Dundee Beauty Business That Has Helped Hundreds
Faith Elder Has Built Dundee’s Leading Beauty Training Academy
What started with a single rented room in Dundee has grown into one of the city’s most respected beauty businesses, Faith Elder Beauty.
Founded by Faith over 16 years ago, the business has helped thousands of women feel their best. The Beauty Academy arm of the business has equipped hundreds of aspiring beauty professionals with the professional certification and confidence to build careers in the industry.
Faith completed her HND and teacher training at college in her late twenties – all while working in her family’s hospitality business - the old Mill café, now popular deli Loom.
Faith said: “I always had a vision of opening my own academy. I love working closely with people, seeing them develop but before I could even reach that stage, I had to keep my head down and stay focused. It took four years of planning and saving before I could open the doors.”
The business has been based in Commercial Street for the past 15 years, having outgrown its original home at The Vine on Roseangle.
The Academy offers a comprehensive range of courses across nail systems, lash treatments, brow lamination, waxing and tinting, eye treatments, body massage, hot stones and luxury facials. Faith delivers every course herself, a deliberate choice to ensures every student receives the same high standard of teaching and personal attention.
Training once made up around 30% of Faith’s work but it now accounts for around 70%, a reflection of Faith’s reputation for professional beauty education.
It is the Academy’s approach to accessibility that sets it apart. Classes are capped at very small numbers, with one-to-one training available for those who need it.
Faith said: “I wanted to create an environment for people who might struggle in a traditional college setting – people with dyslexia, ADHD, anxiety or disabilities can find that overwhelming. Many of my students over the years have also had carer responsibilities or other demands on their time which means they need a course that works around them.
“I have watched so many people who, when they first came to me, were really shy, really quiet, just really nervous. And then they leave after training, so much taller. They’ve developed a skill – something they never thought would be possible. That is what this is all about for me. The success of my students really is at the heart of everything I do.”
Many of Faith’s students have gone on to find employment in the industry, launch their own businesses, and – for some – gain the confidence to apply to college for the very first time.
Looking ahead, Faith is focused on deepening the Academy’s offer rather than broadening it. As an IMAGE Skincare specialist, she is building her facial treatment clientele and works two days a month at Parkhead Orthodontics and Facial Aesthetics in Glasgow.
She added: “The Academy has never just been about beauty training – it’s about building confidence, creating opportunities, and helping people achieve things they never thought possible. I’m really passionate about supporting others, particularly young women, and seeing them go on to succeed. That’s what drives everything I do.”
For more information visit faithelderbeauty.co.uk/
