Dr Kaly Jaff from The Secret

I love all the guests that we literally have on, and it’s incredible that you’re sitting in our chair today, so thank you. No, my pleasure. It’s an honour to be here. Thank you. So let’s get into it. So, do you mind if we start, obviously you own The Secret, and it’s incredible, and aesthetics and all the rest of it.

But can we go back way back to where it all started? Because originally you’re not from Scotland. Yeah. So tell us your story. Yeah. I think people, a lot of people don’t know about this because I’m so responsible for guarding that part of me. Absolutely. It took me… And quite rightly so

Yeah, it took me a long time to accept that it’s a power. A lot of my childhood I just wanted to blend in and fit in, and, yes, I just didn’t talk about it. It’s only really been when I became a mother that I decided to own my story. Share. I think it’s such a powerful thing. I was… And it genuinely is

I was born in Kurdistan, which is a region in the north of Iraq. Yeah. As the Second Gulf War kicked off. Yeah. My father is a huge human rights activist. Yeah. He’s very passionate about morality, humanity. Yeah. And I take a lot of that from him as well. He politically rustled the wrong feathers, and our lives were in danger, so we had to leave in the Gulf, in the Second Gulf War.

So 1995 we left Iraq. I was turning six. I would’ve been five turning six. So just to pause there, obviously you were fleeing for your lives. Yeah. It was… And you were six. I was six. I don’t really have any real memories from before that. I, you know, I’ve done a lot of help, and therapy, and counselling about, you know, accepting my childhood.

I think a lot of it is a trauma response where I don’t really have that many memories. Okay. But I think it is really important to note that I also didn’t have education up until that point because, yeah, of the turmoil of the war. Absolutely. So when I was leaving, I thought we were going on holiday.

My parents are so incredible in that it didn’t matter what we were going through, it was always happy, safe. Yeah. Everything was normal. And as it should be, though, for a six-year-old. Yeah, I didn’t think that anything was a problem. Yeah, yeah. I didn’t have — You — shouldn’t feel unsafe. You shouldn’t feel — I — never did.

Yeah. I never. And that’s great. That’s great. And I know now as a parent that is so difficult to do. Yeah. I mean, the conversations that my mum and dad must have been having behind closed door when we were asleep would’ve been like, “What are we doing? How are we feeding our children? Yes, what country are we going to?”

And, yeah, what if you don’t make it? And, you know, there was no mobile phones. There was nothing. When we left Iraq, we had to leave in two separate cars. My mum, myself, my twin sister, and my brother were in one car, and my father was in a separate car. And the idea, okay, was that if we were to get caught, then Dad would be sacrificed.

They left… Doesn’t even bear thinking about. Yeah, and you had no way of communicating, so they left in the night. We left Iraq via two cars to cross the border into Turkey, and we were to meet in Istanbul, and the agreement was we would meet in Istanbul. You wait maximum two to three days, and whether the other person… Yeah

Make it or not, you must continue the journey. And we arrived first, and so my mom, you know, there’s nowhere to text. You were just waking up the next day and be like, “Today’s the day. Today’s the day.” Yeah. Luckily, we made it to Istanbul. My parents paid smugglers for five fake passports, and it was like a family passport.

I know. There’s a film here to be made. I know, and there’s a book to be written. I know. I said to my mom, “You’re gonna write this book before you pass, ’cause my children won’t believe it.” No, 100%. They bought these fake five passports. It was a family. Yeah, yeah. Mom, dad, and three kids. Yeah, yeah.

And we booked a flight from Istanbul to Malta, and then Malta to Glasgow. Everybody always asks why Glasgow, and that’s… I know. I know. The guy asked you that when you first got there. I was like, “Glasgow?” I ask the same, yeah. Why Glasgow? We could’ve just stayed in Malta. Absolutely. Mom and dad did their PhDs in Glasgow University, and that’s where they met.

Right, okay. So it was, yeah, so yeah, there’s history there. It’s their only home from home. Yeah, it’s… Yes, there was history. That’s good. It’s literally the only place they knew outwith their home. So, and Malta was just the connecting flight. Yeah, we got successfully on the plane with our alias identities.

We got off successfully at Malta. We checked into our second flight, and we’re waiting at the gate to board the next flight. We’re like, “We’re almost there.” And the smugglers had sold the exact same fake passports to an Iranian family. What? Who also flew into Malta, and it triggered the entire security system.

Oh, no. Okay, there was duplicates. There was duplicates. This family can’t have checked in. They’re already at Gate 11. So, we got arrested. The head of security at the time was a man called Alphonse Calkie, which I now know as my Uncle Alphie. Okay. And he took my parents. And I remember this vividly, ’cause they took my parents into jail cells.

I didn’t realize airports had cells. And they took me, my sister, and my brother into what was, I assume, their staff room, and we got given plastic, like dinner plates. Like wheat trays? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember the smell, and they, yeah, just gave us food to eat, and I wasn’t… Right

I wasn’t eating. My sister and my brother were eating. I just remember thinking, like, “Where are my parents? Where are my parents?” Yeah, yeah. My mom and dad got separated, and they got interviewed individually. Both of them independently decided to tell the truth. You know, they always said, “Stick to the pack.

That’s your name. This is what we’re doing.” Well, the truth will always set you free. Yeah, so… Isn’t that true? So that’s exactly what happened. Yeah, absolutely. So my mom said, “We’re fleeing for our lives. We bought these fake passports. This is who we got them from.” My mom had our original passports in her bag.

Yeah. She was told, “When you get to your destination in Malta, bin them.” Yeah. But she couldn’t flush them down the bathroom. Yeah. And something in her gut said, “Just keep them.” Keep them. “You got nothing to lose.” Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. So she gave the true identities over. Good for her. My dad said the exact same thing.

“This is what was happening.” “My wife has the passports.” Yeah, ’cause he’d be interviewing them separately. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. The stories matched up. Yeah. The Iranian family stuck to the lie, and they got sent back home. Okay. Because their lives weren’t in danger. They were fleeing for other reasons that I don’t know.

Fair enough. Yeah, so they didn’t know what to do with us in that we didn’t have the documentation to continue the journey legitimately, but equally it was unsafe for us to go home. Yeah. So we then stayed at the airport for five days. Five days in the airport, slept in the airports. I ate sandwiches at the airports.

And I don’t know if you’ve been to Malta, but the airport’s actually, no, very, very small. Right. So staff were then going home and then coming back, and we were still there, and there was murmurs and, “Who’s that?” and, “What’s going on?” Oh. Yeah. And there was a lady there called Grace Borg, who I also now know as my Auntie Grace.

Right. She’s a huge entrepreneur, like, yeah, property tycoon. She’s a badass. Wow. You would love her. And she owned quite a few of the stores in the duty-free. Yeah. She asked Uncle Alfie what’s going on with this family. Yeah, yeah. Realized what was going on and went round all the shops and said, “Give me food, give me clothes, give me books… for this family

toys, whatever for this family. Yeah. This is what’s going on.” Yeah. And everybody came together. She was also very involved with press, so she had the press on our doorstep. Amazing. She created a huge noise about. Yeah. And at then immigration wasn’t a thing, and the entire country backed us. Yeah. And Father Calleja, who has now passed, he was the head of immigration at the time, so they decided to give us somewhere to stay until they could figure out what to do with us.

To do, yeah. Still in Malta. We’re still in Malta. Auntie Grace, property tycoon, was like, yeah, yeah, “I have an apartment.” Yeah. “Here’s the keys. Come.” Wow. Uncle Alfie and Auntie Mary, his wife, gave us, like, soap, clothes, just basic stuff. Wow. I started school there. I remember that very well. I learned to horse rides.

Auntie Grace’s daughter, Sarah, who I consider my cousin, is a professional jockey. Wow. So we did horse riding at the weekends. I learned to speak Maltese. So how long were you in Malta for? For me it feels like years. Yeah. But I think in reality it was, like, eight or nine months. Really? Right, okay.

