With a few less than six hundred inhabitants, Avenel is the Shire of Strathbogie's fourth largest town. While it might not often be thought of as a centre of industry within the Shire, there are a surprising number of local businesses that do their best to keep the local folk supplied with up-to-date services and amenities.

Some of these have already been featured in the Gazette's "People at Work" articles. This week we take a look at a one-woman business that recently earned its owner the Service Excellence Retail award at the Strathbogie Shire 'Bogie Business Awards - Hayley James' "Hail's Nails".

The Fashion and Beauty Industry has always been Hayley’s passion. After completing a Diploma of Arts in Fashion - Fashion Design at RMIT, Hayley was employed at Sportsgirl in Collins Street, Melbourne. Working her way up through the ranks she later opened and managed the Sportsgirl store in Geelong.

Travelling to London in the late 1980s led Hayley down a new professional career path in the Personnel Industry, where she gained fantastic experience working in a highly competitive market, providing staff and recruitment solutions to a large spectrum of clients.

Returning home to Melbourne in 1997, Hayley continued working in recruitment and it was in 2000 that she and her husband made a ‘life-style change’ decision to move to Avenel.

Purchasing the Old Avenel Post Office in August 2002 was the start of ‘the dream’ to own and operate her own business. At this time Hayley began a process of re-educating herself in the Nail and Beauty industry, and in September 2004 the ‘Old Avenel Post Office’ was re-born and “Hails Nails” - Nails & Beauty Services had arrived in Avenel!

Thanks to wonderful local support, Hayley has been encouraged to increased her range of services over the past year to include acrylic nails, manicures, pedicures, skin care, facial treatments and skin care, facial and body waxing services, eyebrow and eyelash tints and eyelash perming. She also offers the talent of a qualified hair stylist as a visiting specialist to the Salon, offering her own range of hair colouring and cutting services. Other services soon to be introduced will be a ‘Make-up Bar’ offering a full range of colour cosmetics.