the dossiers to ensure the criteria has been met before selecting the finalists in each category. Judges cannot confer during the judging process, and each marks all entries independently.

Previous award winners include celebrity nail technicians Leighton Denny, Jacqui Jefford, Andrea Fullerton and Sophy Robson who all tend to the nails of supermodels and celebrities alike. The Spa at the Mandarin Oriental, a previous winner of the Day Spa of the Year category, is a favourite of Madonna when she is in London, while the luxurious celebrity bolt-hole, Champneys Forest Mere, in Liphook, Hampshire, and the beautifully located, Stobo Castle, on the Scottish Borders, are both previous recipients of the Destination Spa of the Year Award. Wrexham’s Beauty with Sara (now called Glow) and Newport’s Be…healthy and beautiful are both the recipients of many British Beauty & Spa Awards with Sara Shoemark from Glow, being awarded the 1st ever Salon Director of the Year in 2006 and once again in 2007. Meanwhile, Glasgow-based Rainbow Room International Beauty and Spa has won the Scotland and North West Salon of the Year category three times, and is now in the prestigious Hall of Fame, as is Leighton Denny and Glow.

The British Beauty & Spa Awards 2008 presentation takes place on Sunday 7th September 2008 at the Royal Lancaster Hotel, London. Hosted by a leading TV personality, the event is the biggest and brightest in the beauty industry’s calendar, and features fabulous entertainment, a superb dinner, and, of course, the much-anticipated announcement of the winners of the British Beauty & Spa Awards 2008.

The Finalists

Beauty Therapist of the Year
Sponsored by Decleor

Carolyn Philpot - Pure Wellbeing by Design - St Albans
Nicole Robinson - Nicole Robinson Beauty - Weybridge
Rosin Eadon-McKenna - Glow - Wrexham
Margo R Robertson - Beauty Network - Hamilton
Louise Snowdon - City Retreat Salon & Spa - Newcastle
Laura Wood - Relaxation Station - Worcester Park

Body Therapist of the Year
Sponsored by Health & Beauty Salon

Tina Kennedy - Senspa - Brockenhurst
Lynsey Ashman - The Haven on the Loch - Loch Lomond
Jamie Chalmers - On Spa - Edinburgh
Rebecca Livings - Serenity Spa - Seaham
Louise Postlewaite - Utopia Salons - Anglesey
Elaine Sadler - Balance Skincare Studio - Leamington Spa

Customer Care Award
Sponsored by OPI

Cedars Health & Beauty Centre - Gloucester
Revival Retreat - Glasgow
Pretty Woman - Leeds
Utopia Salons - Anglesey
Zen Lifestyle - Edinburgh
City Retreat Salon & Spa - Newcastle

Day Spa of the Year
Sponsored by Payot Paris

KuBu Spa - Henley-on-Thames
Waterfall Spa - Bishop Auckland
Eastthorpe Hall Health & Beauty Spa - Mirfield
Pure Spa Silverburn - Glasgow
Chessgrove Day Spa - Bromsgrove
Portland Hall Spa - Southport

Destination/Hotel Spa of the Year
Sponsored by ESPA

Senspa - Brockenhurst
The Spa at Gleneagles by ESPA - Auchterarder
Rookery Hall Hotel & Spa - Nantwich
Thornton Hall Hotel & Spa - hornton Hough
Alexander House Hotel & Utopia Spa - East Grinstead
Titanic Spa - Huddersfield
Norton House Hotel - Edinburgh

Facial Therapist of the Year
Sponsored by Guinot

Lynn Daniels - The Haven on the Loch - Loch Lomond
Melanie Verity - Pure Health & Beauty - Lewes
Jessica Hayton - Serenity Spa - Seaham
Jennifer Emms - Cedars Health & Beauty Centres - Gloucester
Jennifer Griffiths- Glow - Wrexham
Emma Clark - Epitome Health & Beauty - Bushey Heath

Manicurist of the Year
Sponsored by Jessica

Claire Bradshaw - Tranquility Beauty - Wolverhampton
Linda Butler - Just Nails - Poole
Heather Brown - Glow - Wrexham
Alison Smith - Epitome Health & Beauty - Bushey Heath
Kate Reeves - The City Retreat - Newcastle
Samantha Calvert - Way Beyond Beauty - Dewsbury

Marketing Award
Sponsored by Sponsored by the London College of Beauty Therapy

Beyond Beauty - Cheltenham
The Day Spa at Whittlebury Hall - Northampton
Pretty Woman - Leeds
Tulsi- Reigate
Utopia Salons - Anglesey
Zen Lifestyle - Edinburgh
Titanic Spa - Huddersfield

Nail Professional of the Year
Sponsored by Grafton International

Sam Biddle - Dorset
Susan Green - En Route Hair Design - Wakefield
Claire Durtnall-Holland - Perfect Elegance - Eastbourne
Elise Scholes - Flawless Nails - Stoke–on-Trent
Liza Smith - Bodylines - Sittingbourne
Belinda Price - Nailspa - Huddersfield

Retail Salon of the Year
Sponsored by Health & Beauty Salon

Cedars Health & Beauty Centres - Gloucester
Beauty Beyond - Cheltenham
Serenity Spa - Seaham
Zen Lifestyle - Edinburgh

Training Award
Sponsored by International Dermal Institute

Serenity Spa - Seaham
Revival Retreat - Glasgow
Epitome Health & Beauty - Bushey Heath
Zen Lifestyle - Edinburgh

London & South East
Sponsored by Vibro Tone

La Mirage Beauty & Laser Clinic - Stanmore
Skin Deep Beauty Clinic - Elstree
Cedars Health & Beauty Centres - Bushey Heath
Epitome Health & Beauty - Bushey Heath
In-Touch - Southend-on-Sea
In Harmony Spirit & Balance - East Molesey
Skin & Tonic Beauty Salon - St Albans

Midlands & North East
Sponsored by Health & Beauty Salon

LA & CO Professional Hair & Beauty - Litchfield
Beauty Beyond - Cheltenham
Helene at L’Academie - Shipston-on-Stour
Pretty Woman - Leeds
City Retreat Salon & Spa - Newcastle
Elysium Day Spa - Leamington Spa

North West & Scotland
Sponsored by Health & Beauty Salon

The Haven on the Loch - Loch Lomond
Revival Retreat - Glasgow
Zen Lifestyle - Edinburgh
Celeste Beauty Spa - Edinburgh
Pure - Edinburgh
Beauty Network - Hamilton

Wales & South West
Sponsored by Salon Secure

The Beauty Clinic - Clevedon
Cedars Health & Beauty Centres - Gloucester
Aspirations Hair & Beauty - Clevedon
Utopia Salons - Anglesey
Figure & Face - Welshpool
Frontlinestyle - Bath
The Secret Spa - Holt

Salon of the Year
Sponsored by Health & Beauty Salon

The winners of the regional categories will be judged and the winner of Salon of the Year will be announced on the evening of the awards.

Salon Director of the Year
Sponsored by Carita

Julie Speed - Cedars Health & Beauty Centres - Gloucester
Debra Bell - The Haven on the Loch - Loch Lomond
Sara Shoemark - Glow - Wrexham
Rebecca Lane - Epitome Health & Beauty - Bushey Heath
Lynda Tarpey - Pretty Woman - Leeds
Fiona Fowley - Zen Lifestyle - Edinburgh

For further info on the British Beauty & Spa Awards please contact Alison Jameson or Rachael Ross at Alison Jameson Consultants on +44 131 621 7210, fax + 44 131 621 7215 or e-mail; alison@alisonjamesonpr.com