Cosmetic clinic's waiting list grows as clients want pre-lockdown looks
Jemma George is an aesthetic nurse practitioner and owner of Refined Medical Aesthetics in Gorleston. - Credit: Emily Thomson
A cosmetic specialist says her waiting list is growing by the minute as clinics reopen and clients try to get back their pre-lockdown appearance.
Refined Medical Aesthetics, in Gorleston, is set to reopen on Tuesday April 13 and its owner Jemma George said she is preparing for a busy few months.
Around 250 people have booked in at the clinic and Ms George has spent around £4,000 for the reopening and purchasing filler and botox ready for her clients.
The 33-year-old said: “I am feeling excited to get back and see my clients but for a while during the third lockdown I really lost that passion and drive to do aesthetics again.
“I didn't know if I wanted to return to the industry because being self-employed is quite full-on.
“And it's rebuilding that confidence again. What we do is quite skilled and we have had a lot of time off. So that has been a worry.
“Also, financially, we have to rebuy stock and we have a four-month backlog, plus new clients.
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“To try and fit everyone in within a time scale that they want is really stressful. I’m going to be working my fingers to the bone for the next three months just trying to catch up.”
Despite the clinic’s long waiting list for treatments, Ms George said she has lost clients during lockdown as some clinicians carried on injecting.
The NHS nurse said: “It has been quite frustrating.
“There are practitioners such as dentists who have legally been able to carry out treatments but we have lost clients through people doing it behind closed doors.
“Non-essential treatments and beauty services were closed, it wasn’t optional. It was against the law so we weren't insured. It’s irresponsible to inject people's faces without insurance.”
But Ms George said it has highlighted just how addictive cosmetic procedures can be and say many are feeling the pressure to look good as restrictions lift.
“In lockdown a lot of people have saved money but it has also left a lot people not feeling good about themselves," she said.
"We are all feeling this pressure and deadline at the end of June to look how we did a year ago.”