5 Minutes with… Jennifer McKearney of The White Orchid Beauty and Spa
Jennifer McKearney, owner of The White Orchid, always dreamed of having her own beauty sanctuary.
With Victorian features and cosy surroundings, The White Orchid is a little piece of heaven nestled in Victoria Street. From massages and facials to pedicures and manicures, the beauty spa has something for everyone.
Armagh I sat down with Jennifer to talk about her proud career moments and her love of jivin’!
What made you open The White Orchid Beauty and Spa?
I started a beauty course when I was 17 and completed my qualifications over the years.
My parents owned a local shop and I worked in it from I was 13 and it always inspired me to want to be an entrepreneur and have something for myself.
So once I was fully qualified, I went straight in and we are soon celebrating our eighth year in business.
What are you most proud of in your career to date?
Whenever I first got the keys to the premises, all the rooms where empty with the main entrance room only having a chair and a reception desk.
The property itself has came on so much over the years, we started off working over just two floors, then we expanded to three and now we are using our fourth floor for treatments too.
When we first started out, I was on my own with one other beauty therapist and now there are three therapists, a receptionist and myself.
So, I am definitely most proud of how the business has built up over the years, both the building and our client base.
I like to hope we have a good reputation around town.
The style of the house is a Georgian house and I’m proud that I could bring that bit of life back to Victoria street as well. It would be a shame to modernise it and I have tried to keep it within its Georgian era.
What is your favourite thing about your job?
My clients – I love each one of them. I always run over my appointments because I am to busy having the craic with them. I just hope that everyone that comes in feels at comfort and ease.
What is the most helpful advice that you have been given?
When I first was starting out my mummy said to me: “Stop underestimating yourself or selling yourself short” both inside of work and out. That’s always stuck with me.
If you could choose anything else to do, what would it be?
This has been something I have been thinking about recently.
Honestly, I would never want to do anything else, it’s my dream job.
I love every treatment whether it’s massages, facials or nails, there is never a day where I come in here and I just want to go home. No day is the same which I also love.
What do you think your best quality is?
Oh, I’m a talker. I would also say I’m understanding too but I definitely have a bubbly personality.
Name three things that you like doing outside of work…
Before I met my partner Liam, I was a jiver, I loved to dance. But because he’s not a dancer, that all went out the window and it was such a massive part of my life, every weekend I would have been at four or five different dances! Donegal, Four Seasons, Ryandale, I went round them all!
At the weekends, I just love chilling out with my partner and our dogs or going to the cinema too. We’re big cinema fans we even have Omnipasses so we can go as much as we like!
What is your most prized possession?
My two golden retrievers – Alvin and Theo.
What is your favourite food?
Chinese food. My go-to order is salted chili chicken with chips and curry.
What is your favourite book?
Harry Potter series – if I had to pinpoint my favourite one it would be The Chamber of Secrets.
What are you currently watching?
Emily in Paris – I just finished the new series and am watching it again from the start, I love her style so much.
If you were to watch a band/singer live, who would it be?
Luke Combs, I’ve seen him once before at Country to Country but never got tickets to see his own tour – I was gutted!
I was asking clients and posting on Facebook looking tickets but never had any luck.
Dead or alive, who would you most want to meet and why?
Taylor Swift, I seen her tour in London and it was amazing – she’s a machine!
I think she’s encourages women empowerment and seems to have such a lovely way about her.
My dream day would be to go shopping with her, go for a nice brunch then to the cinema.