APPRENTICE winner Dr Leah Totton has finally launched her business after spending six gruelling months working to get the cosmetic surgery clinic up and running.
The Derry-native, who received a £250,000 sum for her start-up after winning the 2013 series of The Apprentice, revealed her first Dr Leah clinic in London yesterday.
“I’m excited to be opening the clinic in the heart of the city today, but it has taken six months of really really hard graft, not much sleep and loads and loads of hours to make today possible,” she said.
Although business partner Lord Alan Sugar was unavailable to attend the launch of the Moorgate-based clinic, his Apprentice co-star Karen Brady stepped in in his absence.
“I would like to firstly give Alan Sugar’s apologies,” she said, “but he is away on business and asked me to step in. It’s not true at all that Leah and I banned him,” she added.
The former Birmingham City Football Club managing director went on to congratulate Dr Leah, before adding ‘the hard work starts now’.
For Totton, who claims the past six months have been ‘harder than she expected’, her dream of creating a responsible cosmetic surgery brand can now begin.
The clinic is based in MoorgateAnd she has the full support of her friends and family back in Derry as she takes on the challenge.
“Everyone back home in Ireland has been so supportive and I think they are really proud of me,” she told The Irish Post.
“My sister is actually my patient coordinator here now and she moved over from Ireland to help me over the past six months, so that’s been fantastic.”
Totton will now be based at the clinic, which has four treatment rooms and offers procedures ranging from Botox and facial peels to fat-loss procedures and facials.
“I have an excellent team, I have an esteemed medical director, a consultant plastic surgeon and a skilled head nurse prescriber, who is the chair of our Clinical Excellence Board,” the doctor admits.
“I also have a fantastic team of doctors who will be injecting with me here in the clinic.”
When asked how big she would like to see the Dr Leah empire grow, she explained: “It’s been a lot of work trying to get this one clinic up and running and I am focusing on this here for now.
“I want to make it something that really sets the bar in the industry.”
She added: “I have a great team behind me and feel so lucky to have so much expertise working with me to make sure our product is the best out there. We are creating a safe haven for men and women to undergo these cosmetic treatments should they so desire.”
See More: Dr Leah Clinic, Dr Leah Totton, The Apprentice
