A dog groomer who visited Whitley Bay for the first time and then relocated her business 360 miles north hasn't "pawsed" for thought once about the life-changing decision.
Tracy Scott, 50, had a successful business, Castle Canines, in Somerset that overlooked Dunster Castle, near Minehead, which had a huge client list with full order books and led an active social life being a member of the local RNLI crew and a rugby coach.
But a short holiday break in Whitley Bay changed the course of her life embarking her on a new business and life journey.
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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.”
Tracy saw a property in the town with an adjoining building that was perfect for her dog grooming business, and with no hesitation she put an offer in and found herself the owner of a new home at the opposite end of the country.
The salon has a huge 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 which gets the job done as quickly as physically possible.
Tracy’s path to her dog grooming business wasn’t at all connected with man’s best friends as she started life as a police officer in the Hampshire Constabulary before becoming an army wife and living in Germany with her now ex-husband.
Looking to occupy herself, she trained as an electrician and a swimming teacher.
Later, needing to spend more time with her children she looked for a local job with flexible times and she started dog walking. Her love of dogs blossomed and led to her opening Castle Canines when she divorced and moved back to Minehead.
Tracy said: “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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