A SOUTHAMPTON hairdresser and beautician has been shortlisted for a national award – five years since starting her career as an apprentice.

Naomi Rhodes, 21, a hairdresser at Monroe's Hair and Beauty and semi-permanent makeup (SPMU) artist from Bitterne Park, is in the running for a finalist position in the UK Hair and Beauty Awards 2022.

Miss Rhodes started offering SPMU, specialising in eyebrow work, a year and a half ago and has since been inundated with clients and booking requests.

From this, she decided to nominate herself for the SPMU Artist of the Year award.

Naomi said: "I have never entered this competition before, as you never think you would be picked, but my business is going well and I have been really busy, so I thought I’d enter.

Daily Echo: Naomi Rhodes, 21, a Southampton hairdresser and beautician who has been shortlisted for national award Naomi Rhodes, 21, a Southampton hairdresser and beautician who has been shortlisted for national award

"I am quite shocked I got picked. The best way to describe the process is it’s like an essay; the award organisers give you questions and you have to write loads and submit it to them. They then contacted me to say I have gone forward in the competition.

"I’m obviously quite young but people who have been doing this longer than me haven’t got as far in the competition.

"It’s good to see my hard work is paying off and I am doing the right things and making people happy. And for that to be noticed is really nice."

The coronavirus pandemic meant Naomi had to put her work as a hairdresser and SPMU artist on hold, but she bounced back and now has a growing number of clients.

She said: "As I put my SPMU work on hold during Covid, it’s rewarding to be shortlisted. It means a lot to be getting back up and running this way.

"SPMU is ridiculously expensive, usually costing between £300-£400, but I charge less than that as I want to be affordable, especially coming out of lockdown, so I usually charge £110 for a set.

"Now, I’m starting to offer free treatments for people battling cancer and those undergoing hair loss treatments. I recently started silent appointments too.

"Some people are very anxious, so they can book a silent appointment and I won’t talk to them and chew their ear off.

"It's so nice to see my hard work and determination pay off."

To find out more about Naomi and her work, visit Beauty By Naomi on Facebook.