But I feel like I had a whole life there. Before you even got to Glasgow. Before I even got to Glasgow. Wow. So then we got our documentation, and I was raised in a Muslim household, but when we were in Malta, everything changed to Christianity, yeah, the way that the people showed up. And I’m very spiritual.

Yeah, I don’t think I have a religion as such. I’m the same. But I am very spiritual. Yeah. Same. And it’s the same message, by the way, it’s just different languages. 100%. And my mum was very Muslim though. She was raised in a Muslim household. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And she said the night before they got the news that we had documentation, we got our passports and citizenship and therefore we could move, she had a really vivid dream, and it was, like, Christ as we know him

coming through the smoke, tired, and then as he became more visible, he just fell to his knees, and my mum woke up. Wow. And that morning she went to church to see Father Calleja and said, “I’m sorry I’m Muslim, I’m not Christian, but I have a dream, yeah, and I wanna talk about it.”

And he said, “Whatever you’re going through, it’s come to an end. It’s finished.” And it was that day that Uncle Alfie turned up at the house and said, “You’ve got your documentation.” Oh. Yeah. It makes me so emotional. Making me emotional. Yeah. Honestly, ’cause that’s such a powerful story. And by the whole time I’m like, I live in Malta.

I ride horses. I speak Maltese. I’m just having a great time. I’m not in… But that’s the way it should be though. You’re six. Yeah. You’re six at that time. Just such incredible parenting. Yeah. If I’m 10% of my parents as a mother to my kids, I’ll be a very, very happy mum indeed.

I’m sure you are. But I just don’t… I mean, I have fights in front of my kids with my husband over the fact that the bins haven’t been taken out, and I think… But that’s true life though. This is such a minor thing. My mum and dad were like, “Where are we getting money?” And I never… Yeah

heard that. I never saw it. Yeah. Yep. So Uncle Alfie said to my mum, “This is permission to leave, but it’s not an invitation to leave.” Of course. “This is your home, and we want you to stay.” But my mum and dad said, “We gotta finish the journey. We need to go.” You know, we don’t know anyone here. We don’t have anything here.

And when you go to Malta, it’s so small. You’ve got the check-in desks, and then there’s one escalator that takes you to departure gates. Okay. And I remember this so vividly, and I’ve been to Malta multiple times now. I was gonna say, have you actually gone back to Malta holiday? Oh, yeah. I was there in June.

Right. It’s my home. Yeah, yeah. When people say, “Where are you from?” Rather than get into it, I say Malta. Yeah. Just, I look, yeah, Maltese. Yeah. It is what it is. Yeah. So when we went up the escalators, I remember looking back, and you couldn’t see floor. All the staff. Oh, really? All the public, press

everybody was there. You’re literally gonna make me cry. Saying goodbye. They had banners. Yeah. I could read. It was like, “Good luck. We love you.” And, wow, I remember my uncle Alfie, he’s, like, 6’7″. Yeah. Very tall, very masculine. He was the head of security. Yeah. Never showed emotion.

Yeah. And I remember that day he was wearing Avis indoors. Yeah. I remember thinking, like, “That’s so weird, Uncle.” He was crying. Yeah. He was crying. Yeah. He was definitely crying. Yeah. My mom said, “Turn around. Turn around.” Like, “Say bye.” And I was like, “We’re just going on a holiday.” I’m getting so emotional about it.

And I remember turning around and waving. And everybody, yeah, was crying. And every time I go into Malta and I get on those escalators, I take a picture and I send it to my mom. And I think you would never have thought at the time, yeah, if we got to the top of the escalators and Jesus said to you, “You will come back here on holiday,” you would never have believed it.

Yeah. But yet, here we are. You know, I’m looking at buying property there, and, yeah, I take my kids. And, yeah. That’s incredible. It was amazing. And we then landed in Glasgow. I then started my education in primary three. I couldn’t speak English. We had no money. We were in a… That’s remarkable to me, that you…

homeless shelter. You know, you could speak Maltese. Kurdish. Yeah, Kurdish. A little bit of Arabic. Yeah. And I remember being in P3. My teacher was called Mrs. Bernadette. She wore an A&A perfume. Because I didn’t understand language, my senses picked everything else up. Of course. I knew that there was Care Bear teddy bears in the basket… Yes.

that we could play with if we did our work. Yeah. I didn’t understand the work. Yeah. The blackboard was green. I remember all these little details. Yeah. And when we came, there was a lot to do with Burns Suppers. Yeah. So it must have been around, like, the beginning of the year. Yeah. They were feeding me haggis, and I was like, “I don’t want this.”

I was like, “Where are we?” It’s cold. Yeah. It’s raining every day. Where’s my mom? Yeah. And why are they not speaking Maltese? Why are we not saying our prayers? Yes. In Malta, we would pray five times a day. Yeah. When we got to class before lunchtime, we’d bless our lunch. Yeah. We’d say thank you.

I was like, “Why are we not praying?” I didn’t understand any of it. And then I never asked any questions. My mom and dad never addressed it. We just kind of, yeah, cracked on. And then when I was like 14, 15, I was like, “Where are we from?” My mom and dad wanted to go back home.

That was it. Yeah, yeah. We’re going back home to Iraq. Yeah. And I was like, “I know Granny and Granddad are there, but what does this mean?” And, yeah, “Where’s Uncle Alfie?” And then slowly putting pieces together. Pieces together, yeah. When I had my first child, I then sat down and asked my mom all the questions.

Why did we leave? Yeah. How did you feel towards Dad? Do you resent him? No. Because he was so powerful about humanity that he put us at risk. Yeah. Do you ever wonder what it could have been if we stayed? And is there anything that you miss back home that you can’t have here?

And… But then destiny’s a funny old thing though, isn’t it? I was always supposed to be here. Yeah. So my mom said before she left Iraq, yeah, to go to Glasgow to do her PhD. Yeah. So we’re talking about in like 1984. Yeah. Four years before I was even conceived. Yeah. She had her coffee read. So coffee reading in the Middle East… Yeah, yeah

is like tarot reading. Absolutely, yeah. And the lady said, “You’re going to land in this country, and two people are gonna meet you at the airport. One of them you will marry. You’re gonna have three children. One of them’s gonna live very far away, one of them’s gonna be with you forever, yeah, and one of them’s gonna be famous.”

Wow. And this is like 1984. Yeah, yeah. And my mom was like, “All right. I’m going to Glasgow. I’m not meeting anybody there I’m gonna marry ’cause I wanna marry a Kurdish man.” Yeah. My mom was a very good woman. Yeah. Yeah, she landed. My dad was one of them. She married him. She had three kids. I think my sister will be with my mom forever ’cause she’s just the best girl.

Yeah. My brother will move somewhere. Yeah. Whether it’s Dubai, London. Yeah. And I’m destined to say my story. And if that, yeah, good for you, comes with fame, then that’s what it’s destined to be. I do genuinely believe in destiny. It’s written for us. I do as well. Yeah, 100%. And that’s why I just let it be.

I’m not gonna try and control anything. Yeah. It’s already written. So that brings us very kindly and very well into obviously your university. Yeah. You studied dentistry. But you’re not a dentist. No. Well, you are a dentist. You’re a qualified dentist. Yeah, yeah, I’m a dentist. But that’s not what your trade is.

No, and I also think if that inspires anyone to follow their heart, then it’s not a throwaway. My mom and dad always said, “You gotta have something nobody can take away.” Yes. Your mind is everything. Yeah. I did a lot of humanitarian work before lockdown where I worked in refugee camps. Good for you.

And I was constantly reminded that people can take your name, your passport, your country, your identity, your money overnight, your freedom. COVID showed us that. Yeah. But no one can take your mind, correct, ever. Correct. Your mindset and your soul. So I knew I had to get an education.

I went into dentistry because I thought, “I know I wanna make people smile.” So that means dentistry, right? Yeah. So I did it. I really didn’t struggle. It was the best five years, honestly, of my life. Yeah. I’m so close to my dental friends. Yeah. And I was doing dentistry well. My patients were happy.

