The month of December makes me both nostalgic and optimistic. Both, I think, are common and reasonable feelings to experience during this time of year. Time with family, big parties, and extended periods off from work all offer time to reminisce and look back on fond memories. The month of December can also provide time to reflect over the past year and conjure up other emotions – passion, fear, optimism, resentment, happiness… Read More

Marketing your business is one of the most common business topics I read about in trade magazines. It is such a vital topic that every year we focus an issue of DERMASCOPE on it! We try to cover every angle; from how to succeed with social media to handling bad client reviews online; marketing new clientele to upselling the regulars; understanding e-mail blasts to Google ads to postcard mailers. We recognize that marketing your business enables more cash flow and seemingly more clientele for the spa. But as Josh McCarter quotes in The Business Breakdown department this month, it can cost six times more to acquire new customers than it does to retain existing ones. In addition, frequent customers spend a whole lot more than first-timers – 67 percent more! Read More

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Perception is reality. Happy girls are the prettiest girls. All of these sayings bring about alternate perspectives than the one typically observed through social media. To me, all of these sayings bring about freedom, creativity, and even peace of mind. Read More

My husband loves when I get the wax pot out at home. It is inevitable that while I am sitting on the counter waxing my legs, he will pop in and ask for a quick nose wax. Ever since he was a model at one of the waxing classes at a tradeshow years ago, he has been hooked! Even if we did not have a pot at home, I know he would go to the spa to get it done. Read More

Tradeshows have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. For the past 20 years, I have attended at least four a year – traveling across the country to walk the floors, try new products, attend lectures, and chat with leading educators. Read More

I have a stepson who just turned 14, is a freshman, and enrolled in a new school. Last year I counseled him to begin washing his face, pay more attention to his hair, and quit wadding up his clean clothes in his backpack. Read More

Most aestheticians chose their profession because they like working with people and are, by nature, nurturers. In fact, helping others through customer service is the most common reason this career path was so enticing to a majority of professionals. Most just want to make a difference in people’s lives and, through aesthetics, have found their path. Read More

On one hand, I embrace New Year’s resolutions as a great opportunity to implement a goal for the upcoming year. But from a more historical perspective, it can often seem like a compulsive plan for failure. How many times have we set a New Year’s resolution and remained committed through to its achievement? Most often, we make temporary progress only to slip back into our old patterns. Read More