We were lucky to catch up with Amber Johnson recently and have shared our conversation below.

Amber, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry

Getting people off of harsh acne treatments and medicine that can effect their overall skin and gut health. Our skin and body is always communicating with us so it is important for us to listen. A lot of beauty treatments serve as a band-aid when our bodies are screaming for help. Every part of our body is communicating with us such as soft nails can be something wrong with our lungs, or fungus can mean gut health. Acne, rosacea and redness are usually signs of gut health and of course facials and skincare can help but we also like people to test to see if they’re allergic to anything. especially gluten and dairy. There are so many other ways our bodies communicate with us, these are just a few. Also skincare and perfumes can have harsh ingredients that can effect hormones and immune system so it is important to have clean skincare.

Amber, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Amber Rose Johnson is many things, including a mompreneur, a skincare expert, and a problem solver. Her journey to tame her cystic acne as a teen led her to become one of the premier estheticians in Southern California, and her holistic, personalized methods have created a devoted clientele. She knows how life-changing it can be to find natural skincare that can improve your skin – and your life. Amber has seen hundreds of thousands of clients throughout the 23 years, which has led to her perfecting her Custom Organic Vegan Facials that she offers at both her Newport, Corona Del Mar, and Costa Mesa locations
“I have been mixing concoctions for skincare since I was a kid, and here I am, 35 years later, doing what I love,” says Johnson. “I want everyone who walks into the Facial Lounge door to feel nurtured and give them the personalized service they need. Feeling good about your skin is such an invigorating and empowering feeling. I have loved helping clients achieve that now for decades!”

As a teenager, Johnson was caught in the dreaded world of cystic acne. It can be physically and emotionally painful and challenging to treat. She was an innovator at heart, and she experimented with her homemade formulations of toothpaste, Bentonite Clay, and other readily available ingredients before turning to professional medical facials. Johnson endured painful treatments that helped but were expensive, so expensive that she decided to forgo a car to afford treatments – until she was introduced to a medical facialist that helped not only tame her acne but in a much less painful way. The experience changed the trajectory of her life as she realized that there is a better, more relaxing way to maximize results with a nature-based, cost-effective, and pain-free approach.

Johnson earned her esthetician license then began studying product ingredients and their synergistic effects with the gut microbiome, consulting with some of the biggest names in natural and medical skincare. This November she is celebrating 23 years in business at the Facial Lounge and her clients come from all over the country to experience her problem solving customized vegan facials. As a single mom of two boys, Johnson’s naturally nurturing side is felt in every skin treatment. She believes that no two complexions are the same – so skincare should not be a “one-treatment-fits-all” and creates a treatment customized to each client. Facial Lounge attracts everyone from celebrities to reality tv stars, beauty influencers to the neighbor down the street, all looking for clean, clear skin, a caring environment, and a place to nurture their best self from the inside out.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When Covid hit and everything shut down, it was the worst and best thing that could have ever happened to us. Because we had to shut down the day spa and were unsure if we could ever open up again, let alone if anyone would ever want to go to day spas again, I decided to work on my business plan and dream big and not be fearful of the unknown. We started to redo the business and fix all the things that weren’t working, like our booking system, our POS system, our systems behind the scenes, and even our customer service.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

It wasn’t until November 2020 and I started to think the only chance of surviving would be if I were to open in Texas. So I was visiting family in Texas and decided to do a big Black Friday sale even though I did not have much inventory left. Because we have an amazing skincare line and a group of clientele that wanted to support us, we found out so many of our customers were sending our Black Friday emails and Instagram/Facebook posts started getting shared with friends and family that we made just enough to carry us into 2021 and did not have to close our location. It was so amazing to feel all the hard work that I put into my business was so supported by the community. As we opened up, we couldn’t handle the volume that we got to open a second location.

Contact Info:

• Website: faciallounge.com
• Instagram: @faciallounge
• Facebook: @faciallounge
• Twitter: @thefaciallounge
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/facial-lounge-corona-del-mar

Image Credits
Dimitry Loiseau