Review of ‘best kept secret’ Solihull beauty salon 'I instantly looked five years younger'

Hidden on a business park in Solihull, Glam and Glow Beauty Lab is unassuming so it’s no wonder this has been referred to online as Hockley Heath’s ‘best kept secret’. I expected regular spa style treatments that would leave me feeling chilled out, but what I got was a pamper like no other.

I’ll let you into the magic that happens inside this haven near Birmingham and it’s far from skin deep.

Heralding from Cagliari in Sardinia, award-winning wellness expert Paola Spiga set up Glam and Glow Beauty Lab in Warwickshire after years of learning her beauty, massage and therapeutic techniques in Italy, in and around Florence.

Now 38, she started when she was 19 and even worked at Florence’s famous five-star St Regis luxury hotel with stunning views across the Ponte Vecchio for five years. It’s reassuring and satisfying to think her expert fingers massaging me have also done the same for royalty, celebrities and billionaires – from Prince Albert of Monaco to the Princess of Japan.

One of her famous clients even asked her to become a private masseur on their yacht for six months, which she refused. Now she runs her own salon, Paola lives by a rule of life that she wants all her clients “to feel like a prince or princess” when they’re with her. And I most certainly do.

Her approach is to look at both the physical and mental wellbeing of her clients, using natural techniques that range from those rooted in Chinese medicine to cupping, lymphatic drainage and Gua Sha tools. As I’m a menopausal woman, veering dangerously close to 50, who stays away from any beauty injectables, I’m intrigued on how Paola can help me.

“I’ve found that many people in the UK are disconnected from themselves,” Paola tells me when we start things off with a cosy, comforting chat. “I start off by asking ‘tell me who you are?’. The response back is often ‘I’m a mother or I do this…’ and I say ‘no, no, no, what are your passions? What are you like?’. I want my clients to rediscover themselves.”

I feel my shoulders start to relax and I’m not surprised to hear that some women have teared up at this moment, when someone is fully focussed on them.

Glam and Glow Beauty Lab has already won and been shortlisted for many accolades within its first two years of opening. It was named Start-up Of The Year, has been praised for excellence in wellbeing and most importantly has over 60 glowing five-star ratings on Google reviews from clients, which include cancer patients. Paola, who used to work in Coventry’s Windmill Hotel salon, even spoke in the House of Commons last year about tips for having a successful new business.

What I get is a tailored mix of treatments that Paola picks for me out of her repertoire of around 80. This includes the Lift-IN non-surgical ‘lifting facial’ along with some cupping, lymphatic draininge and natural gua sha face sculpting that sees Paola naturally work on the muscles of my face. It all helps with getting rid of excessive fluid and bloating as well as reducing puffy areas around my face and sagging around my neck. I look in the mirror afterwards and am sure I have less of a double chin.

The sensations were soothing too. At one point, a refreshingly cold roller was skimming over my skin. Hot and cold elements feature side by side – hot stones and flannels contrasting with cool facial tools. Then there was the LED light therapy that took my mind off to another place with its enthralling colours and energising leg therapy that took away their achiness and left my pins feeling refreshed.

I leave feeling reenergised and with a face that looks and feels less saggy. My flabby neck has diminished and the aging skin around my eyes appears rejuvenated and less sunken. I’m sure I look five years younger with more cheekbone definition, and that’s without any make-up on. Over the coming days, I notice I’ve got my va va voom back.

I can understand why the salon’s most popular treatments are the Lift-IN non-surgical lifting facial and menopause treatments designed to alleviate stress.

Yet what I leave Glam and Glow Beauty Lab with is more than just a fresh-looking face but also a clearer mind and healthier attitude to skin, natural beauty and myself, thanks to Paola’s insightful and personal approach.

What I would say, is don’t be fooled by appearances as the salon looks like an office from the front and lacks the glamour and polish from outside of glitzy salons.

“Everyone is beautiful in their own way,” says Paola. “When you don’t give 100% to the clients then I think that’s when you need to close.” But I’ve no doubt this gem of a beauty salon won’t be shutting any time soon.

Prices

There are a wide range of packages and treatments to suit all budgets. A Blissful Serenity Spa Ritual for 2hours 45 minutes of carefully curated treatments costs £210 and the Timexpert Lift(IN) facial therapy for 1 hour 10 minutes costs £130.

Energising leg therapy for 25 minutes costs £45 and a Baobab Indian Head Scalp Massage for 25 minutes costs £40. A 20 minute LED Expert Light Therapy session costs £75 and Pressotherapy lyphatic draining machines sessions cost from £70.

Where is Glam and Glow Beauty Lab

Find Glam and Glow Beauty Lab at Unit 8, Hockley Court, 2401 Stratford Rd, Hockley Heath, Solihull, B94 6NW. There is free parking on the business park site and the salon is tucked away in a corner of the courtyard. Book or get more information at www.glamandglow.uk, by emailing [email protected] or calling 0121 289 2985.