A GREENOCK beauty salon is in the running for a prestigious national industry award.

Allure Beauty and Nails in Lynedoch Street has reached the final of the Scottish Hair and Beauty Awards 2019 and is now up against nine other Scottish businesses to be named firm of the year.

Owner Charlene Wilkinson is confident the firm can see off competition from rivals in Glasgow, Dumfries, Dundee and Inverness after being shortlisted through a public vote.

Charlene, 35, has run the business - which was previously based in Nelson Street - for 14 years and says an attention to detail and building close relationships with clients is key to their success.

She told the Tele she is delighted that team members Kim McGilvray, Donna Cochrane, Justine Frizzle and Alicia Docherty have been recognised for their efforts.

She said: “We were over the moon when we found out we were in the final.

"Being a small salon we were surprised to have made the last ten but it is recognition of all our hard work.

“We have such a loyal clientele. I've had some people coming to me since I was 17.

“The girls are always working to improve their skills and we always look to make sure people receive a high quality service, but it is nice to know that people appreciate that hard work."

Despite its modest size, the business is keen to stay at the front of the market and recently launched an app to make it easier for customers to book and manage appointments.

Charlene told the Tele her team 'genuinely love their jobs' and thanked the clients who voted for them.

She added: “I really look forward to coming to my work, as do all the girls. Our customers are so friendly and it is always a nice atmosphere.

“Many of our clients have become our friends and everyone is so excited for us to be in the running for such a major industry honour.

“We are looking forward to heading along to the awards in December and want to thank everyone who took the time to vote for us.”

The ceremony will be held on December 8 at The DoubleTree by Hilton in Glasgow.