When Katie Godfrey opened her first salon at the age of 19 with no formal qualifications, no investors, and no roadmap, she wasn’t thinking about legacy. She was just trying to make something work. But over the next two decades, that scrappy determination would evolve into something far bigger: a global brand, a bestselling book, a thriving podcast, and a mentorship movement that’s quietly revolutionizing the beauty industry.
Godfrey, the creator of KG Professional, is quite a phenomenon among beauty and entrepreneurial communities. She’s part business strategist, podcast host, and myth-buster, all exhorting women to “get off the tools”, her now-familiar mantra for the sake of constructing meaningful freedom and lasting sustainability.
Her book, Get Off The Tools: A Beauty Boss’s Guide to Real Business Growth, on Amazon and her own site, has already inspired thousands to challenge what is possible outside the salon chair. And with her podcast “The Life of KG” listening into the UK, UAE, and beyond, Godfrey has established a platform for unfiltered, real conversations about what actually works to succeed as a beauty professional in today’s economy.
“Success isn’t really about milestones or money for me,” Godfrey explains. “It’s about creating a life that I actually like living.”
The Making of an Unlikely CEO
Godfrey’s path wasn’t one of mogul ambition. It was that of a teenage girl who dropped out of school at 13 and didn’t have a clue where she was headed but was determined to carve her own path. At 19, she had opened a salon; by her late 20s, a chain. From there, training academies, product introductions, and eventually, a business structure that enabled her to withdraw from day-to-day operations and move into a new function: mentor.
That shift from hands-on practitioner to strategic entrepreneur wasn’t only a turning point in her business. It’s become the foundation of her message to others.
“So many in our industry get caught up thinking like the therapist, the lash tech, the artist,” she says. “The real growth occurs when you begin thinking like the business owner.”
It’s counsel she didn’t merely acquire in a boardroom but on the battlefield of burnout. Godfrey speaks openly about a period of time when the external success: several salons, consistent income, high-demand concealed an internal whirlpool of depletion.
“I was doing too much, trying to be everything to everybody,” she remembers. “It almost destroyed me. That’s when I realized I had to create something that functioned without me being the center of it all.”
That choice to outsource, to hire, to put systems in place – was not just strategic. It was freedom. It’s also the model she now instructs her clients, whether they’re solo beauty professionals or growing education businesses of their own.
Building Global, Leading Local
Nowadays, Godfrey splits her time between the UAE and UK, where she hasn’t just grown her business but also strengthened her mentorship approach. She’s keenly sensitive to cultural differences in the way beauty entrepreneurs function and adjusts her coaching in response.
In the UK, it’s a bit of a ‘do it all yourself’ culture,” she explains. “In the UAE, people want luxury, brand shine, and premium positioning from the outset. Both are sound, but you need to vary the way you grow based on where you are.”
But despite the cultural differences, there are some lessons that transcend. Whatever the location – Manchester or Dubai – Godfrey teaches the authority of boundaries, pricing courage, and having the courage to cease doing everything yourself. Her mentoring fosters leadership, not labor, strategy, not sacrifice.
That worldview supports her expanding KG mastermind program and abroad business retreats & events that now attract clients from throughout Europe, the Middle East, and North America.
The Life of KG: Podcasting with Purpose
If her book is the plan, her podcast is the pulse. “The Life of KG” on Spotify and Apple Podcasts includes interviews with salon owners, teachers, and coaches, but eschews the glossy motivational sound often heard on entrepreneurial podcasts. Instead, it goes deep on vulnerability, failures, and the daily drudgery of creating a dream from zero. “Let the listeners feel heard,” she says. “Business can be isolating, particularly in beauty, where you’re working on your own most of the time. I want them to know they’re not the only one going through it and that they’re not alone in their ambition either.”
It’s a combination of candor and expectations that has gotten her a devoted following and thousands of downloads each month.
Get Off the Tools: A Business Book for the Beauty Industry – Finally
Godfrey’s book in 2025, Get Off the Tools, is a call to action for beauty business owners who are stagnant behind the treatment chair. This book is not like most business books, which provide broad strategies. It is written with precision specificity for the salon environment. It addresses everything from pricing psychology and team working to mindset changes and exit planning.
“I wanted to write the book I needed when I was beginning,” she says. “It’s not rubbish. It’s what actually works.”
The book has been complimented by industry leaders for being down-to-earth in tone and step-by-step models, and it’s now used in several training academies throughout the UK.
You can buy Get Off the Tools on Amazon or direct from her website at kgprofessional.com.
Mentorship as Legacy
Above all, Godfrey wants to be remembered for what she created in people, rather than the empire she created.
“I want to be the individual I needed when I was 19 years old,” she says. “Someone who makes you realize you can do it, even if you have nothing.”
She sees it most clearly in her clients: women from the salon burnout of their past to be six-figure coaches, product developers, and educators.
“That’s the legacy – empowering women to see they can have freedom and wealth and still love what they’re doing.”
What’s Next
With her company expanding globally and her move to Dubai finalized, Godfrey is now concentrating on creating even more passive income streams, growing her masterminds, and writing a sequel to her first book. She’s also looking to do speaking events in the U.S. and work with global beauty companies as a consultant.
But the mission is the same: more freedom, more time with family, more impact.
“You don’t have to have it all mapped out,” she says. “You just have to begin. The rest you can build as you go.”
Katie Godfrey: From Salon Chair to CEO
Helping salons, clinics, educators, and coaches level up across the 🌍 UK & UAE
🎙 Podcast: The Life of KG
📖 Book: Get Off the Tools
Available in Amazon and Waterstones
https://www.waterstones.com/book/get-off-the-tools/katie-godfrey/9781917623087
Barnes and Noble USA
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/get-off-the-tools-katie-godfrey/1147212208?ean=9781917623087
🌐 Website: www.kgbusinessmentor.com