I just wasn’t fulfilled. Wasn’t ticking your box — there’s gotta be more to this, man. Yeah. My patients were happy. There was no touch where there was no complaints. Yeah. I just thought, “I can’t wake up for this much longer.” Yeah. Aesthetics accidentally happened. One of my nurses had got her lips done.

She needed them tweaked, so I started with her, and it went into her friends and then it’s grown into the empire that it is today, which we’ll get into more. Yeah. But then I realized I am making people smile. It’s just in a different way. Absolutely. I buzz off of when I hand the mirror over. Yeah

I’m like, “Oh my God, look how good you look.” Yeah. And that’s what I wanted from dentistry, and Yeah, I was getting it. It was just slow. Yeah, yeah. A smile makeover is eight months plus. Yeah. A aesthetic makeover — You want instant — is minutes. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, it’s like a drug. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

That dopamine release. Yeah. I saw 32 patients yesterday. Just 32? Just 32. But I think I screamed 64 times. Yeah. It’s so addictive, and I truly feel fulfilled, aligned, purposeful, happy. You’re also a powerhouse. Do you think? Oh, my God. Are you serious?

You’re a powerhouse. I try. And a lot of it stems from — Will Smith — said something at the interview for when he was doing The Pursuit of Happiness. Yeah. You know that movie? Yeah, yeah. It’s a great movie. And it really stuck with me. He said, “Having money is not everything.” It’s not. “Not having it is.” Yeah.

And I didn’t understand what it meant at the time, but I actually know now that’s what fuels me. It’s not about money, it’s about the security of as far away from zero. It allows you to live a better life. Yeah. But also something you can’t take from me — Yeah — because it’s been taken from me when I left Kurdistan.

Yeah. And then it got taken from me again when I left Malta. I came to Glasgow, and within three years we had five different addresses. And I feel like every time it got taken again, it was in another room, another clothes. I just wanna have something that cannot be removed.

When lockdown happened, it really triggered me. Yeah. I was like, “Oh my God, it’s happening again.” Yeah. I’m struggling now. And that’s what decided life’s too short, and you need to do what makes you happy. So I — Yeah — left dentistry completely. I didn’t know my last day of dentistry was my last day of dentistry.

Yeah, yeah. Lockdown made me sit and think, and make a decision and do it with purpose, and it was post-lockdown that I really was born again — Yeah — but in my control. So yeah, you could say I’m a powerhouse, but the power comes from knowing exactly where I want to be — Yeah — why I wanna do that — Yeah

and knowing that it’s aligned with my destiny, which is everything’s clear now. Yeah. I’m not just doing dentistry ’cause it’s the right thing to do, and it’s a good job, and — Yeah — my patients are happy, and my mom and dad are proud, and — Yeah — you also need to have that fire inside your belly. Yeah

“Oh my God.” Yeah. I’m so excited. It’s like what gets you out of bed in the morning. Yeah. Well, I mean, I know you’ve got kids, but over and above kids, ’cause they obviously get you out of bed in the morning. Yeah. But over and above that, you’ve got to have something for you because being a mum, that’s a full-time job in itself.

Yeah. But you still have to be Kaly. 100%. Yeah. And being a mum, and society’s idea of a mum, I’m just not buying it. Yeah. I’m not buying it. Yeah. I put a post up yesterday about — Saw it — what is — And I thought, good for you — I’m not doing this. Yeah. So now I have kids, I’ve gotta dress like I have kids?

Nope. What does that mean? And I can’t focus on my career? What does — No — what does that mean? You’re allowed to have it all. You can have it all. You’re allowed to have it all. I don’t think it’s fair of me to say you can have it all. You can, just not all at once. No, totally — there were moments that I had to prioritize motherhood — Yeah

and now I can do my career. Yeah. But I absolutely think you can, if you want to wear a bikini post babies, and you wanna — Yeah — have an empire that’s growing and take the kids on a slip and slide in your garden, you absolutely can and should do that. Yeah. And I’m just not buying society’s idea — Yeah

of what motherhood looks like. But I think probably in today’s society, we’re a bit better, or I’d like to think we’re a bit better. Yeah. We’re certainly getting better, ’cause women have always been like — You get married, you have your kids, you stay at home — you cook dinner, you keep a tidy house, you raise the kids.

Yeah. That’s not the case nowadays. You’re just a good girl. Yeah. You know, people are having their kids before they get married now, and, you know, they’re getting the house and the cars, and they’re building their life — Yeah — before they get married, which, you know, is just a different way of doing it.

Yeah. There’s no right or wrong. Beyonce said, yeah. Yeah. Beyonce said, “You gotta have your own life before you become a wife,” and I back it 100%. Absolutely. But my mom and dad also set that for me subconsciously. And especially in a Muslim country. Yeah. I said to my dad, “Why did you marry mom?”

And he said, “Because she was in her 30s, had a PhD, and wasn’t the at-home housewife.” And he said, “I loved that she — There was more to her — yeah, she prioritized her — Yeah — education. She wasn’t like — And herself — “I’m 21, I gotta get married now.” Yeah. I remember my gran saying to me, “Right, you’re 21 now.” “It’s time to get married.”

And I was like, “Gran, come on.” Yeah. Because it’s just generational bondage. She — Yeah — she just knew what Granny told her, and then she — Yeah — told my mom, and then my mom decided, “That’s not gonna work for me.” So of course I’m gonna be somebody who’s career-driven and focused on my education and — Yeah

’cause my parents did that. Of course I’m gonna break every mold ’cause my mom didn’t get married till she was in mid-30s, which in the Middle East is obscene. Yeah. And that she has a PhD and her own car and — But even that, though — in that country, that’s just a — Obscene — it’s just a no-go, isn’t it?

Yeah. Because women are just not allowed to think for themselves — No, you get married — or, yeah. Yeah. It’s definitely changing now. Correct. But in my mom’s generation — Yes — she was the oddball. Yeah. And I look at her and I think — But I love that, though — “Go on, girl.” Yeah. Yeah. And so then if that is what makes you the oddball, then I wanna be the oddball.

So you’ve had powerful women around you then — Yeah — from a very young age. Yeah. Your mom, your aunt. And granny. Granny, yeah … granny was the head teacher of, I think the only English-speaking school in the region that we were at. Wow. Yeah. Granddad was the mayor of the city that we grew up in. Oh. Right.

So you’ve been around powerful people. Well, yeah, the — Yeah — and people that broke — Inspire you — the boundaries all the time. Yeah, yeah. There’s a picture, it’s a sepia physical picture — Yeah — of my grandmother, my mom’s mom, in a car. Yeah. And my grandfather is in the passenger seat. Oh, I love that.

I was like, “You’re badass.” Yeah. And I also love that Granddad — Yeah — was comfortable and secure enough as a male — to say, “Yeah, you can take the driver’s seat.” Absolutely. ‘Cause there’s a lot of ego and generational — Yeah — in that culture. So my mom had that, and then she passed it down, and Granny passed that down.

And then I wanna show that to Sophia, like you — Yeah — yes, Mommy had kids. She also has a career. She also looks — Yeah — after an empire, and she — Yeah — grows the brand and — Yeah — I don’t think that when you have children that you should be canceled. No … not a thing. It’s such a get out of jail free card that —

so many women are enabled to use by society — Yeah — and I’m just not standing for it. Correct. I’m with you. I’m with you, Kaly. Right. We need to high-five that. Yeah. For sure. But also, obviously you’re married and I think as well, I think it was Michelle Obama who said you can’t always have a marriage and be 50/50.

Oh, no. So obviously when he was in presidency and she was First Lady — Yeah — she was obviously sacrificing her time

For him. Yeah, somebody — and for Black. Yeah, yeah. So I always say to Alex, we’re on a ship, and sometimes — Yeah — you’re the captain, and sometimes I’m the captain. Correct. And — Of course — when I was having children and he was building The Secret — Yeah — we were very guilty of nobody was manning the ship. Yeah.

