It’s a family affair at Rinaldi’s hair salon, in Queensway, Ipswich, which is celebrating 25 years in business.

Pomeo Rinaldi, or Pom as he is known to his friends and customers, has been cutting men’s and ladies’ hair in Suffolk for even longer, having started in the trade while still at school.

Pom said: “I really enjoy the business and look forward to coming in to work every day. It is the customers that make it special and we have a lot of lovely loyal customers.”

Pom and Jeanette Rinaldi have three children and two of them have followed them into the profession. Son Gianni,22, has now joined them at the Queensway salon and is helping take the business forward.

Pom trained for two years at Suffolk College after leavng school locally. He is from an Italian family, who moved to Ipswich, and he went to school in the town.

“I was 14 when I started working as a Saturday boy,” he said. “I was working part-time at Adam and Eve in Bramford Road.”

Pom then worked at the Andre Bernard salon on Bury St Edmunds for 10 months before moving on to work in a salon in Sudbury, then returning to Ipswich to style hair in other salons. He found about the opportunity for his own Ipswich salon by chance.

“My aunt used to live on Nacton Road, and my best friend on Felixstowe Road and I cut through this road between the two. I saw the shop for sale on the corner, and the rest is history,” he said. “In 1990 I opened my own premises.”

Pom works with wife Jeanette and the team includes beauty therapist Cara Bruce and hair stylist Louise Farrow who is currently on maternity leave.

The salon had a lot of loyal and regular customers, he said, and he thanked them for their support. “Our customers are very important to us.”

“You have got to like people and to be a people person to be in this industry and you have to be very professional as well. It has become quite a competitive busness now.”

Pom has invested in a major make-over and refurbishment of the premises and now it is smart, light and airy and with big open windows.

“The nice thing about here is people can come in and talk to us,” he said. “It is also easy parking, unlike the town centre. So people can drive past, and see how busy we are, and park up and come in even if they haven’t got an appointment.”

Son Gianni who has now joined the salon is looking to take the business forward. He returned last year and, like so many young people, he is tech-savvy so is looking after the salon website and the social media side.

“I am really enjoying here in the family salon,” he said, “And I want to see it succeed. Personally I would also like to teach one day,” he added.