Today we’d like to introduce you to Barbara White.
Hi Barbara, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
I figured out my passion later in life. I started out working in the Corporate World. I worked really hard and made good money, but I wasn’t fulfilled. However, it was hard to walk away from a good-paying job with a steady paycheck into the unknown. So, God made the decision for me. I was laid off from that good-paying job and it really made me look at what I wanted to do. What I wanted to be. I knew I wanted to be of service and help others. So, I sent out an email to ten of my friends and asked them what do you think my passion is. They all said something in the beauty industry. I had not realized I was always the one doing my friends’ makeup or talking them into getting a wax, facial, or taking better care of their skin. I immediately enrolled in school and became a licensed Esthetician. I loved it so much I wanted to teach others and became an Esthetics Educator for seven years along with working in my spa. When I started my spa, I named it Beautiful Reflections for a reason. I wanted it to be a place where you left being even happier with your reflection, but also a place where there could be inner reflection. Life can get so busy sometimes and I wanted to provide an environment where your mind can slow down, have a peaceful moment, talk about what is on your mind, or just not talk at all. Self-care is important. You would be surprised how just that few minutes of getting your eyebrows waxed gives that busy mother a moment where she is doing something for herself and she doesn’t have her name being called a hundred times or someone needing something from her right now. It is her moment when someone is doing something for her. I don’t take those moments for granted and understand how precious those few minutes can be to some. I love when someone almost falls asleep during a facial or even an eyebrow wax because I know they got their time to check out and check in with themselves. Even if it is just for a few minutes. The attention to those details have helped me to build a solid and loyal clientele. I have several clients that have been coming to Beautiful Reflections by Barbara for several years.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
A business owner’s life is rarely smooth, but I would not trade it for anything. There’s always somewhere to be, something to do. However, I love being the captain of my own ship and guiding it in whatever direction I feel is best. One of the biggest struggles I faced as a business owner was being diagnosed with breast cancer last year. It was a very scary time. The treatment to cure the cancer made me so sick I couldn’t not work for ten months. I was so afraid of what I would be coming back to. Could my business survive being temporarily closed for so long? That kept me awake many nights. I love what I do, but it is also my livelihood. Would my clientele, that I had sacrificed so much and worked so hard to build be back? Many said they would, but would they ten months later? I am so grateful to say yes, they did. When I announced the date I was coming back my schedule lit up like a Christmas tree. The love I felt when they came back. They were truly glad to see me and many brought gifts to welcome me back. They were so happy I was cancer-free and back to work. I was so elated to feel like everything I had poured into them day after day was appreciated and now, they were happy to pour back into me. I will forever be grateful for the amazing clientele I have. I had told them many times before the cancer diagnosis that I had the best clientele in the world and they showed and proved. I always knew building good relationships was important for a successful business and they really confirmed that for me.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My spa is centered around waxing and skincare. I specialize in Brazilian waxing and I am called “Barbara Brazilian” by a lot of my clients because they say it is the least painful wax they have ever received. I have worked very hard over the years to perfect my craft. It is not all about the speed of the wax, even though I am very efficient when I wax and I am not slow by any means. The priority for me when I wax is that I have become an expert at what I do and I am using techniques that cause the least amount of pain possible. I also teach other Estheticians the art of Brazilian waxing so they can master their technique too. I treat all skin types and I am certified in treating multicultural skin. We are living in a very diverse world now and as an Esthetician, I am getting a lot more clients of color. If you are not trained on skin of color, you can cause damage that would not affect or cause trauma to other types of skin the same way. I love helping my clients with the common issues skin of color can sometimes deal with like hyperpigmentation, uneven skin tone, dark spots, etc. No client is the same, I look at my clients as individuals that need individual treatment plans to get the best results. There is no one size fits all scenario when it comes to waxing and skincare. I also feel knowledge is important and use every opportunity I can to educate my clients on waxing and skincare. I have found that clients don’t mean to use that wrong product on their skin. They just don’t know. When you share your knowledge and let them know how a product or service works and this is why it will be beneficial, they understand better why it is so important to follow a particular regimen. I love when clients start seeing results and you can see the difference in their countenance.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters the most to me is that my clients walk out the door feeling better than they did when they came in. Whether that be they are so happy with how their skin now looks, hopeful about the journey we are about to take to better skin, how smooth their skin is after a wax or because they were afforded a little time to let their mind rest or just plain laughter. Laughter is good for the soul. It has never been just a job to me. It’s about meeting every client where they are. For instance, understanding how that hyperpigmentation or acne may make them feel about how they look and taking the journey with them to help improve it. I love helping clients become even more content with their reflection.
Contact Info:
- Email: beautifulreflectionsbyb@yahoo.com
- Website: www.beautifulreflectionsbybarbara.com
- Instagram: @beautifulreflectionsbybarbara
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beautifulreflectionsbybarbara