And so, you know, we capsized. We — Yeah — we got wet. We lost food. Yeah, yeah. And then we had to rebuild that again. It’s really important to acknowledge that somebody’s always gotta captain the ship. You — Yeah, yeah, yeah — we can’t both be head down, busy, busy. Correct. And we are learning that.

And we’re so much better at it. I call it lamb and lion. Yeah. There’s a spectrum, and sometimes I wanna be a lamb — Yeah — and sometimes I’m a lion. 100%. And I’ll tell you where I am on that spectrum … because there’s days that I wake up and I’m empowered — Yeah — and if you treat me like a lamb, I’m gonna get annoyed.

Yeah, absolutely. It’s like, “Stop.” Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then some days I just wanna be looked after, and I wanna be with one of the children. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And if you think I’m gonna be a lion, I’m gonna feel not looked after — Not seen — not cared for. Yeah, yeah. But that’s really hard in a relationship — It is

to figure out. But that’s when marriage starts, though. So I always think saying, “Yes, let’s get married,” and then you have the wedding. But after you’ve had the wedding, that’s when — Is the work — that’s when it starts. Yeah. ‘Cause marriage — It’s like having kids and — it’s not easy. And I’m not saying that to put anybody off, because it’s incredible.

I’ve been married for 29 years. To get 100 was like a lifetime. Well done. But I still love him. Ted is just my rock. I love that. I still look at him, and I still get butterflies. That’s so unique. And see when we’re not together, we’re always phoning each other. Yeah. What are you doing? Oh, you’re watching telly.

Right. Okay, well, I’ve just done this. And it’s just silly chat. Like you’re sounding boards. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But he’s still my person. I think that’s, you know, really unique — I can rely on him — For — everything — for anything. Yeah. If I feel a bit vulnerable one day, I’ll be like, “No, I’m not having a great day.”

Yeah, I’m a lamb today. Yeah. He’s literally gonna be like, “I’ve got you.” That’s so hard. But it wouldn’t have been like that at the beginning, though. Oh, hell no. So you — No, hell no — there’s so many times you’ve been like, “I’m done. I’m done.” Yeah. And then you always come back to the drawing board again.

Yeah. I think once we got to about 10 years, 10 years in, I feel that that’s when we started finding our true rhythm with each other. That’s a decade, 10 years of work. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Alex and I have been together eight years, married for it’ll be five next month. Yeah. That’s exciting. And I feel like we’re just — Yeah

just starting to understand each other. Yeah. And even then there’s days I’m like, “Oh, my God.” It’s so hard. And so I treat so many brides, especially in the summertime — Yeah — where they’re excited and it’s all about like, “And these are the flowers that I chose, and this is my photographer. And who do you think I should go for makeup?”

And we’re having these really intimate just her and I chats. That’s nice. Yeah. You know, where there’s not the mother-in-law, the bridesmaids, and — I — know. Everybody else with opinions. Yeah. And actually you can use me as a sounding board and I’ll — Yeah — I’ll call you out. Yeah. Or I’ll say, “No, that’s not right.”

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I validate that. Yeah. And I always say to them, “Zoom out.” Nobody’s talking about the husband. Yeah … is this your guy? Is this your- Yeah. Would you fight for him when your — Your ride or die — boat capsizes. Yeah, because — Yeah — we’re so guilty of getting caught up about the numbers and how much it costs — Yeah

and the videographers. And now, they’re doing reels for weddings — Yeah — which didn’t exist when I got married. Yeah, yeah. Who’s the best content girl? And who is your guy? Yeah … what values do you like about him? Yeah. What does that mean? And — Yeah — it is important. Yeah. But it’s not the be all and the end all — No

of the rest of your life. Could you do what my mom and dad did? Yes. And move mountains for your kids — and start in currencies you don’t know — Yeah — and languages you don’t understand — Yeah — and that is a real test, isn’t it? Yeah, the fact that my mom and dad are together is —

incredible. I mean, sometimes I look at them, I’m going, “Why don’t you just guys break up, honestly?” ‘Cause — you argue too much. And then other times I see them together and I think, they just would never be apart. They’re so — Yeah — ride or dies. Literally ride or die. But that’s healthy arguments though.

I always think if you start going quiet — That’s toxic — then something’s actually wrong. Because then you’ve lost the passion. You know, you want to get your point over, he wants to get his point over, but, you know, there’s still got to be a compromise in there somewhere — Yeah — ’cause marriage is a compromise, 100%.

But it’s a, a quiet woman is a dangerous woman. If you’ve stopped — Correct — fighting for it, it’s game over. Yeah. Then I was gonna say it is game over. Yeah. You’re done. You’ve kinda flung the towel in. But I used to think there was no coming back, but there is. I’ve gone through, and Alex will be happy for —

me to say, multiple times where I’ve been like, “Yeah, I have nothing left to say here.” And I’ve been quiet. And I’ve had sit downs and been like, “Mom, I’m all out of fight.” Yeah. And you genuinely feel like there’s nothing more I can give. But something always comes back. If it’s your person, 100%.

Something always comes back. Because our first 10 years, you know, first two years are in that wee bubble of, “Oh, we’re married and it’s great.” I didn’t get that. But — I — did not have that. Did you not? We were building The Secret. We had the second baby on the way. No, no. Yeah. We did more in the first two years than most relationships would do in a lifetime.

Yeah. It was too much — Yeah — too soon. Yeah. Yeah. And we got out the other side, but — But I — was gonna say, but look at where you’re at now. Kaly, honestly, The Secret is incredible. He built it. He built it. Yeah. Alex built the whole thing. I had the vision. I financially supported it. Yeah. He would say dictated it all.

But it was him that — Put — the panels in. It was him that did the structural engineer works. The hours of labor. Yeah. Yeah. He was the one that hand-built the LED lights and — Yeah — you know, organized — The blood, sweat, and tears — yeah, it was him. It’s literally his cells are in the grout of those tiles.

Yeah, yeah. He made it come to life, and he always says when we argue, “I built you the Taj Mahal.” And he did … he did, though. He did. He totally did. He built me the Taj Mahal. Yeah. I just didn’t have to die for him to do it. Yeah, yeah. He did it while I was alive, but we get so caught up in the stress of the money, and it was lockdown.

I had a baby on the way, and we were living — Yeah — in my mom and dad’s house, and — that’s a lot, though, for anybody. Yeah. It’s a lot. But we were not bubbly. And these are big things. Yeah. And that’s the main thing I say to brides — don’t forget even in the, you know, when you say in sickness and in health, for rich or for poor, for better, for worse, to date each other.

Make sure you’re still dating each other. Absolutely. Yeah, yeah. We didn’t date. We got married — Yeah — and we didn’t date for three years — Yeah — and it was so detrimental to us. Yeah. And I then was proud and stubborn to say, “I need to go on a date.” And

because I’m thinking like, “Why do you not need to go on a date?” Yeah. But if you just have those conversations — Yeah — and then you start dating again, it — Yeah — there’s always gonna be something, right? Ted and I do that. We go out on a date on a Wednesday night. Wednesday midweek … Wednesday night midweek, even at the weekends, yeah.

So it’s usually quieter, ’cause we’re very busy people. Yeah. I obviously talk for a living ’cause I’m always talking to somebody. Yeah. And Ted’s just a very busy person with his landscaping business. So, yeah, so we chose Wednesday, and our rules are we’re not allowed to talk about work. That’s so hard, man.

We’re not allowed to talk about the kids. We’re not allowed to talk about our grandkids. We’re allowed to talk about us — Us and holidays — and what we want to do. Yeah. That’s so healthy. And that’s it. We’re not allowed to talk about anything else. But look, 29 years and you’re still dating. Still dating.

Yeah. That’s — Yeah — so hard. Yeah. I commend you. Yeah. And we make a point of, if he’s gonna be away for a couple of days, I’ll write him a wee note, first thing, ’cause Ted’s always up at 5:00 in the morning. No way. And I don’t usually get up until maybe six, half 6, maybe 7, whatever time.

