You know those women who just seem to get back up no matter what?
No big speeches. No fuss. They just keep going.
That’s Jenni.
In this episode of Unravelling: The Diary of a Midlife Mess, Jenni Spence shares the story behind the woman so many people know through Aoki Hair, and it starts a long way from Perth.
She talks about growing up in South Africa, being one of four kids, loving drama, radio and performance, and figuring out a lot of life without much guidance. There’s a story early in the episode about her mum handing her an oversized hand-me-down bra and telling her to make it work.
So she stuffed it.
It’s hilarious, slightly chaotic, and somehow tells you everything you need to know about her.
She’s always been someone who works things out.
The conversation moves from those early years into hairdressing, which wasn’t some grand lifelong plan. It was something she fell into, then threw herself into completely. Training, competitions, travel, education, always wanting to be better than she was the day before.
And then came one of the biggest turning points of all.
At 37, Jenni moved from South Africa to Australia with her son and her parents, sold up her salon, arrived with barely enough money to buy a car, and started again.
No clients. No network. No safety net.
Just a decision to back herself and keep going.
Her first three clients in Australia were her mum, her dad and her son.
From there, she built Aoki Hair into one of Perth’s most respected salons for curly hair.
Listen to the episode
👉 Listen or read the full transcript here, it’s worth it.
This one’s not really about hair.
It’s about resilience. Starting over. Figuring things out when no one shows you how.
And hearing it from someone who’s actually lived it.
By the end, when Jenni talks about what she’d tell her younger self, it lands:
You are good enough.
Love yourself more.
Don’t be so hard on yourself.
You’re bloody marvellous.
And you believe her.
