Publicité
A love story… the fountain of youth
Par
Partager cet article
A love story… the fountain of youth
The search for the elusive fountain of youth is ongoing. But maybe we’re going about it all wrong. “Where you find change, you find youth”, says Jon Raymond Thibodeau, from Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada, who is in Mauritius to inaugurate the Jon Raymond International (Mauritius) Beauty and Spa Management Institute in Quatre- Bornes and Pamplemousses.
Invited to Mauritius last year by his friend Roger Keessondyal (a supplier to the North American beauty and spa industry for over 20 years, who has recently relocated to Mauritius), the two friends quickly realised the potential of Mauritius to be more than just an IT hub.
When approached with the idea, Mrs Nivedita Nathoo of Complexion School of Beauty Therapy fame, with long credentials spanning over 15 years in the beauty therapy and educational forum in Mauritius, became an enthusiastic partner. She too sensed the need for Mauritius to move forward in terms of quality “home turf” education. Why did students from Mauritius have to go abroad to get quality education in Europe and America? Why couldn’t Mauritius offer quality education to not only its students but to those of the Indian Ocean Rim?
The Jon Raymond International Beauty Institute curriculum is a forerunner in the ever changing, exciting world of beauty therapy. Thibodeau, as the meticulous creator of this curriculum, has a long history of accomplishments that are nothing short of impressive.
His achievements today are based on a favour he did over 40 years ago to a Swedish hairdresser who ran an Elizabeth Arden Salon. Staff had called in sick, so Thibodeau agreed to spend the day as a receptionist. He watched as clients came in looking one way and leaving transformed. There was something about the look in their eyes and the change in their walk that was inspiring. It was magic, and it changed his life.
After this experience, Thibodeau enrolled in a hairdressing school in New Brunswick. As one of only two men attending the course, Thibodeau found himself surrounded by pretty women. This distraction and a red convertible car spelled trouble for his grades. Within a few months he was failing and was asked to leave. Luckily for Thibodeau, he happened to be the best student in practical application among 500 students that year and they decided to give him another chance.
Late night antics</B>
The first to go was the car, and second, the late night antics and distractions. He settled in and hit the books. Surprisingly the most enriching part of this experience was that Thibodeau learned that he could study on his own and actually enjoy it. He uses himself as his best example when counselling students. “If you study hard and do the work, you can’t help but succeed.” Needless to say he graduated from his course with honours.
After opening one salon and then another and another, Thibodeau was forced to travel back and forth to Montreal, (a 12 hour car ride or one hour by plane from Moncton), to recruit staff for his salons. As time went on and six salons developed into franchises the travelling became cumbersome and Thibodeau decided to open a school of beauty care in Moncton in 1975. It was the first bilingual school of its kind in the Maritime provinces of Canada. As with his franchises, Thibodeau oversaw the course curriculum and requirements to the finest details. After a few years, hairdressing was added to the agenda and the rest is literally history, followed by the opening of a luxury spa in 2000 and another school franchise in 2003.
Today, students from all over the world attend Thibodeau’s schools of esthetics and hairdressing. Looking back on his life, Thibodeau simply shrugs. “I don’t see that I have done anything more remarkable than anyone else”, he says, seeming to forget that he is the youngest twin from a poor family of 16 children. Walking two miles back and forth to an unheated, one room school house where his mother taught and the fact that it was so cold in winter that smaller students were made to sit between older students to keep warm is also considered to be just an ordinary thing. What he does know is that you can be your own success story whether you open a salon in a small fishing village or whether you work in a mega metropolis.
At 64, Thibodeau has never slowed down and his story will probably have to be updated from year to year as he follows the paths of his ideas and inventions. Whatever the future has in store for him, he is up for the challenge. “This industry is like a drug; the more you get of it, the more you want it”, he smiles contentedly, his enthusiasm infectious, referring to a profession that continues to be the true love of his life.
<B>A.K.</B>
Publicité
Publicité
Les plus récents
