‘Nicola is a powerfully confident and unique individual that operates with absolute integrity and professionalism in all situations. She’s a respected energy and mind in complex personal and business environments, going way beyond the expected.’
- M. Brett Belinsky
"Nicola is one of the most powerful coaches I have met. She is direct, clear, compassionate and results oriented. Her willingness to ask tough questions, to address the proverbial "elephant in the room" and her determination to explore possibility ensures that her clients are truly served. She is as elegant as she is powerful and has provided some of the world's leading executives powerful feedback, support and strategic consulting regarding their personal brand. If you are looking to catalyze to the next level of leadership and personal branding give Nicola a call!"
- Hendre D Coetzee Master Coach and Founder of the 90-Day Turn System and the Neurocoaching Center
Image consultants help corporations and individuals on appearance, behaviour and communication skills to propel them to the next level in their lives and careers. London Image Institute takes an even deeper cut, training students across the world to align their clients not only with the corporate mission but also with their own core values. As a trainer of entrepreneurs and trainers for over 25 years my experience of Nicky is that she is among the top in her field, a consummate professional with cross cultural awareness and multi- level management skills. Her services are of the highest calibre and she genuinely cares that her clients reach their ultimate goals. I can fully recommend her services.
Lynne Marks, AICI CIM
Certified Image Master
President, London Image Institute
President, Association of Image Consultants International
- Lynne Marks AICI CIM
"Nicola seems to know how to reach her audience with immediate effect. She only used 2 simple messages. The story was powerful and the video clip was not even in English. Yet it got the message over clearly. The presentation only lasted about three quarters of an hour.
Prior to standing up to do her presentation there had been a very uncomfortable AGM meeting. The group was fiery, the audience angry and a few arguments had bubbled. Refreshments in-between should have helped to calm the situation but failed to arrive before it was Nicola’s time to take to the stand. Nicola was fully aware of the atmosphere.
Nicola’s charm and professionalism within no time changed the mood of everyone in the room. Her theme was on Change Theory. She walked her talk and everyone in the room could not help but either take what she said and relate it to themselves or think outwardly towards the group in a more objective way. It was a very powerful presentation and one not many people would forget."
- Lynne Nicoll MIFIC - Director for Events, Learning and Development Federation of image Consultants International (FIPI)
I'd worked in industry for 15 years and experienced my first redundancy. I was unsure of what direction to take or even where to find help with making that decision. A friend of mine recommended Nicola and I had no idea what to expect or what I wanted when I arrived for my initial consultation.
Immediately I was impressed with Nicola, professional, friendly and her business credentials were of a high calibre. She was able to get to the route of my problem quickly.
We engaged in a coaching programme which initially meant discovery, using recognised industry business models.
We delved deeper into my personal image, was what I thought and how I behaved internally projected to those around me? This led to one of the most interesting sections of the programme; the feedback part. It was one of the most insightful and helpful processes I have encountered.
I would highly recommend Nicola, this programme is great for those that have either received redundancy and need help mapping out their future or if your life just isn't quite meeting your expectations or is not to your satisfaction and you need help to discover why and how to change that. She also covered areas that I'd encountered in management programmes in the work place, except she presented them far better and her delivery was of a higher standard.
I look forward to working with Nicola again, she's an inspirational and talented individual that identifies needs and works with you to achieve goals.
- Rosilyn Carroll
I sought the services of Nicola as I reached a point where I felt I was lacking direction combined with a sense of loss of identity having been caught up in the day-to-day realities of bringing up children and running a home as a single parent.
Nicola provided me with a range of services which began with an overview of my needs and this was followed by a style and body analysis. I found this combined with a further session on colour analysis to be invaluable – I always carry my colour chart with me when buying clothes and I have a better understanding of what suits me now that I am in my early forties.
The personal branding sessions I found emotionally draining but also very exciting and positive as it forced me to really concentrate and fully focus on what I want to achieve in the short term and the long term in terms of finding a new partner, building up my self-esteem, considering possible career options and most importantly putting fun firmly on the agenda!
The personal branding session involved Nicola discussing other people’s perception of me which I thought would be very difficult but on the whole it was extremely positive as the constructive comments outweighed the negative comments and those less positive observations were all points which could be worked on with Nicola’s help.
Although I was aware of areas of weakness such as poor time management, with Nicola’s help I have been able to work on using my time more constructively and as a result have made decisions regarding work and am generally feeling more in control on a day-to-day basis.
Nicola taught me to recognise other weaknesses and acknowledging the impact these weaknesses have on the overall quality of my life and then she provided me with the tools to improve on those areas of weaknesses. A very simple but effective means of making improvements was by working out a reward system which continues to be in use today and whenever I feel I am slipping – I can mentally transport myself back to Nicola’s sunfilled studio and remember her advice.
