AN award-winning Dunfermline business is being put up for sale just one year after opening a new shop in the city centre.

Olga Gerogianni plans to step back from Estia Soaps, based on East Port, in order to spend more time with her family after suffering a 'mini-stroke' in January.

She says the transient ischaemic attack (TIA), a stroke-like attack which can cause temporary paralysis and slurred speech among other things, made her realise how much she was doing alone.

She told the Press: "Something had to happen for me to realise that I have worked so hard that I think it's time to get some time for myself and my family.

"You know how it goes, sometimes life has other plans for you.

"When I opened the shop it was supposed to be like a family business so my husband would be on board and we would try our best to maintain it for when our boys would be older and then take it further.

"My husband was never into businesses, he was never before and it was only me, he found out it was not something he wanted to be more invested in.

"It's his life, it's his choice, I support this 100 per cent because you can't work and do something that you don't want to do."

Olga said that in the months following her TIA she wasn't able to take time off to recuperate and that's when she started to realise she couldn't continue in the same way.

She added: "Everything shifted for me when I had my TIA. After that I started realising how stressful all this is for me and then January and February after my TIA were really difficult months.

"Because I was alone I had to continue being here in the shop and this added even more pressure. I didn't even take a break to bring myself back from everything. I started realising I won't be able to do it alone."

She hopes to sell her brand - not just her shop - including all of her recipes and formulas. Whoever takes over would also receive training from Olga.

She said: "It's a brand, it's not just a gift shop, we have to produce all the products that we make. This is where it gets really difficult.

"I am working six days continuously, sometimes it's seven, from 9am in the morning and sometimes I need to stay later. I don't see my kids at all, I haven't had a break, not even for a day. I can't continue working like that.

"I think the best thing would be to find someone local who is willing to continue the brand and maintain the shop. I have regular customers, I have products that people come for every day. It would be a shame to just close."

Olga will now focus on her more flexible services - business consulting and tarot readings - which allow her more time with her family.

The Press reported in 2021 that Olga had taken a leap of faith to set up Estia Soaps, having moved to Dunfermline from Greece due to dire economic circumstances.

She and her husband, Spiros, sold everything they had and started their new life in West Fife , and slept on the floor for a month in an empty apartment with their oldest son, Achilleas.

Olga had planned to work as a spa manager as she had in Corfu but when her youngest son, Aggelos, who is now four, was born with Down's Syndrome she decided to start her own soap-making business from home.

"I think it's time for me to be more flexible with my own services," she said. "I also do consulting, which is holistic consulting now, I do my tarot readings. I want to be more flexible rather than always working six or seven days with all the stress."

Olga continued: "It would be a really nice chance for someone to take the brand there. We've won one more award so we have eight now - they are contests that I don't even apply for.

"This would be the best thing for a couple who have the time to invest and work. It can be a worldwide brand, it's not just the shop, it's the brand behind the shop, that's the vision.

"The way I am operating now I am doing the maximum I can - it's like a one-man band."

Estia Soaps opened on East Port in September 2022 with hopes to "bring something different" to the city centre. It offers handmade soaps, crystals, and holistic treatments.

Anyone interested in taking over should contact Olga via the Estia Soaps website or by visiting the shop.