Foot clinic to mark 10th birthday with second premises
The team at 1st for Feet are celebrating their tenth anniversary. - Credit: Sarah Lucy Brown
The opening of a second clinic is on the cards for one Ipswich foot clinic as it celebrates a decade in business.
1st For Feet opened in 2012, and the company has supported many clients over the years, with the manager of the business saying she is "very happy" to have been open for 10 years.
Situated in Westgate House, in Ipswich, the company was started by chiropodist and podiatrist Marion Gordon and Sharon Hall, with Fiona Vamvakidis joining them as manager.
Fiona said: "We are so very happy to be celebrating our 10th year.
The team at 1st for Feet are celebrating their tenth anniversary. Marion Gordon and Sharon Hall - Credit: Sarah Lucy Brown
"I am very proud of the girls and the staff who have stuck with us.
"It was very nerve-racking at the start, but as Marion says, starting any business is nerve-racking, but we have gone from strength to strength.
"A lot of blood, sweat and tears, but we succeeded and it is brilliant."
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Fiona said that out of the 10 years, the toughest period for the clinic was Covid, having closed for eight weeks, but says it wasn't as bad as it could have been.
Clinic founders Marion Gordon and Sharon Hall - Credit: Sarah Lucy Brown
"We opened again for emergencies, and we obviously had all the PPE to go with it, so we had screens up and everyone wears masks, even now we have sanitiser and our clients still use it.
"I just think it is something so natural that we are used to working like this now.
"We have never felt though that the company was struggling at all. We worked very hard and the staff put in a tremendous amount of effort in to keep a business going."
The business is branching out to have another store opening in Kesgrave, they hope within the next few months.
The team at 1st for Feet are celebrating their tenth anniversary. Marion Gordon and Sharon Hall. - Credit: Sarah Lucy Brown
Fiona said: "We are very excited about the opening of the Kesgrave branch.
"We wanted to open another store for a while but then Covid hit.
"We have looked at all different areas in Suffolk but we went for Kesgrave, it is a new build and it is going to be really lovely and it also suits the needs of the business."
