Hazel May hopes to help Burnabyites discover their own personal style and, in the process, recognize their own value.

"The objective is not to tell them you need to lose 20 pounds to look good," she says. "(My) motto is make the person the best they can be."

May, who lives in the Forest Grove neighbourhood, is a professional style coach and launched her own business, Know Your Style, in July.

She got her certification through the Styling Coach Institute in London, England, after an 18-month course, in February.

The most important things to keep in mind when planning a wardrobe are body shape, eye and hair colour, and skin tone, she says.

People often don't see themselves as others do, and only notice their flaws when they look in the mirror, May adds.

But she hopes to help them build their confidence, and know themselves better.

"People want to know what works for them," she says.

She helps clients declutter their wardrobes - getting rid of what doesn't work, which is the first step - and add key pieces through shopping trips, she says.

She has just finished working with her first client, an 18-year-old man who needed a wardrobe change after graduating from high school. She helped him organize his current fall and winter wardrobe and add to it as well.

Her ideal clients are new graduates, particularly college grads looking to start careers, mothers returning to the workforce who have been wearing jogging pants and T-shirts while at home with their kids, and people who are retiring and looking for a wardrobe to reflect their new lifestyle, she says.

May is no stranger to new ventures.

Six years ago, she convinced her family to move to Burnaby from England.

When May, formerly a resident of Brighton, England, heard about Princess Diana's death, something shifted for her.

She had always viewed Diana as invincible, she says, and realized that if Diana could die, she could too.

This feeling increased when a friend was diagnosed with breast cancer and died six months later. It was at that point that May decided to live her life as fully as possible. That led to her decision to immigrate to Canada.

"You only have one life," she says.

She came with her husband John and their three children, now 21, 17 and 14.

The couple felt they could provide a better, safer life for their children in Canada, she explains.

They have already been able to take a trip to Australia as a family, something they wouldn't have been able to afford if they stayed in England because of the taxes and high cost of living, May says.

As well as launching her new business, May has organized a special Christmas fashion fair with other small business owners.

The fair - to be held on Saturday, Nov. 27, at the Executive Plaza Hotel in Coquitlam - will include about a dozen local vendors, such as make-up artists, handbag designers, candle retailers and others, she says.

She and Carrie Mason, owner of Princess Florence Handbags, have also started a Meetup group, Women helping Women in Business. They plan to hold meetings for Burnaby businesswomen twice a month at the Executive Plaza Hotel.

For more on May, go to www.knowyourstyle.ca.