Ashi is ready to make you look beautiful

Cutting the ribbon: Rochdale Mayor, Councillor Peter Evans with 'Ashi's' owner Asma Akhtar

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A new hair and beauty salon brought in the crowds last week when the Mayor arrived for the official opening and following a busy opening weekend, Ashi’s, on Milkstone Road, is ready to become a major player in the competitive hair and beauty industry. Specialising in bridal hair and make-up, Asma Akhtar, or ‘Ashi’ as she is known, received the congratulations of the Mayor for the modern design of her salon and the town’s figurehead wished her every success for the future.

With the help of Ethnic Minority Business Support (EMBS) Ashi has got everything in her salon ready, down to the last detail, in quick time and is now ready to dedicate her time to making her new business a success, having learnt her trade whilst juggling her family life.

The mother of three has dedicated her life to her children but now that they are all in school, Ashi wanted to do something for herself. She said: “I have been interested in hair and make-up from a very young age and four years ago I completed a course in the subject at Bury College. I am always doing other people’s hair and make-up and I thought it was the ideal time to start a business that I know I will be passionate for and will make a success of it.”

Ashi visited EMBS, who helped her get started by showing her round potential premises and offering support and advice once the Milkstone Road location had been chosen. Nighat Fatima of EMBS said: “We have helped with everything, from the décor in the salon, to general business advice and I think that is what makes our service different from others; we are there to help every step of the way and we will maintain that support whenever Ashi needs us.”

After cutting the ribbon to officially open the salon, the Mayor of Rochdale, Councillor Peter Evans, was given a tour of the premises and even commented that the quality of the services available appeared to be such that he wouldn’t mind a bit of beauty treatment himself! He told the assembled guests: “I love the design and the thought that has gone into this, everything looks good, right down to the last detail. Now that the business has its foot on the ladder I hope that it succeeds – there are a lot of women out there so I’m sure Ashi’s will do well! The Council likes to see businesses succeed because it is good for the borough. I would like to say ‘very well done’ and I’m sure the business will soon be booming.”