SONAL BHAVSAR
Sonal grew up having only two aspirations in life – either to be a model or to become an air hostess. Having participated in Femina Miss India, doing ad campaigns, music videos and walking the ramp to getting trained by India’s 1st Lakme supermodel, Sonal always believed in the art of dressing well. She then followed her second aspiration and joined India’s Premiere Airline as a Cabin Crew in both Domestic and International sectors. She went on to become the face of the airline from Chennai and represented the company at various press conferences & travel shows. Being Face of Jet Airways from Chennai, Sonal has also done an advertisement for the company, with Mr Shahrukh Khan.
However, destiny had some other plans and she got married in Vadodara. Sonal had to forgo her flying career and so, she started looking for something where she could use her previous experience to the best of her abilities. Now was the time for her to shift gears and go for a career change. Sonal was desperately looking forward to starting her own finishing school but again, being an entrepreneur seemed like a challenge until her father-in-law told her about an advertisement of ICBI in the Times of India. She is forever thankful to her father-in-law because that moment changed her life!
Combining her experience and learning from the service industry and the technical knowledge acquired from Image Experts, she now helps individuals and companies manage their image and create a winning first impression.
Sonal, founder and chief Image Consultant at Sonal Bhavsar Image Consulting, works with individuals and groups on appearance management. Her work ranges from individual consultations for beauty pageant aspirants, aviation and hospitality aspirants to professionals aiming to achieve success by managing their appearance. She also undertakes corporate training on clothing, grooming, body language including professional and social courtesies and customer service. She has worked with are Sun Pharma, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Zydex, Express logistics and Rentals, Aims Industries, Shiva Engineering, Shaily Engineering, GETCO, GSECL, CII/YI, Rotary, Jain Social Group to name a few.
She has also conducted sessions for some of the premium schools in Vadodara, like Cygnus World School, Navrachana International School, St Kabir School. Sonal has conducted sessions on safe and unsafe touch for more than 20 private and government schools in and around Vadodara and Rajasthan.
SURABHI MEHTA
As a teenager, Surabhi was just another carefree girl who pursued Arts from Delhi University and spent time with friends. She was a voracious reader and was surrounded by books most of the times. But, at that time, little did she know that her hunger for knowledge would take her places, enhance her life and give her umpteen opportunities to groom and coach people as an Image Consultant.
Vacations always give you a chance to pursue your dreams and explore the unknown. During one such vacation, she casually appeared for an interview for a flight attendant. After a series of interviews and tests, she was qualified – as a flight attendant – and before she could realize it, she was flying high! She worked in the airline industry for over a decade with renowned airlines like Cathay Pacific and Lufthansa German Airline.
Having learned everything, she could from her role; this was the right time for her to take her career to the next level. Surabhi was contemplating a change that allowed her to enhance her natural talent in personal skills development and so, her foray into Image Consulting was a natural progression. And, it proved to be a fantastic opportunity!
ASHIMA BABBAR
Always surrounded by engineers, charted accountants, and lawyers, Ashima grew up listening to the quote “jack of all trades master of none”. But she believed differently because she wanted to do many things at one time. According to Ashima, the two most important days of your life are first when you are born and second when you realize why you are born. For her, the second day was when she decided to join the Image Management Programme by ICBI because it changed her life, forever.
Ashima had a versatile personality and wanted to do many things at one time but didn’t know how to. She had eight years of experience as a Senior Flight Attendant with India’s most reputed international airline. Ashima also had an international certification in makeup and a diploma in design and style along with three years of experience in running her own clothing brand. Such a versatile profile and yet no direction!
When she started conducting training in NGO’s and Flying Academies, she realized that her real passion lies in training people, but she did not know how to start. She found herself stuck in a working pattern and felt less effective but couldn’t work her way around it. Ashima ultimately gathered herself and understood her own versatile personality. That’s when she decided to go with her instinct of becoming an Image Management Professional.
MEHERNOSH
“My heartfelt gratitude to the torch bearers of ICBI for their vision to foresee this, years ago and develop a platform for individuals aspiring to make a career in this dynamic, multifaceted field.”
It all started with the decision to try in the year 2013. They say the three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates and a monthly salary. Mehernosh was getting pulled into the last one. As an International Cabin Crew for one of the premier airlines of the country, everything was absolutely picture perfect with a job that paid well to go around the world, a car for pick and drop, and good hotels to stay in. The picture was indeed perfect, but it was for the onlooker and not for Mehernosh.
There was an opportunity to become a Human Factors Trainer with the same airline, so he decided to try and explore the Trainer in him. Surprisingly he made it through. This was the beginning of a new change in his life, the change that he continues to eat, drink, sleep and live now. After a stint of a few months short of 3 years, towards the end of 2016, he took the big step and began the journey of his entrepreneurial life.
With over a decade of work experience in Hospitality, Aviation and Management, coupled with training expertise, Mehernosh started exploring avenues which could steer his career in the direction he was inclined towards. The market was full of options, but he was looking for a place that offered an opportunity to grow further. Image Consulting Business Institute (ICBI) was indeed that pool of opportunities. In mid-2017 he decided to become a professional Image Consultant and Soft Skills Trainer by pursuing his course at ICBI.
As a Certified Image Consultant, his work involves guiding, mentoring, and coaching individuals on managing their Appearance, Grooming, and Body Language. This includes their etiquette to create positive and impactful first impressions to get more opportunities in everyday life.
As a Certified Soft Skills Trainer, he is associated with multiple prestigious institutes, enterprises, and corporate organizations. He has a keen interest in developing customized training programs so people can achieve their desired goals and objectives. He has conducted several workshops and training seminars in various prestigious Institutes and Organizations. He has been empanelled as a Trainer with the Government of Gujarat for a project on Skill Development for more than three years.
Being a self-motivated person, Mehernosh accepts life’s challenges with a smile. He says, “You are both – Your biggest obstacle and your biggest catalyst. You choose which YOU, you wish to be!”