'When I started working at Trevor Sorbie in 2001 I didn’t think I’d be here for that long. It was supposed to be one of those jobs that you get when you finish university and want something to tide you over until you find something else.
‘I started as an admin assistant and was working alongside Trevor’s PA at the time. She was the events director so I helped her, as well as supporting her with admin work. After four years, I took over as events manager, becoming Trevor’s PA a year later. Over the years, it’s developed into a role that I love.
‘My job involves managing Trevor’s diary, so I’m responsible for ensuring that everything is right. I organise media appointments for him, whether it’s for interviews, radio or TV. Then on the events side, I book venues, hotels and travel, as well as dealing with clients and distributors on a daily or weekly basis via email and phone.
‘I organise all the shoots for shows and seminars within the company, accounting for the expenses and managing the budget. I’m always very busy, but I love the versatility and flexibility of the job. I don’t have a daily routine, it changes from day to day – that’s what keeps it interesting.
‘I’m quite used to the job now, but I still see room for improvement. For instance, at the moment I’m doing a course on events management because I feel there are areas where I can become even better. It’s one of those roles where there’s always more that you can learn.
‘I manage my own time and that’s something that’s very important in my role because Trevor is away a lot. Whenever he’s away, I have to make sure that I prioritise my workload properly. Some days are a bit quiet, but I still have deadlines to meet so just have to make it work. I start at 10am and I usually finish at 6pm. But when I’ve got a big show or event coming up I often have to work late.
‘We have three salons – in Covent Garden, Brighton and Manchester –
and I’m based in the Covent Garden branch in London. Trevor is often out at the other salons and is only in London maybe twice a week. He doesn’t really cut hair now. His main focus is his charity, My New Hair (
www.mynewhair.org), which is training hairdressers to cut wigs. It’s a whole different skill, and something that’s very important for anyone who has to wear a wig, whether they’ve lost their hair through chemotherapy treatment or because of a medical condition such as alopecia.
‘I used to travel with Trevor quite a lot, but that was when he used to headline the shows. Now, our creative director travels with him, though I will sometimes go along, depending on the budget.
‘I do most things myself for our events because I don’t have anybody else to do the admin. We do have art teams, and when I’m organising a seminar they will decide how many models we need, how many colours will be done and so on, while I’ll take care of all the co-ordinating and booking.
‘When I’m doing shoots and shows, I’m on location to make sure everything runs smoothly. I love the travelling side, and it’s really interesting meeting different people, from the media to celebrities. I also attend award ceremonies whenever we’re nominated. If it’s a shoot, for instance, and one of our teams wins, I enjoy the fact that the hard work I put in to making it happen – booking the models, photographer and arranging everything – is recognised.
‘I still see myself organising events in the future – I’m happy that’s it’s something that I’ve got into more. When I first started in the job I was mainly doing admin work. In the future, I would love to focus on events management.
‘When I’m organising an event, I tend to choose places I’ve used before, but I’m always open to finding new venues too. Sometimes the people that we’re organising the shows and seminars for already have a venue in mind, particularly if it’s in another country. If that’s the case, we just have to ensure that it fits our requirements.
‘There’s a lot of liaising in my role so you have to be good with people. You also have to be very efficient and get back to clients on time. Often you’re dealing with people from different countries and there may be language barriers, so you’ve got to make sure that they understand you, particularly if their English isn’t very good.
‘For the first year, if I had to be in the office with Trevor I was quite shy. It was a bit intimidating, but as I learnt more about the role I became more confident. I’ve stayed here so long because of the team atmosphere. Everybody on the staff gets along and we all respect each other. My role has evolved since I joined Trevor Sorbie and I’ve been able to move upwards in the company. Oh, and I get my hair done for free, which is nice…'