Owner of barber shop in Sowerby Bridge set to open sunbed studio over the road

Chris Stanton, 32, was a soldier in the army before becoming a hairdresser and has won awards as a barber.

After having a shop in West Vale for four years, Chris moved to Luddendenfoot before then switching his business, The Barber Pad, to his home town of Sowerby Bridge in May last year.

"It's been flying," he said. "When I first came here there were six other barbers, so people were like 'do you think it'll take off?' but it has, I can't really complain.

"The shop came up across the road and I fancied doing a sunbed shop.

"So I just thought, while the barbers is going well, why not just go for it?

"There aren't round here. People keep saying I should put a sunbed in the back of the barbers, but I didn't really want one in the shop because I've seen it happen before and I don't think it goes well.

"I think it needs to be a shop on its own so men and women can both go there."

Chris' partner Mila Bolton will help to run the shop, House of Tan, which he hopes will be open by the end of May on Town Hall Street.

"There's no other sunbed shops in Sowerby Bridge and I've had a lot of good feedback about it on Facebook already, people are really excited about it," Chris said.

"It's something different, so hopefully it'll do alright."