Yeah. So I’ll maybe go to bed later. You’re late. Yeah. Yeah. So I’ll just maybe write him a wee note just saying, “Have a great day. I’m missing you already.” That’s so sweet. “Love you lots, kiss.” That’s a nothing. Yeah. But it probably means it’s everything to him. No, it’s everything.

Yeah, just so that he knows that I’m thinking about him. It’s the thought. That’s, yeah, the thing. It’s, we talk about love languages now and I said, his is acts of service. So he’s like, “I built you The Secret.” So I’m acts of service. I did not know. And Ted is affirmations.

Yeah. I’m an affirmation girl. Are you? Don’t build me The Secret and then not tell me that I did a good job. That was wonderful. Yeah. You don’t build me anything. I just tell me,

“Your outfit’s cute.” That means more to me. Yeah, yeah. But I didn’t know. Yeah. His is physical touch. I’m not that touchy-feely. Yeah, yeah. So if I’m not hugging him when I come in, yeah, he feels rejected. Okay. Because I’m like, “Well, I’m not gonna touch you, man. I’ve just come in.” “I’ve been talking all day.”

And, yeah, I think you need to understand that about each other as well. Yeah. I didn’t know love languages was a thing till like a year ago. Yeah, yeah. It’s just all now. We have so much more information now. Yeah. But I do think it’s important to continue to date, yeah, and to understand that how the other person receives love isn’t necessarily how you give it.

Yeah. If there’s a miscommunication there, yeah, clear the air. Yes. Have your lamb lying, yes, and communicate that every day. Yeah. 100%. ‘Cause it’s tough, man. Right. Let’s talk about The Secret. Okay. It feels as if we’ve talked about a whole host of things. Relationships, yeah. But The Secret, Kaly, it is an empire.

It’s incredible, thank you, what you’ve done with it. So what can people expect when they walk through the doors? What treatments do you offer? Talk us through because when we spoke there was a whole host of things, yeah, that I didn’t even know existed. And that’s the beauty of The Secret.

So I called it The Secret because the entire ethos is that it’s your secret to health. And that encompasses everything. I don’t want you to come in and have picked from a vending machine what you would like, absolutely, because health and longevity is so complicated, yeah, and it’s ever-changing.

We’re talking about peptides, and there’s exosomes, and there’s polynucleotides, and I’m trying to keep up, yet alone a consumer. Yeah. So I wanted to create somewhere where you could come in, the way that I go into a car garage and I can just say, “This light’s on, it makes a funny sound. You tell me, man.”

Yeah, yeah. “Give me an MOT.” Yeah. I’m not gonna pretend to be a car mechanic, yeah, nor do I care. Correct. I just want my car to work. Just fix it. Yeah. Yeah, fix it. And I wanted to create that for health and wellness. Yeah, yeah. So my patient comes in, we have a really thorough consultation, and it’s all about how do you wanna feel?

I don’t really want to know what you wanna see. How do you wanna feel? And then I can take that and extract it into, this is how we can make that happen for you. Yeah. And we look at everything, and the website’s all been updated to be user-friendly. We look at the mind, the skin, yeah, the body, yeah

the face. It’s so much more than Botox and fillers. Absolutely. The services array from everything like ExoMind, which is treatment for the left dorsal side of your brain that helps manage with ADHD, stress, sleep, overwhelm. It’s absolutely incredible, yeah, ’cause when I spoke to you, I was saying that I’m an overthinker.

Yes. I overthink everything, every day, all the time. It’s exhausting. It is exhausting. Yeah. It’s very exhausting. And then you had said to me about that machine, and I was like, “Oh, I definitely-” Exomind. Please come and try it. And there’s only one device in the whole of Scotland, and it’s at The Secret.

In London, it’s everywhere because, yeah, again, society has dictated that, yeah, yeah, but people in London are stressed. Right. No. People everywhere are stressed. Yeah, ’cause everybody’s leading busy lives now, everybody’s living their best life, yeah, and everybody’s wanting to do it 110 miles an hour.

Yeah. I will not be dictated by my postcode. Yeah. My life hasn’t allowed me to have that. Correct. I will bring what I believe my patients need. And Exomind is a need. Yeah. I treat people that are property tycoons, and they’re very busy mums, entrepreneurs, so because we live in Glasgow you don’t need support

for overwhelm? Are you joking? Yeah. We talk about burnout all the time. Yeah. Google burnout on Instagram, it’s like 8.4 billion hashtags or something like that. Yeah. So it goes from Exomind to help with your mental support. Then skin department, we’ve got everything from microneedling to lasers to LED light therapy

exosomes, polynucleotides, Neofron, Baby Acil. So much, it’s overwhelming. Yeah. And then we’re looking at the restructure of the face, whether it’s polylactic acids like Sculptra, yeah, or you’re looking at fillers, Botox. Yeah. And then we’re looking at devices that actually patients don’t want to have anything injected.

And we’re using Emface. Emface is sending electromagnetic current to the muscles to, okay, strengthen it. We know that. Oh, that’s what I need for my jowls. Yes. This is what I was talking about, because this muscle is, my chucky neck, the ultimate organ for longevity, which we are losing as we age.

Yes. But we’re also losing if we’re on GLP-1 medication. And then we’ve got Emsculpt, which is electromagnetic current, but in your body. Yeah. So to allow me to have abs post two C-sections at the age of 38 is such a flex. But it’s Emsculpt. I have help. Lymphatic drainage suits. But there’s nothing wrong with that.

Like you say you have help, but there’s nothing wrong in saying that. If you can afford it and it makes you feel good, and it’s safe, crack on. Absolutely. I wanna empower women to live their absolute best elite life, yeah, yeah, because that’s how I’m gonna live my life. Yeah. And no one’s gonna dictate because of my postcode what I can or cannot have.

Correct. I said in January this year, I’m not going to say no to any opportunity as long as it aligns with your values. Values. And your vision as well. Absolutely. Correct. Because, yeah, I will get invited to go and talk at a lollipop opening, and I’ll say, “Respectfully, no thank you.” It’s an opportunity

but it doesn’t align with what I’m about. Yeah. And if you say yes to everything, if you never say no, your yes becomes less valuable. Absolutely. So I will say yes to what aligns with us. But that is the essence of The Secret. So I don’t really showcase everything on the menu because I do appreciate it’s overwhelming.

Yeah. And I’m also kind of subconsciously telling you to self-prescribe, but how are you supposed to know? Yeah. I don’t know, yeah, when I go to a car garage. Yeah. So really it’s to come in, tell me how you feel, and let me do the rest. And we can come up with a strategy, a program that actually aligns all the team members of The Secret.

Yeah. So you’re gonna see Shan for your skin and Nicole for your exo mind and M face, and I’m gonna do everything else, and we come together and you feel like the center of the universe. Amazing. I say that to all my team. Our patients are the center of the universe. Perfect. Without them, none of this exists.

Absolutely. ‘Cause, yeah. ‘Cause you need customers. Yeah. You need customers, people. I always say if you build it, they will come. 100%. But if you focus on money and profit, you can kind of lose track of actually what’s important. It should never be about that. Things, of course, have to be profitable.

Yeah. Em agreed, is a big advocate of we gotta talk about profitability. Yeah, yeah. But it is not the power, no, of The Secret. It’s actually, correct, the journey that I wanna create. It’s the experience. Yeah, I want them to be the center of the universe. Yeah. That’s right, though. Mike, who owns House of Gods.

Yeah. Mike, I can’t remember his second name. I think I call him Magic Mike. Let’s call him Magic Mike. Magic Mike. He wants to make his clients feel famous. Yeah. I want my clients to be the center of our universe. Yeah. It’s a totally different thing. Yeah. And so I want them to come and be able to just exhale, and then we’ll hold your hand for the rest of the way.

Yeah. And we’re talking about everything. Yeah. No one comes to The Secret and gets Botox and leaves. That’s not how we do it there. Yeah. And that’s why I think brides feel so supported, and then they bring their mothers-in-laws and grooms as well, though. Grooms, so many grooms.

