Take home an expert today
Our Heritage . . .
Stylist | Colour Specialist | Philanthropist
As a co-founder of the organization, my role is to keep our little micro company thinking and breathing.
Wildly accredited with taking COURTNEY graduates to global renown. Courtney attracts the most outstanding people from diverse backgrounds and nurtures their talents.
We take pride in our contribution to their success.
Jill began her hairdressing career working with one of the most prominent and prestigious hair training organisations, Vidal Sassoon, and latterly co-founder of Courtney based in The English Lake District, where she has taught the legendary technique.
Training at Courtney is a wildly successful and a truly engaging experience, as many of our graduates would testify: Melbourne, Toronto, New York, San Francisco, Paris, Tokyo, Saipan, Kos, Barcelona, Tenerife, Malta, Berlin, London, Glasgow, Edinburgh, York, Manchester, Lancaster, Kendal, and Windermere. All have salon owners, originally trained under our umbrella, who are proud to say they were trained at Courtney.
Following nomination for Cumbria Woman of The Year, Hairdressers Journal International, nominated Jill for Hairdresser of The Year, and her work has been shown in Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Esquire, Paris Passion and other Hair and Beauty magazines.
Courtney has worked alongside hair companies: Vidal Sassoon, Redken, Aveda, Sebastian, Paul Mitchell, Modern Organic Products and Alpha Par.
Our work has resulted in an incredibly loyal clientele.
We probe the client, to understand lifestyle choices before we begin working on their hair. There are countless mindsets and cultures. We are not magicians, our results are the outcome of lots of listening and little talking. It’s amazing how much thought goes into every little detail. It’s about getting things right for them, utilizing perspective and balance to create great work. The ultimate result is for the client to identify with the result and feel confident with it.
Our clients understand and share our philosophy, evidenced by the fact that they have stayed so long.
Our Heritage . . .
Art Director | Designer | Web Developer
As a co-founder of Courtney, Michael defined our heritage like no other designer could.
Design by its very nature is curious, and subject to refinement and improvement in order for it is to be successful.
As a designer living and working in The English Lake District, he works on a wide range of disciplines, singularly and occasionaly collaborativley.
He has spent many years working alongside and in collaboration with clients of like minds, especially those who appreciate the effectiveness of good design in business; Russell Mills | Ian Walton | Evolver Douglas | All Saints Records | MN Records | Shott Music | Sony | Virgin Records | Meta Records | Sony Music | Taubgold | Stream Records | RYKO Records | Bella Union | Opal | Venture | Columbia | The Knitting Factory | Douglas | Palm Pictures | National Trust | The Armitt Museum | The Wordsworth Trust | The National Media Museum | Catalyst Global | Bowles & Green | Alexander & Sancto | Chris Bramhall | Homes of Football | BBC | Adobe | Macworld | Iteriad Architects | Courtney
As an expert in a host of unexpected fields, his work encapsulates different kinds of media on different types of projects, creating seamless, engaging, memorable and unique digital user experiences.
“Compelling communication requires an element of suprise: words, images, film and or music. Good design is knowing when to go smaller, when to go larger, when to move left, when to add and when to take away; when to use images when words just won’t do; when to use words when only words will do. Understanding balance, so as not to crowd out a scene. Invisible sight lines are real not a dream, should inform and inspire, be clear and concise, aiming for perfection, but not settling for nice”.
Our Future . . .
Hairstylist | Aromatherapist | Aromachologist
Yvette joined Courtney in 1982 as a salon apprentice. It proved to be an excellent decision. Managing a Courtney salon before establishing it as her own, prior to taking up the position as Salon Manager at the BBC Television Centre London.
Presenting shows, seminars and workshops for international product companies, alongside developing her personal interest in Aromatherapy & Aromachology.
A move to Japan beckoned. A joint venture between Taya Japan and Edwards USA to help launch western hairdressing and classic cutting techniques. Yvette joined the senior artistic team, facilitating training, organising seminars and showcasing at industry shows, while touring internationally with The World Hair Show.
Working alongside the Asia hair society allowed her to travel throughout Asia, teaching hairdressing and presenting educational seminars prior to the launch of her second salon in Saipan, Yvette trained as an Aromatherapist which reinforced her belief that these were not just creams nor oils but a way of life.
Yvette returned to the UK to train at St Andrews Health Care, Northampton as a Mental Health Nurse, and remained there for 15 years.
“Working in a Brain Injury unit I witnessed first-hand the positive influence that aroma has on the brain, and how all round wellness involving the five senses is required to have a true balance of mind, body and a much needed, fighting spirit.”
“Spending time with patients helped me apply and appreciate the experiences I had gained whilst working in the Hair & Beauty industry; encouraging my patients to embrace these skills, to build their self-esteem, self-confidence and to cultivate radiant health both in mind and body. It can be the simplest of things, which gives us the confidence and motivation to move forward with our lives, it just takes incredible focus and togetherness.”
The use of plant extracts and essential oils, expertly blended for healing and cosmetic purposes, will improve your psychological and physical wellbeing.
Ancient civilisations used oils for spiritual, hygienic, and ritualistic purposes as well as for aesthetic pleasure. These ancient well trodden principles are still applied today to our work at Courtney.
“When you have challenges, and have supportive people around you, you will cope.”
Our Future . . .
Design Associate | The Wild World of Social Media Marketing
Storm’s Liberal Arts education cemented her ambition to work in the creative industries. As a Textile Undergraduate at Central Saint Martins London, Storm established herself at Caravan Restaurant Kings Cross, to support her studies, Storm’s hard work, commitment, dedication and loyalty saw her rise through the ranks.
As Group Host for Caravan Restaurants, she was responsible for front of house teams at seven restaurant locations, as well as assisting with Social Media marketing platforms, engaging with Caravan’s loyal and growing Instagram followers. Her current role is in training and development.
Storms love of photographing food, buildings, and people for Social Media Platforms result in her Caravan Instagram posts being a daily event.
Her androgynous signature style and impeccable communication skills has earned her a reputation within the hospitality industry. Her role in actively shaping our little micro company is both a tremendous opportunity and exciting challenge. The ability to take risks and experiment, is infectious. Passing on knowledge and shaping ideas is key to any brand philosophy.
“I find inspiration in all kinds of design, from the eclectic eye of Kurt Schwitters, the timeless elegance of Alber Elbaz, the thought processes of Tom Dixon and Thomas Heatherwick. The sensual curves of Eames furniture to the Austere geometry of Corbusier and Marcel Breuer, or just looking in at the autumnal changing colours of a Lakeland tree, the natural world on which we depend”.
As designers in business we need to understand the challenges we have to make to protect our natural world. I feel eternally grateful being born in a landscape which holds so much meaning.
We are a family of individuals and our skills like us, are individual too.
Our People . . .
Anyone who owns a business understands the importance that people have in its success. In the years since we opened our first salon we have shared our journey with some outstanding people, stylists, colourists, undergraduates, receptionists, book-keepers, administrators, suppliers, builders, plumbers, electricians, trainers, designers, illustrators, musicians, film makers, sound engineers, house models, house-keepers, tailors and sewing bees. Every one of them makes Courtney what it is. Without the energy, laughter, commitment and dedication these outstanding individuals brought, week by week, year by year, to our little micro-company none of it would have happened. To all of you, past and present, who have contributed via an amazing haircut, a colour formula, a joke, or a shoulder for each other to cry on in our special unique heritage.
We Thank You wholeheartedly.