Today we’d like to introduce you to Alona Lukianchenko.
Hi Alona, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’m from Ukraine, I came with my husband almost 3 years ago. I can say that it was a start probably, new leaf in new country. I was thinking about what I could do here, I had good conversational English, but I wanted to improve it and thought that I needed a job where I would talk to people. I went to several interviews and was hired as a receptionist at a medical spa.
There I saw work in the beauty industry from the inside and it inspired me a lot. The results of clients, their happy faces when some skin problem is solved, and you are always surrounded by beautiful women. Then I thought I could become a person who would help women become even more beautiful. Why not?
I went to college, completed training, and received a license. Since by that time we had moved to Florida, I found a job here, also at a medical spa, but this time as a cosmetologist-esthetician. Which I was very proud and happy about.
At the same time as working, I was constantly learning and improving my skills. Six months later, I decided to open my own business. I rented an office in a beauty salon, equipped it and started my own business. At the same time, I started studying at a beauty school to become an Electrologyst, laser hair removal specialist. After 5 months, I successfully passed the test and received another license.
The client base grew, as did the service I could provide.
Today I can say that I hit the mark and found my calling. Although it seems that I am an eternal student) I really like my job, I like helping people, making them beautiful, happy and more self-confident. That’s what makes me happy also.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Oh it wasn’t smooth ) never )
The first problem was the language, so it seemed to me. I kept thinking: I have a small vocabulary, I look unprofessional, I speak but that’s not enough… these thoughts really bothered me, but at the same time forced me to solve the problem.
While other estheticians girls from my country worked only with Slavic, Ukrainian-speaking or Russian-speaking clients, I went where it was scary. I started setting up advertising and working only with Americans. I understood that it would be difficult, I prepared for each client, but only in this way could I overcome this difficulty and not have any restrictions in my work.
Of course, there were other difficulties, which are now fun to remember) I studied to be a laser specialist in Miami, and lived in Jacksonville. I was allowed to come once every two weeks for a few days and take all the tests and do an internship. The rest of the time I studied online. Oh, it wasn’t easy combine work and study every two weeks for 5 months, but I knew why I was doing it, I understood that this was my path, and after what we had to go through (when one morning you wake up and realize that a war has started in your country, you hear explosions, people are dying, and you or your family or one of your friends could easily end up in that number, that’s really scary and painful), all the difficulties with moving, migration, training, licenses, opening my own business… all of this is not so scary, because here everything depended on me, my persistence and efforts. I knew I had no other options. I had to do everything possible and impossible.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
This is a place of power, energy and inspiration. I can say that we have built friendly relationships with many clients, they can openly share with me what worries them, what saddens them or, what recent happy events have happened or will happen and I will rejoice with them. I believe that a cosmetologist is a person who not only treats, but also creates a certain atmosphere. It happens that a client comes to me for a deep facial cleansing (and this is not always a relaxing procedure), but from her condition I see that she is not ready today and it is better to offer her to do another, more relaxing facial treatment.
People come to me to solve their problem, but also to relax, talk, disconnect from their problems and devote time to themselves. And I help them with this.
Of course, I try to keep up with the times, this is a direction that constantly requires training, new knowledge, I, in turn, choose only high-quality certified products, I try all the procedures on myself first, it is important for me to understand how this or that mask feels, how strong the peeling is, etc.
Now I am studying and preparing to cooperate with another well-known cosmetics brand DMK. This is enzyme cosmetics, enzyme therapy, another level and complexity of treatments. I am really looking forward to when I can please my clients with a new set of services.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
At each place of work I received knowledge and invaluable experience, for which I am immensely grateful to all my employers. I always tried to guard good relations with them. We communicate with some of them even today.
Of course my family, parents and especially my husband has always been and is my great support, he believed in me, I felt it. He always gives me good advice and he is the first person I run to with joy or sadness. He always said: if you see how it works, then try it, only then will you understand whether it is for you or not. And he is right)
Pricing:
- Facials $120-250
- Laser hair removal per session $50-400
- Laser hair removal packages $200-1500
- Body contouring package $500-1200
Contact Info:
- Website: https://alliesthetician.square.site/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaaSJfMPdFktZ05uX3hnogeRB4HdUKmVmHPKMtWaV-Y7nn3ynIpA_u71a08_aem_AYjRuXeQpzbLdFXpZPlCru2ZHtrTWnnvSuzyapXJXhGHbHTizx0hkwomIVqQ5Rsgm_GYGItOYoMh1xdbLvVJhXXr
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alli_esthetician_jax?igsh=MWNhaGFsZTRxbzM1Mg==
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/18hM7oWSPW/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Other: https://maps.app.goo.gl/gCGC4qZRMXbQtwgc7?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy
