Sarah Abel on Ditching Survival Mode and Leading With Vision (w/ Luke Doolin), Part 2
[314] In Part 2 of this conversation, co-hosted by Luke Doolin (UKI Managing Director at Phorest), we pick up where we left off with Sarah Abel — CEO of TNB Skills Training (@tnbskillstraining) and proudly known in the industry as the Funding Godmother.
The topic of mindset as a strategic tool for growth remains a constant throughout, but in this episode, we spend more time exploring how salon owners can access funding, develop their teams, and build businesses that aren’t just bigger, but stronger and more resilient in the face of change.
We get into:
💷 The importance of having a strong brand positioning
🎓 Rethinking training and apprenticeships so that people in those roles can be revenue-generating faster
🚀 Embracing discomfort and reframing failure as fuel for long-term success
To learn more about Sarah and TNB Skills Training, click here. To watch her podcast interview on Susan Routledge's podcast Beauty Business Matters, click here, and to order her book The Power of Funding, click here. You can also find Sarah on Instagram @sarahabelfundinggodmother @sarahhairbeautyfunding.
Enjoyed the episode? Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!
Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter or here to learn more about Phorest Salon Software.
This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.
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Sarah Abel on Ditching Survival Mode and Leading With Vision (w/ Luke Doolin), Part 1
[313] Sarah Abel, also known as the known as the Funding Godmother, is the CEO of TNB Skills Training (@tnbskillstraining) and author of The Power of Funding, is an award-winning entrepreneur and funding strategist with a fierce passion for helping beauty businesses grow, secure funding, and develop accredited and regulated programmes, all without getting buried in bureaucracy.
In Part 1 of this conversation, co-hosted by Luke Doolin (UKI Managing Director at Phorest), we explore Sarah’s experience of overcoming adversity, her first steps into the industry, and the core skills, ideas, and mindset that have helped her build resilient businesses, no matter the economic climate. Find out about:
💸 Sarah's early days in the industry: buying a nail salon without any experience as a beauty business owner or nail tech/artist
📣 Why sales & marketing have been and continue to be critical skills for her businesses
🧠 What salon owners can do today to shift from survival mode, into inspired vision with outside-the-box solutions amid financial hardships and/or economic uncertainty
As the industry continues to lobby the government, our hope is that this conversation leaves you seeing new possibilities, not just for your salon but for your team, yourself, and the way you lead and run your business.
Watch "There won't be a Hair Industry in the UK without change," by the Salon Employers Association here, and read the British Hair Consortium report here.
To learn more about Sarah and TNB Skills Training, click here. To watch her podcast interview on Susan Routledge's podcast Beauty Business Matters, click here, and to order her book The Power of Funding, click here. You can also find Sarah on Instagram @sarahabelfundinggodmother @sarahhairbeautyfunding.
Enjoyed the episode? Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!
Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter or here to learn more about Phorest Salon Software.
This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.
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Live From the Data-Driven Salon Summit 2025 With David Colonna
David Colonna (@thedavidcolonna) joins Shauna O'Halloran (Head of Brand & Communications at Phorest) in the Phorest Lounge at the Data-Driven Salon Summit for a catch-up that leads to hearing about how Calligraphy Cut came to be, the circumstances that led David to a career in the industry, and some thoughts on technology. Learn more about Calligraphy Cut here, and about The Maven and The Muse Salon here.
Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter: https://bit.ly/3WvQiI7
This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.
Leave a Rating & Review: http://bit.ly/phorestfm
Read the transcript, or click here to learn more about Phorest Salon Software.
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Jess Joy on Creating Systems and Cultures That Don’t Mistake Coping for Success
[312] Co-founder of the neurodivergence community and training platform I Am Paying Attention (@iampayingattention), Jess Joy, along with best friend and business partner Charlotte Mia, is championing change in the way we all work, one radically honest conversation at a time.
This episode is no different, featuring vulnerable shares of lived experiences and an exploration of how the pace, pressure, unspoken expectations or the structure of businesses might be pushing some of the most talented and creative team members into quiet survival mode, shame and/or burnout. We get into:
🧠 Commonly used terms, concepts, their definitions and why understanding them matters
🔍 How masking, burnout, and sensory overwhelm often go unacknowledged in professional work settings
⚙️ Why many “difficult” or “high maintenance” behaviours might actually be indicative of the invisible labour of being “fine” at work
✋ Questions salon owners and managers can start asking themselves and their teams today to create neuroinclusive cultures
Bold, affirming, and full of practical reflection, this conversation is your invitation to rethink inclusion not as a perk, but through the lens of universal design..
Learn more about and access I Am Paying Attention's toolkit, course, training offerings and free resources here. Purchase 'How Not to Fit In,' co-authored by Jess Joy and Charlotte Mia, here.
Enjoyed the episode? Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts!
Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter or here to learn more about Phorest Salon Software.
This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.
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Live From the Data-Driven Salon Summit 2025 With HairToStay
Noah Warren and Sydney Berry (@HairToStay) join Shauna O'Halloran (Head of Brand & Communications at Phorest) in the Phorest Lounge at the Data-Driven Salon Summit for a short catch-up. Learn more about HairToStay and donate here if you can!
Click here to revisit PhorestFM S08E300 with Noah, Sydney, and many more guests!
Click here to subscribe to the PhorestFM email newsletter: https://bit.ly/3WvQiI7
This episode was edited and mixed by Audio Z: Montreal's cutting-edge post-production studio for creative minds looking to have their vision professionally produced and mixed. Great music makes great moments.
Leave a Rating & Review: http://bit.ly/phorestfm
Read the transcript, or click here to learn more about Phorest Salon Software.
The salon industry has a lot to be proud of. Phorest has always been in awe of it. The energy. The camaraderie. The creativity. Being a business owner takes courage, but it can sometimes become an isolating, all-consuming reality. Amidst the daily whirlwind of tasks, there’s still the challenge of thinking ahead, of carving a path forward.
The PhorestFM podcast celebrates innovative ideas, methods, and perspectives on business management and growth, marketing, leadership, and building great teams and cultures. Launched in 2017, it is hosted by Alex Bélisle-Springer (he/they), Global Education Content Lead at Phorest Salon Software. As of Season 9 (2025), new episodes air every second week, with occasional bonus drops on ”off” weeks.
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