The Barn Somerset uses CBILS loan to help during coronavirus lockdown

The Barn Somerset, in Loxton, offers holistic, skin treatments, IPL & laser and all standard beauty treatments, but had to close during both UK lockdowns.

Kelly Hooper, who opened the salon 12 years ago, had to find a way to diversify the business during the pandemic.

And so she used a Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan (CBILS) to improve the salon’s website and set up an online shop.

This generated an incredible £55,000 of sales in just four months of lockdown.

OWNER: Kelly Hooper

Ms Hooper worked with Santander to secure the funding and admits this year has been “an exciting time for The Barn”.

“Working closely with Chris and the team at Santander UK, we secured the funding we needed to launch our online shop, which has been instrumental in mitigating the impact of the salon being closed,” she said.

“It’s fantastic to be able to reach new customers who can enjoy our range of carefully curated, high quality beauty products at home.

“As a business, we feel well placed to navigate the ongoing uncertainty with Santander’s support.

“That said, of course we can’t wait to welcome back our clients to enjoy treatments in the beautiful surroundings of The Barn.”

The Barn is set to reopen today (December 3) thanks to the loan and Ms Hooper’s diversification of the business.

BEAUTIFUL: The Barn Somerset

Chris Appleton, relationship manager at Santander UK, added: “Kelly has established a fantastic business at The Barn.

“When the impact of lockdown became apparent, she moved quickly to diversify and open a new online income stream.

“We’re proud to work with Kelly and to support the beauty industry, which is a major contributor to the UK GDP.”

To find out more about The Barn, visit www.thebarnsomerset.co.uk