A business woman from Somerset has relocated to the North East after falling in love with the area during her first visit.
Former police officer Tracy Scott had run the successful Castle Canines business close to Dunster Castle near Minehead, Somerset, for many years when she took a trip to visit a friend in Whitley Bay. And at the end of the short break she stumbled upon the chance to move North, after spotting a potential house and adjoining business unit in an estate agent’s window. Now Ms Scott has switched regions, moving her business and entire life 360 miles to the North East.
She told how she had a long list of clients and a full order book in Minehead, alongside an active social life as a member of the local RNLI crew and rugby coach, before making her life changing decision.
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She said: “I came up to visit a friend in October and fell completely head over heels in love with the place. Whitley Bay is just by far the friendliest place I’ve ever visited in my life and on the day that I was due to fly back to Bristol, I made the age-old mistake of looking in an estate agents window.”
Ms Scott spotted a property in the town with an adjoining building that was ideal for her dog grooming business. She put an offer in and found herself the owner of a new home at the opposite end of the country. The salon now has a stainless steel bath which is big enough for her regular Saint Bernard client, an electric lifting table and a commercial dryer specifically for dog grooming.
She started her career as a police officer in the Hampshire Constabulary before becoming an army wife and living in Germany with her former husband. She trained as an electrician and a swimming teacher and later, needing to spend more time with her children, she looked for a local job with flexible times and she started dog walking. This led to her opening Castle Canines when she divorced and moved to Minehead.
She added: “Things are all falling into place for me now. My son is going to Glasgow University which is only a few hours away as opposed to nine hours from Minehead and I’m really impressed at how accessible Tyneside is with metros, trains, and airports so easy to get to.
“Everyone is so friendly, and I’ve never seen so many dogs walking along the beautiful coastline. I really have made the best decision of my life and thankfully my dog clients are benefiting from my move too.”
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