They come and see Shan. Yeah. And I think this is really exciting because certainly within the last, I’m gonna say two or three years, and correct me if I’m wrong in this, but I feel as if there’s been a huge boom in the whole aesthetics from, you know, brides and grooms wanting to have better skin, yeah

look glowy, have perfect teeth. Because when you look back on your pictures, your videography, your, or filmmakers as it’s called now, but, and your content creation, you just want to be the best version, yeah, of you, and there’s nothing wrong with that. No. And I love the fact that people are investing finally in themselves.

And it’s okay. It’s okay to talk about it. I don’t know if you saw, with the World Cup, there’s a video that’s gone viral, and it says, “I don’t know who’s winning the World Cup, but I do know who’s getting Botox.” And it shows you all, oh, I’ve seen that, the footballers like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham, of them, 10 years ago in an interviews, yeah

and then them now. Everybody’s doing it, and they look fresh-faced, yeah, but still them. Absolutely. And I think, ’cause it shouldn’t distort your look. No. It shouldn’t distort who you are. I get it done, but I don’t think you would look at me and think, “She looks weird.” You might think I look glowy. But no one had to say to you this morning, “You’re just a natural beauty.”

Thank you. No. But you are. Yeah, I look like my brother without the help, aye, trust me. You just, I appreciate that, you are just a natural beauty. It’s really, really nice that men are now seeing it in the same way that they’re seeing going to the gym. Yes. It’s self-investment in your health.

Of course it is. It’s not about looking pretty, it’s about looking well. Yeah. And it’s really nice that the guys that, you know, like David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, are open about it. Cristiano Ronaldo has an Emsculpt machine in his house. Oh, has he? And his wife is taking loads of selfies on it.

And I think the Kardashians have it. Absolutely. If it’s good enough for the Ronaldos and it’s good enough for the Kardashians, it’s good enough for my patients. 100%. Of course, we’re gonna bring it to you so it’s accessible. Yeah. But I do think it’s taken a long time. The thing that really shifted it was actually hair transplants.

Really? Yeah, I think when men started to become more open about hair transplants, it was always like, “Oh.” I guess balding’s like a no-no, isn’t it? It’s like, “Oh, we’re not talking about it.” Yeah. But now it’s so normal. Because men, everyone talks about it, losing their hair, it’s almost a wee bit like losing your identity, isn’t it?

Yeah. Because for a woman, I mean, our hair, I can’t imagine not having my locks. But, yeah. Oh, no. It’s so hard. I can’t even imagine for a man, couldn’t, yeah. Yeah. And, for a man, that’s the only thing they could. There was the barber. Yeah. It’s like, “I go to the barber’s.”

Yeah. That’s it. Yeah. Then the revolution of hair transplants, yeah, and the accessibility, yeah, and affordability came. They were talking about it loads. Yeah. And then that slowly butterflied into skin treatments, and I do a lot of men for hyperhidrosis, so excessive sweating. Men that are in business suits all day, yeah

and they just wanna be able to have that meeting without, absolutely, the stress showing on them. Yeah, yeah. And of course, it’s gonna twindle into then, “Oh, I wanna contour my abs, or I’m really struggling to build my calves.” And then that all develops, and that is the secret to health.

You don’t need to come in and tell me, “I need Emsculpt six sessions on my calves.” Tell me how you wanna feel, yeah, when you look in the mirror. Yeah. And I’ll figure the rest out. Yeah. That is why we’re the professionals. Yeah. But I was gonna say, that’s your job, isn’t it, I guess? Is it? Yeah. Let me be the mechanic. That’s what you’re offering

of your wellness. Yeah. Yeah. ‘Cause it’s honestly my pleasure, and so is the team. Yeah. And we have so many team meetings about the patient being the center of the universe, and how are you gonna do your part. And I came from a dental background, which is such a blessing, yeah, because I always worked that way.

I had a hygienist and an, yeah, implantologist, an orthodontist, and, yeah, I got the patient, I came up with a treatment plan, and then you do that bit, you do that bit, and we all came together. Yeah, ’cause you can’t do everything. You can’t be the jack of all trades. No. I went into aesthetics and I was like, “Wow, it’s very lonely out here.”

And, yeah, you saw one patient, and then they just disappeared into the abyss. We never saw them for that checkup or the hygienist review. And I thought this is really messed up. Yeah. We’re missing something here. You give more attention to your hairdresser. Yeah, yeah. But this is augmentation of your face.

Yeah. So I knew something had to change. And so I started to change the narrative for The Secret, yeah, and the patients. Yeah. And I think people are catching up with that, yeah, which is great, but I do really commend The Secret brand and ethos around the patient being the center, yeah, and we just work around you.

We’re all the planets around the sun. Yeah. And then, I love that, and I hope patients do feel that. Yeah. And I think a lot of them do as well. So for wedding couples getting married, if it’s something that they’re choosing to do, yeah, when should they come to you? Well, as soon as the ring is on.

Okay, so, as soon as you’ve said yeah, straight away. Absolutely. As soon as you’ve said you’ll call me. Yeah, ’cause it’s a journey, isn’t it? Yeah. It doesn’t just happen overnight. Like you said, you don’t just come in and just get Botox and then that’s you done. No. It’s a journey. It’s, yeah, a lifestyle.

And some people get engaged and they get married in nine months. Yeah. And some people it’s three years. Yeah. But at least we’ll have a timeline. I can say, “Right, you wanna feel like X, and X is three years from now.” Yeah. Let’s work back that way. Yeah. And a lot of the time I might be, “Well, we’re just doing skincare until, yeah

the year before.” Yeah. “And then we’re gonna start injectables.” Yeah. Or some people are like, “I got married yesterday and I’m getting married in three months.” And I think, “Right, what can we realistically achieve in that time?” Yeah, yeah, yeah. So as soon as the ring is on, even if your wedding day

is like three, two, five years, yeah, just come in and we can plan and structure it. On average about a year and a half. Yeah. A year and a half to two years is the sort of, is the normal. Yeah, yeah. And that’s plenty of time for me as a practitioner to work. I always work back the way. Yeah, of course.

I’m not saying that we’re gonna inject for a whole year and a half. No. No. But even if you start on your skincare, absolutely, and 80% of the work is done for me, yeah, was just what you’re doing at home with your homework, yeah, yeah, then there’s even less to do when you come in. Yeah. ‘Cause I don’t want you to look different, I just want you to look the way you feel.

Look your best self. Yeah. Yeah. You wanna smile and it’s authentic, yeah, and it’s happy and it’s natural, yeah, and then you can look back at your photos and be like, “Oh my God.” This is what I was saying to you when we were getting ready. I need to renew my vows because I’m not even the bride that I support my patients to be, yeah

five years ago. Yeah. Because things have changed astronomically, yeah, not just in aesthetic medicine, but in how I, yeah, want my patients to feel. So I gotta renew my vows and be the bride that I make all my patients be. And Ted and I renewed our vows. Did you? We did it when we reached 15 years.

That’s so far. Yeah, 15 years. Think I’m gonna be with you for six. And it was only because all of our friends were sort of people were getting divorced round about us and stuff. And I was like, “Well, I still quite like you.” And he was, “I still quite like you.” And I was like, “Well, we just, you know, renew it, yeah

we do.” But we never told anybody. We just went away and we’d taken everybody with us, so our sort of friends and family. And they thought they were gonna be for Ted’s birthday. ‘Cause we’d hired out a place down in. No way. Yeah. Yeah, we just hired out a place, Corswell Lighthouse. And we’d hired that place out, and we took everybody with us.

And this guy had walked in and he was like, “Oh, I’m just here to sort of see what it looks like for my wife.” And some of our guests were like, “Oh, no, no, but this is private. This is private.” And Ted was, “Oh, well, it’s fine. I’ll show you around.” But that was our celebrant. No way. And it took

So right upstairs, there’s a sort of platform. And just as the sun was sort of coming down, Ted was like, “Oh, guys, you need to come up here. The sun’s just setting.” He’s like, “It’s absolutely beautiful.” He’s like, “You need to come up and see it.” So we all went up. It was 6:00 at night. And we all went up, and the guy was standing at the top and said, “I know you think you’re here for Ted’s birthday, but actually Ted and Lesley are gonna renew their vows.”