I cannot recommend Nicola’s services highly enough , she was thoroughly professional throughout and I can sincerely say that she has had a very positive impact on my quality of life. She was able to quickly assess areas where I needed help and she provided me with the means to make decisions and I feel that I am now in better control of my life and know where I want to be.
Thank you Nicola!
- Sophie Stribbling
"Nicola is a highly perceptive, creative, and practical person. Seeking her advice on establishing my own small business, I felt understood, supported and inspired. Her efficient and quick response time are a model to follow. As her client, she worked with my ideas helping me to create a clearer vision and her assistance led to immediate, real results.
I would recommend Nicola to anybody - without hesitation."
- Hilary Ruttley - Small Business Founder & Owner
‘Nicola is a very impressive person. She knocked us out with her confidence, her focus and professionalism.’
- Mark Goldstein BBDO North America
"Nicola's natural style and elegant presentation is her calling card in all her work.
Her care and attention to detail while working with one is exemplary - I would highly recommend her in whatever capacity that she is needed either personally or corporately."
Career performance coaching programme
- Roger D. Williamson
Your presentation on the forthcoming s/s '10 fashion trends was interesting, informative, relative, well presented, product knowledge phenomenal, exceptionally organised and incredibly professional. We particularly loved the way that you incorporated Marc Cain into the talk.
Marc Cain Corporation - Annual Fashion Coaching Event for the Wholesale Market
- Marc Cain Corporation
'We loved the workshop on body language and it was such a good presentation. We would love to have another session and keep moving forward on this topic. It is so valuable for us to understand this more.'
- Sharon Landmann - Lulu Blonde
‘Whilst I was initially reluctant and self-conscious to open my wardrobe to an outsider, my consultation with Nicola was a really fun and useful experience.
Nicola helped to define what I like to wear, my own personal style/image and what suits me or what I look good in. She does not only focus on clothes and colours but also image, overall presentation including hair and make-up. Some things reinforce what you already know intuitively and others are completely new ideas; you discover a lot about what makes you look and feel good.
Her own personal style is very approachable and non-judgemental. You quickly realise that she has no ideal shape or style in mind, but instead wants to find what works for you practically in the different spheres of your life. She doesn’t judge you or your clothes but gives honest, practical advice.
The experience has given me much more confidence when shopping – I have a much better idea of what to look for, what to avoid and what suits me. I hope to make far fewer mistakes than I have previously!! You are left feeling confident that you can get much more out of your wardrobe and you know what you look and feel good in.’
- Emma Crawford
Somehow I found myself wearing the same office ‘uniform’ of dark suit and striped shirt combination. I had a wardrobe full of unstylish and dull suits, some of them badly shaped and ill-fitting, together with racks of striped shirts, white shirts and tops with neck shapes that would have suited a woman twice my age. I also had a lot of clothes in my wardrobe that had never been worn! .....My causal wardrobe was even less exciting and featured my running gear or yoga outfits at home or jeans and a big jumper when I went out.
I was looking to define a ‘personal brand’ and to find a way to update my work and casual wardrobe. My goal was to express effortless elegance in the way that I present myself in the boardroom and socially.
Having been to House of Colour, Colour Me Beautiful and others, I think I was clear about the colour ranges and even shapes that suit me but really unclear about how to put outfits together to create specific looks for different occasions. Nicola has an extraordinarily keen eye when it comes to balancing ‘looks’ and accessorising outfits to make them look contemporary and elegant. We spent a lot of time sorting out my wardrobe at home, figuring out what I didn’t need and making a list of pieces and accessories that I need to complete it.
Shopping with Nicola is so easy. Usually she will have preselected items and there is a rail of pieces ready for me to try on when we get there. I lead a very busy life, so for me it is a really efficient use of time and I also actually enjoy clothes shopping these days. I also find that I tend to buy fewer things, certainly less striped shirts, but I spend almost as much money on accessories these days as I do on clothes.
To complete my look, we went right through make-up and also hair, which I never thought I had got right. I am now experimenting with changing my hair colour (Slowly!) with a stylist recommended by Nicola, who is just so amazing. She takes her time to understand exactly what I want. A hair stylist, who takes that time with you is rare in my experience. And finally, I have got my make up right!
I am not sure we will ever finish the project that is ‘me’ because there are always special occasions coming up and a quick call to Nicola gets me an update on what’s hot on the catwalk for this season, so that I can put together a look which I love and which reflects my brand. (It keeps my 17 year old on her toes!)
- Jacqueline Andrews - CEO