Jade fulfills salon dream

At the age of 21, Jade Townsend-Smith is the proud owner of her own hair salon

A DETERMINED young woman from Thatcham has overcome the challenges of an inflammatory disease to fulfil her dream of opening her own hair salon.

At the age of 21, Jade Townsend-Smith is the proud owner of Jadeys, which officially opened at the beginning of the month at Greenham Business Park.

The ambitious youngster – who started sweeping up hair from a local salon floor at the age of 14 – has defied the challenges she experiences with Crohn’s disease after being diagnosed with the condition two years later.

The inflammatory bowel disease causes inflammation of the digestive tract, which can lead to a variety of problems, such as abdominal pain, weight loss and malnutrition.

For Miss Townsend-Smith, Crohn’s causes her considerable exhaustion and fatigue and hair loss from the medication she takes, as well as stress from dealing with the condition, but she has never let the disease stop her from achieving her goals.

The former Kennet School pupil took a course after leaving school at 15, before training at Toni and Guy’s London academy, followed by a barbering and colour course in London.

By the age of 17, she was qualified in hairdressing, despite experiencing ill-health during training.

Miss Townsend-Smith, who keeps the condition under control with medication, said: “I got to the point where I couldn’t wear jeans or put a belt on my stomach as my skin couldn’t be touched.

“I couldn’t bend down to put socks on at one point.

“I went through a phase of not going out at all or going out to dinner. I was exhausted.

“When I was diagnosed with Crohn’s, it made me more determined to do well, to get qualified and to do well in life – I wanted more.

“I wanted to prove them wrong and to go for it on my own.”

Jadeys offers hair services for men, women, teenagers and children.

The salon also offers hairstyles for proms, weddings and a variety of colouring treatments, including highlights and different tints.

To celebrate the opening, Miss Townsend-Smith was joined by members of her family and friends, as well as a few keen clients who made some early bookings.

The branding of her salon has the ‘Y’ in ‘Jadeys’ designed to represent a pair of scissors.

Miss Townsend-Smith was also helped by her uncle Tony Townsend and cousin Ben Townsend, both builders at APT Carpentry and Building Services, who helped put the salon together and without who, she said, it “would not have been possible”.

“I can’t remember the last time I felt this good,” added Miss Townsend-Smith.

“It’s almost like everything I’ve gone through has turned into a massive positive.

“It’s made me realise that anyone can make their dreams come true.

“I’m on a massive high. It doesn’t feel real to me.”

For more information on Jadeys, visit: https://jadeyssalon.wixsite.com/website