I would be shook. And honestly, not a dry eye in the house. Even my dad, and my dad has got two glass eyes and a stone heart. Yeah, he’s Uncle Alfie. Yeah. He should have his aviators on that day. But honestly, even he was just like, “Really?” And I was like, “Yeah.” I also think Unless it hasn’t occurred to you, it’s very poetic that it was in a lighthouse.

Because a lighthouse does not move. Yeah. Doesn’t matter the storm. Yeah. The ships that are coming. Yeah. It beams its light. It’s a staple. Yeah. It beams its light and it stays strong. And it’s the pillar of safety. Yeah. I think it’s very poetic. Yeah. That you renew your vows in a lighthouse.

Yeah. That’s so beautiful. Yeah. Thank you. Congrats. That’s so nice. But yeah, so that was all those years ago, and it’s almost 15 years ago. That’s like halfway. That’s crazy. Well, we’re getting to five. Ted said he’s not doing it again. I was like, “Should we do it again?” He’s like, “Nope.”

“Done it twice now. We’re not doing it a third time.” I just wanna do it ’cause I wanna wear that Vera Wang. Yeah, absolutely. Which you can see in the next issue of Your Scottish Wedding. Oh, it’s lovely. September issue. Yeah. It’s very exciting. Yeah, really, it’s really exciting. So just to come back to obviously the journey, so as soon as the ring’s on, they need to come to you. Yeah

get themselves sorted. What sort of price points can people expect so that they can factor that into, obviously, their budget? Yeah, ’cause weddings are not cheap. No, they’re not. And the price point and the budget is always a factor that we take into place. Yeah. And that’s why I say we work on your wedding day, actually I work from the hen back.

Yeah, yeah. Because the hen is when the photos start. Yes. And the hen and the wedding are quite close to each other. Yeah, yeah. You don’t wanna look like someone different between the hen and the wedding. No. So from the hen and the stag, we work our way back. Yeah. And then the budget dictates how much of that is injectables, how much of that is at home homework.

Yeah, yeah. For me, I would say 1,000 pounds is healthy. That will cover your skincare, Botox, and maybe some skin boosters. Yeah. It’s fair. Is it the full buna? No, but I’m not gonna say you can only have the bridal package if you’re willing to spend 5K. No. It’s like asking me, what is the budget on a wedding dress?

Yeah. You can have gorgeous wedding dresses off the rack for 255. Yeah. Some of the dresses that we tried on — Yeah — for the brand shoot, one of my favorites, I looked at the tag, was 1,110 or something. I was like — Yeah — I would buy this to wear for dinner. This is so beautiful. Absolutely.

Yeah. I know. I would be going into a Berta — Yeah — and I’d say, “My budget’s five grand.” But there’s a dress that ticked every box — Absolutely — and it was a grand, so it’s really hard to put a price point ’cause it’s so personal. And people might require different things — Yeah — obviously as well, so. I think to have a grand is fair.

Yeah. But you might absolutely come in and it’s less than that. But also in the big grand scheme of things, a thousand pounds when you’re spending potentially £27,000 on a wedding. It’s a drop in the ocean, isn’t it? Yeah. Yeah. And I think wedding money becomes a bit like Monopoly. Yeah. You’re like, “Oh, yeah.” I know.

It’s not real, is it? The favors are how much? Double it. Yeah. I was so guilty for that as well. But yeah, it is like picking your wedding dress. It’s really personal. Yeah. Well, there is no one size fits all. Yeah. And you might come in and have your staple and then add accessories to it. Yeah

like your wedding dress. Yeah. So I think if you come in with this thousand, it’s fair. Yeah. But that is by no means the minimum spend. No, of course. By no means. It’s like anything. You can buy shoes for £50, or you can buy shoes for £5,000. Yeah. Just totally depends.

Yeah. So come in. Your consultation is £60. Yeah. And that goes towards your plan. Yeah. So as long as you have £60 to spare. Right, Kaly, sign me up now. It’s like two Starbucks or orders. Then we can take it from there. Yeah. And I can say, “Okay, well, this is the golden plan.” Yeah. “What’s your budget?

Now let’s figure it out.” Yeah. Yeah. And remember, if you’ve got that time, we can build it. I always talk about budget days. Yeah. So, and to pay days. Yeah. So that appointment’s gonna need two pay days. Yeah. That one’s gonna need one. Yeah. Let’s make it work so it’s — Yeah — financially not gonna break your back.

No, of course. So we’re very, very — And I think that’s why people — in tune to that — yeah, and I also think that’s why people maybe don’t do it because they just expect it’s gonna cost an arm and a leg, and it’s gonna take up their monthly shopping budget or, you know? No, and it shouldn’t. No. I also don’t think it’s reasonable for me as a practitioner to give you something that you can do one time. Yeah

and then that’s it. Yeah. I want you to do it and then maintain it. Yeah. This is a lifestyle. Yeah. So I’m never gonna do something that’s unreasonable. Yeah. So yeah, come in, £60 is all you need to invest in — Yeah — and then — Have a chat — we’ll take care of the rest. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. We’ll get your abs for you, hun.

Absolutely. And your stag, yeah. No, 100%. But I do love the fact that I love seeing your TikToks and your Instagrams, and you’re just such an inspirational person though. Thank you. Just naturally, I think. That’s so good. And you don’t take any bull from anybody, which I also love because girl power and all that.

Yeah. Sorry to the boys out there, but yeah, girl power. Thank you. I really appreciate that. No worries. That is why I try to be mostly for my daughter — Yeah — and she does not need any help. She’s sassy enough. Well, she’ll chat anyone. Look at the women that are around her. She is very sassy.

But also, to the woman that I wish I had when I was going through postpartum — that this is not you being canceled. You didn’t build — Yeah, yeah, yeah — all of that for it to end now. Yeah, yeah. You absolutely can bring back your power. And more so — Yeah — I always thought your wedding day is your prime.

Not at all. I’m in my prime now. Yeah. I’m way in my prime now. Yeah. But I really appreciate it. I think your wedding is just that starting journey of the way. It is literally chapter one, yeah, absolutely, and then it’s maintaining it, and it’s just enjoying. Also, we’re allowed to get older.

I’m 53. 53, and I’m like, how did that happen? It’s such a flex though, because in my brain I still feel like 18. I still got high energy. I still probably act like a class clown most of the time, but I’m very business-orientated but very focused on what we are doing, as you well know.

But yeah, just ’cause I always thought, oh, I’m gonna, you know, grow old gracefully, but actually — But you are — well, I’m now 53, and it’s now that I’m starting to go, got a wee deep line there, and I’ve got the jowls coming in, and I’ve got the turkey neck. I know someone for that.

So I’m talking to the right person. Yeah. So yeah, so, I am genuinely really starting to turn my head around because I was always like, “Oh, I’m not doing that. I’m not doing that Botox stuff, and I’m not…” And now, as I’m getting a bit older, I’m like, well, I still want to look like me — yeah — but I don’t want to look 18 because I’m not 18, but I do want to look —

the best version of myself. My mom’s 73, and she looks incredible. Yeah. My grandma, my mom’s mom — Yeah, yeah — I swear she passed away with power shoulders in her blazer. Yeah. And she was always covered in Chanel No. 5 and a scarf around her neck. I love that. She would get ready to go to Lidl, and I’d be like, “Granny, just hurry up.

“Put a jumper on.” And she would say, “Who put an age on looking good?” Yeah. Honest, she used to say to me all the time, “Who put an age on looking good?” Yeah. She would have passed covered in Chanel No. 5, power shoulders. She always put a little puffy this in there — Love that — and a scarf, and she would’ve been like, “Good night.”

Are we shoulder pads? Yeah, shoulder pads. Yeah, yeah. And I think, pop off, girl. She was in a totally different generation. Because that was my generation. So the ’80s was big hair. Yeah. You had huge hair, and you had these huge, big shoulder pads. I love it. I love a power shoulder.

