Battling entrepreneur overcomes series of tough hurdles to set up Harborough’s first day spa

A battling entrepreneur has overcome a whole series of tough hurdles to set up the first day spa in Market Harborough.

Jenny Taylor, 40, said Revive Skin and Spa on St Mary’s Road is starting to boom after throwing open its doors on January 17.

Jenny and her husband Andy, 41, an IT contractor, have injected a “six-figure sum” into getting the business off the ground.

And the tireless mum-of-two is making her dream come true despite fighting a serious illness, her young son being seriously ill and a local tradesman allegedly “stealing” £30,000 from the couple.

“It’s been a real battle to open our new spa to put it mildly – but we have got there.

“We have had to fight tooth and nail all the way along to make this happen,” Jenny told the Harborough Mail.

“But we are just so delighted that we have persevered and stuck with our hopes and dreams."

The former nurse said she had the business brainwave after she launched a beauty salon called Creative Looks Esthetics at their home on Angell Drive on Farndon Fields estate in Market Harborough.

“We converted our garage after moving in and turned it into a clinic.

“It was very popular and we did a lot of work with very courageous people living with cancer,” said Jenny.

“It took off and grew and grew.

“But I wanted a dedicated space for clients to relax in as well rather than being forced to go straight home after their session.

“So I started to look for a suitable premises that we could move into, modernise and customise.

“It’s been far from straightforward because our son Jaime, who’s now 14, has been in and out of the Royal Brompton Hospital in London.

“I’ve been spending a lot of time looking after him because he’s had a big problem with his heart and lungs.

“Poor Jaime kept getting pneumonia and had to be put on a life support machine at times – he had deficient bone marrow.

“He’s been very brave and he’s doing well now so that’s a huge relief,” said Jenny, who also has a daughter Amy, 11.

“I’ve got an incurable bowel condition so I am having to deal with that as well.

“And to top it all we gave £30,000 of our hard-earned money to a local builder to refurbish the old Baby Lurve shop on St Mary’s Road for us.

“But he took our cash without buying any materials or doing any of the work – and that was obviously devastating for us."

Jenny added: “We are also actively supporting other local businesses and charities in Market Harborough and have raised and donated over £7,500 to a range of good causes since we opened."

Asked about Jenny’s accusations about the builder, a Leicestershire Police spokeswoman told the Mail that officers are “working with Trading Standards to investigate the report made and enquiries are ongoing”.

A Leicestershire County Council spokesman said that Trading Standards officers are also working alongside police to probe the alleged theft of £30,000.