Sarah Abel managed to clear her debts and build successful business (Image: Supplied by PR Carol Driver)
Today Sarah Abel is an established business owner who runs a successful hair and beauty training academy and can enjoy, not just her professional success but the joy of being a grandmother of four.
But it wasn’t always that way – when she was 36, Sarah’s impulse spending was so out of control that she was drowning in £50,000 of debt from “living beyond her means”, including paying for expensive holidays abroad by remortgaging her house and buying cars she didn’t need.
Then in 2000, Sarah, from Folkestone, Kent, went one – giant – step further when she went into her favourite salon to have her nails painted, found out that the owner was selling up, and decided to buy it.
“I haven’t been officially diagnosed, but I have ADHD tendencies, and I know they play a role in my impulsive decision-making; such as quick purchases without much thought,” she says.
Sarah then secured a £20,000 government loan to buy the salon. “I was terrified and apprehensive. But I also had the inner confidence that I knew I could make this work,” she says.
Sarah left her secure job at Avon and even convinced her husband Andy, now 63, to give up his career too, training as a body piercer. With two children, Naomi, now 35, and Rhys, 33, it was a huge risk.
“Money was tight, and the weight of debt was suffocating at times, but I never let it define me. I learned that resilience and resourcefulness can turn even the most difficult financial situations around. If you take control of your finances, you take control of your future.”
And her hunch paid off. Within a few years, Sarah had five salons, each contributing to the growing success of their enterprise.
Sarah, second from L with daughter Naomi, therapist Monica, nail tech Maxine and one of her first employees who still works for her (Image: Supplied)
But the real game-changer came in 2008 when Sarah, then 44, took advantage of new government funding and apprenticeship programmes to train her own staff, before creating her first hair and beauty training academy, TNB Skills Training, now worth £1.5 million.
It’s been an astonishing journey, even more so considering Sarah’s challenging childhood. Her mother Enid was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) at the age of 36 when Sarah was just four. It had a huge impact on her father Tony’s mental health and he took his own life when Sarah was just seven.
Sarah and her sister went into the care of their grandparents at 14, Sarah left school at 16, and took on various jobs, from working in hair salons to insurance offices, striving to support her family.
“I became mum’s carer at the age of seven,” she says. “When she died in 1985, her absence left a void. I put my head down and focused on work, getting married to Andy and starting my own family.
“When I was 31, I got my first big break with a job as a manager with Avon. I was good at it – I’ve always loved people – and quickly rose through the ranks to become one of the top salespeople in the country.
“But, deep down, there was a niggling feeling of ‘what’s next?’. I wanted more; to build something of my own – that would challenge me and allow me to leave a lasting impact.
“Leaving Avon behind was difficult; the stability, the regular wage, the potential to work my way up the company. But I knew if I wanted to build my own business, now was the time.”
Her husband Andy has been her rock (Image: Supplied)
Sarah dedicated herself to learning about the beauty industry and bought four more salons. “Running multiple salons wasn’t without its challenges,” she says. “Cash flow was tight, and finding skilled staff was a constant struggle.”
She depended on government funding and apprenticeship programmes to train her staff and realised that that’s where the future of her business lay. “It allowed me to transform lives by making training accessible and I could help other salon owners expand their businesses too. It gave me a purpose,” she says.
With that lightbulb moment, Sarah redirected the business into training, offering programmes in hair, nails and beauty and working with other businesses to help them secure funding for apprentices, earning her the nickname, “The Funding Godmother”.
“It wasn’t an easy time,” she recalls. “I had huge imposter syndrome. In 2010, I had to present a case to the local council for a big tender. I walked in the room feeling as though I was the least qualified person there. I felt they looked down on me for just being in the beauty industry.”
When Sarah got government funding to train her own staff (Image: Supplied)
She also had a debt management plan put in place to restrict her borrowing. “It meant I had to budget carefully which wasn’t an easy thing for me to do,” she says. “But it shifted my perspective, teaching me that things are just ‘stuff’. That’s how I paid off all of my debts.”
Now, not only has she paid off all her debts, Sarah has helped secure more than £6million in government grants for training and apprenticeships, transforming the lives of hundreds of young people.
She’s written a bestselling book, The Power of Funding, and continues to run multiple businesses, including a property portfolio. “Looking back, every financial struggle, every risk, and every setback shaped the person I am today,“ she says.
“Getting out of debt was one of the biggest achievements of my life. It wasn’t easy, and there were times I thought I would never make it. But I refused to give up.
“I want people to know that no matter how deep in debt you are, there is always a way out. It takes time, discipline, and a willingness to learn, but financial freedom is possible. If I can do it, anyone can.”
For more information, visit TNB Skill Training at tnbskillstraining.co.uk