I don’t know if you’ve seen Slumdog Millionaire, the movie. Yeah, it was a long, long time ago. So the whole ethos of Slumdog Millionaire is that he knows all the answers because — Yeah — fate showed him the answers. Yeah, yeah. And I swear everything that has led me to the secret is because fate showed me the answers.

It gave me — Yeah — so now I just know. Of course, it’s that. My gran told me before I was even aware of what I was gonna end up — that nobody puts an age limit on looking and feeling good. Yeah, absolutely. My mom told me that you gotta prioritize your education. My dad said it’s a flex for you to have your own life. Yeah

before you become a wife. And like Slumdog Millionaire, I had all the answers, and then it was always my destiny to be the woman that I am before you today, and I — Yeah — and yes, there’s imposter in me all the time. It’s like, “Be quiet, sit down,” and like, “Your cousins back in Iraq, you know — Yeah — are watching you, and. Yeah

you should be the Muslim girl and the good wife and blah, blah.” And other times I’m like, “No, man. I worked hard for my body, and I want my kids — One life — to have that.” Yeah, you have one life, and I’m not — Not a dress rehearsal — I’m not being rude. I’m just being — You’re not. You’re just being you. Right. Your true self.

You’re being true to you — Yes — which is important. If it’s too bright, put your glasses on. Yeah. ‘Cause we’re not gonna dull it. I love that. I love all your wee one-liners. So that’s been incredible. Thank you so much. We’ve started doing this wee, getting to know you as a person, and I think. Yeah

we have. You’ve certainly showed us a lot of that today, so thank you for that. But sort of quick-fire questions. You ready? Okay, yeah. Okay. Favorite curse word? Well, ’cause I can’t swear with my three and four-year-old. We say fudge a lot. Okay, so it’s fudge. Fudge. Yeah. What’s your favorite time of year?

Christmas. Oh. Oh my God, I love it. Candles and — yeah, Christmas. What gets you out of bed in the morning? The drive to continue building the empire, always. Good for you. What do you love in life? Apart from my children? Pilates. I’m just obsessed. Are you? Yeah, I can’t… It’s become my whole personality.

Wow. Yeah, moving my body. What are your dislikes in life?

People that are disingenuous. Yeah — just say it like it is. Yeah. Disingenuity and honestly, that’s the only thing. Mine is like disrespect, lies, unkindness, and lack of integrity. Yeah. Lack of integrity. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Integrity and not being ingenuine, but also, yeah, of course, unkind, rude — Yeah — a short. That would get me to a million, zero to a million within, oof.

Yeah, don’t watch Outlast on Netflix, ’cause that’s triggered me. People — Okay — with no integrity. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They’re my two things. Yeah. And finally, who’s your favorite person? It can be anybody. It can be an actor, an actress, an entrepreneur. It can be your mom, your kids, your. It’s easy

anybody. Easy. My mom every time. Aw. My mom is number one. She is the actor, celebrity, that — I love that — everything, everything, everything. It’s my mom. Shout out to your mom. Yeah. That’s great. She’s number one. That’s incredible. Final words for our wedding couples today. From a personal point of view, it would be. Yep

make sure that they’re your ride or dies. When that boat — Yeah — capsizes, that you would inhale water for them — Yeah — and still know that you’re gonna get back on the boat again. Yeah. Professionally from an aesthetic medic point of view is — Yeah — as soon as the ring is on, come together, make it a thing.

Yeah — come and invest in yourself. As a friend, it’s don’t sweat the small stuff. Yeah. Actually, on the day, as long as you’ve got your partner — Correct — and — ‘Cause that’s it. That’s the main event, isn’t it? Yeah. You’re getting married. And your photographer. Nothing else. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. The rest of it doesn’t really matter.

Doesn’t. And a really good dress. The rest of it doesn’t matter. Or two.

Or two. I actually had two. I didn’t wear the second one. Yeah. And I love the fact that grooms nowadays are actually getting their outfits made for themselves. Yes. ‘Cause they’re — Tailored — well, yeah. Yeah. Well done as well. So yeah. I love that. So yeah, just make sure he’s the one that you would drown for.

She or he is the one that you’d drown for. Yeah. Yeah. It’s so key to invest in yourself. Yeah. Make it a couple thing. Yeah. And yeah, make sure you look cute. Yeah. Kaly, thank you so, so much. Thanks so much for having me. It’s been incredible. No, I’ve had the best time. Thank you. I really looked forward to it.

And also, well done for everything you’ve achieved as well. Aw. It wasn’t easy for you either. I really appreciate that. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Did we do it? And that’s a wrap, guys. Thanks. Oh. Well done. Is there a secret society or anything like that? Oh, you want to do a secret society?

What’s that? What, where you could find me? So, no. What’s a secret society? So the secret society is the Your Scottish Wedding private members club. Oh. It’s called The Secret Society that we’re just about to launch, but we’re building up. So you can potentially offer them something that they can’t get anywhere else.

So whether it’s an offer — Ooh — whether it’s a free consultation, whether it could be anything. I’m trying to think what… So some of the ones that we’ve had — the Collector’s Hall are offering a weekend stay for up to six people. No way — yeah, for up to six people in their Liberty Suites.

It’s got the two bedrooms, with dinner and breakfast. So again, nobody else can be part of that. It’s just — Yeah — that’s — That’s huge — ’cause they don’t offer that. Yeah, so that’s what the Secret Society is. It’s either go big or go home type thing. Well, we are launching the dry spa concept, which is that you come in with your bridal party or your groom’s party, and we — Were we chatting for an hour and a half, guys?

It feels like — Or two hours and a half. It’s an hour, just over an hour. Oh, right. Okay. Oh, that’s fine. Okay. We can cut loads of that out. We’ll not cut any of it out. Just have two episodes. So yeah, we’re launching this dry spa where you can come in, you can hire out The Secret on a Sunday. Yeah.

And we have dry robes, and you get the full shebang. Yeah. So you get your ExoMind, your Emsculpt Neo, your Emface, a facial, and you feel like you’ve been transformed, like you’ve been to a spa. Okay. And we’re launching it for brides and grooms. It’s not been launched yet. Okay. But I think it’d be really nice to have exclusive as Secret Society, call it the dry spa concept. Okay

a VIP package. Okay. It’d be for six people max. That’s fine. So complimentary — Yeah. I would say for the first two parties, completely complimentary — Okay — so they can try it. So how do you want them to find that? Do you want them to like your page? You want them to go onto your website?

Do you want them to — Inquire. There’s, when you go on my Instagram, The Secret’s Instagram, or their website, it’s all the same email. But so do you want to say to them then that they have to get in contact with you directly through your website?

Yeah. And they have to say that they were part of The Secret Society? Yes. Right. Okay. So in order to come to the dry spa, so let’s record that. Okay. Yeah. Is that okay? Are you gonna say it? No. So I’m gonna introduce you, and then you’re gonna say, “Say it.” Okay. Okay? Is that all right? Yeah.

Okay.

Secret Society members, this is exclusively for you. Absolutely. Yeah. I’ll do your part, you do my part, yeah. Do you want me to do it every time? Oh, my God.

Hi, Secret Society. It’s Lesley, and we’re in the studio today with Dr Kaly Jaffs. She has the most incredible offer to tell you about. Kaly? So this is the first and only exclusive invitation that we’re offering to the Secret Society, and it’s the launch of the Dry Spa. So we wanna give away two parties of six people maximum to come in exclusively, shut the doors to the Secret, and look after your bridal or stag party, where you’re gonna have a full concept from head to toe of that transformation experience, from Exo-Lined, M Sculpt facials, and more.

Wow. The way that you can book in is to access us via the website, or for Instagram, one is on my page or the Secret, and we’ll be happy to look after you. And you also have to mention that it is come from the Secret Society. Yes. Yes. Only. Absolutely. It’s not been launched yet. Because this is exclusive

to you guys, which is incredible. Kaly, thank you so much. It’s been an absolute pleasure — Thank you — having you today. Thank you. Thank you for having me.