Loading...
Serenity Loves: Investing in people to build long-term business resilience
24 September 2026
Read time: 8 minutes
We've partnered with Small Business Britain to better understand the challenges, opportunities and evolving risks they face. We're listening to small business owners with the aim of strengthening conversations between businesses, brokers and insurers. Not only to help deliver practical, relevant support, but to enable them to grow, build resilience and thrive.
We're putting together a series of case studies, where we explore real-life scenarios with UK-based small businesses. You'll find all of these stories here on our site, with a new one released each month.
Introducing the third case study of our series, where we focus on Serenity Loves based in Peterborough.
As businesses plan for future growth, investing in people can be one of the most effective ways to build resilience. For Jo Bevilacqua, founder of Serenity Loves, investing in people has been central to the business's success since opening its doors in 2012.
What started as a vision to create more than a traditional hair and beauty salon has grown into an award-winning business. They have a strong reputation for training, development and customer care. Serenity Loves continues to invest in the skills, services and opportunities that will help shape its future.
For Jo, growth is not simply about expanding the business. It's about creating a sustainable organisation that supports its team, serves its community, and remains resilient in a changing marketplace.
Like many business owners, Jo has faced significant challenges over the past six years. Rising costs, cautious customer spending, and changes in how people work across the hair and beauty sector have all added pressure.
For a business committed to employment, apprenticeships and structured career development, these changes have created additional challenges. Rather than scaling back investment entirely, Jo has focused on being more deliberate about where resources are directed. She's focused on prioritising initiatives that will support the long-term strength of the business.
There have definitely been moments over the last six years when I've questioned how do we continue doing what we do. If difficult economic conditions cause you to stop training, developing people, innovating and improving the business completely, you risk creating a business that might survive today but isn't prepared for tomorrow.
Jo, Serenity Loves
At Serenity Loves, the most significant investment is not in equipment or facilities. It is in people.
The salon currently supports six apprentices at various stages of their careers. For Jo, the investment in time and cost to train individuals at the beginning of their career is essential to the future of the industry. She asks "where do the experienced hairdressers of the future come from if nobody trains them?"
Since opening, Serenity Loves has helped more than 30 people gain professional qualifications. While some have remained in the business, others have progressed onto other opportunities. Rather than viewing this as a loss of investment, Jo sees it as part of creating a stronger industry and a lasting legacy.
The salon is also expanding opportunities beyond traditional stylist roles. They are creating pathways into management, education, and professional assessment. This should help to support long-term career development.
Investment has also enabled Serenity Loves to respond to emerging customer needs, and develop specialist services that set the business apart.
One example is its specialist dematting service. They support people experiencing severe hair matting following illness, disability, bereavement, mental health challenges, or other difficult life circumstances.
What began as helping individuals in need quickly revealed a significant gap in support. After Jo raised awareness of the issue publicly, enquiries began arriving from across the country. This highlighted a demand for a professional, compassionate, and non-judgemental service.
In response, Serenity Loves developed a dedicated offering. They've even raised funds to help subsidise appointments for those unable to meet the full cost themselves.
We didn't sit in a boardroom and decide it was a new market we wanted to enter. We helped someone who needed us, then another person came forward, and another.
Jo, Serenity Loves
As the business continues to evolve, Serenity Loves remains focused on developing its people and expanding opportunities for future growth.
Looking ahead, Jo plans to continue investing in education and career pathways, while exploring ways to extend the reach of the salon's specialist dematting service. Longer term, Jo also wants to explore ways to help more professionals provide specialist support within their own communities.
Courage in business isn't being completely confident that something will work. Sometimes it's deciding that something matters enough to try anyway.
Jo, Serenity Loves
After more than a decade in business, Serenity Loves continues to demonstrate that resilience is built through long-term thinking, adaptability, and investment in people.
The business was recently recognised as Small Business of the Decade, having previously won Small Business of the Year in 2018. For Jo, however, success is measured by more than growth alone. It's about creating opportunities, making a positive impac,t and building a business that continues to matter.
For brokers and business owners, Serenity Loves highlights the important role people play in long-term business resilience.
Investment in training, apprenticeships and specialist skills can help organisations build future capability, strengthen employee retention, and reduce risks associated with skills shortages.
Brokers can play a valuable role in helping customers understand workforce-related risks. They can also help identify areas where their risk management approach may need to evolve. Examples include:
As businesses grow, it's also important to review whether existing insurance arrangements continue to reflect the activities being undertaken, and the potential risks involved. Taking a proactive approach can help businesses build resilience, while ensuring they remain well positioned for future growth.
Jo's story highlights how investment in people and specialist expertise can become a real competitive advantage. Whether a business is developing apprentices, creating new career pathways or introducing specialist services, these are valuable opportunities for brokers to have proactive conversations about changing risks and how clients can support sustainable growth.
Stu Barnes, Small Business Product and Channel Manager
You can read more about why we're partnering with Small Business Britain, as well as watch our introductory video with Ken Norgrove, CEO at Intact Insurance, and Michelle Ovens CBE, CEO and Founder at Small Business Britain.
You'll also find our other published case studies, so you can hear more examples of real businesses and how we're helping to make a difference to them.