We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ariele Burgess. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ariele below.
Ariele, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?
How did I come up with Leaf Waxing? Are you ready for this? It all started with a show called Naruto. It’s an anime show that most people know or have heard of it for that matter. It’s about a village hidden in the leaves, the Leaf Village. I wanted to create something that could tie in to being a part of the Leaf Village; and then Leaf Waxing came to be. I didn’t want to come up with just any esthetics name like most people. I wanted something that I felt would stand out but also tie in a lot of my personality as well. Yes, I wax and Yes, I just might talk about and reference anime characters in my everyday life. If you Know anything about the show Leaf Villagers are strong willed, work together as a team, and protect one another. Who wouldn’t want to value that as a company? One day I hope to expand my business to several storefronts, in which we would become our own Leaf Village. So there you have it, that’s the origin of Leaf Waxing.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I started my Esthetics career about 8 years ago. I was a special needs nanny and as much as I loved being with the family I was with I needed a change, I had just started a family of my own and it was time to do something for myself. I went to esthetics school and immediately after graduating I started working for a major Waxing company. I stayed there for 7 years and was the trainer there for 5 years. Waxing was something that has always been fun for me, never a dull moment. Learning about skincare and then putting it into practice was pretty cool to me. Helping people with skin issues I didn’t even know existed until being a part of the industry. It’s things you don’t really get to think about until you’re apart of it. After working for the one company I went and managed another waxing company in which at that point I realized I need to be independent and start my own wax company. Working for yourself is very different then working for a major company. Being in the industry for so long you start to see where integrity comes into play. Either you work with it or with people who have it or you don’t. It’s that simple. I realized the companies I worked for lacked in that department so it was time to depart.
Leaf Waxing is an all inclusive full body waxing business. Everyone is welcome to have services done, of age; Minors must be accompanied by an adult. We provide a comfortable, private space for your waxing needs and care. Along with the waxing itself, help you manage and maintain proper skincare for your aftercare needs. We sell top notch aftercare products to help maintain the best results that waxing can provide. Its important to know what exactly is happening while getting a wax and we are glad to share our knowledge with all clients! At Leaf Waxing you aren’t treated like a number, rushed in to be rushed out as a ticket count. It’s about being personable and real, Having conversations and laughs while taking care of business in a clean, safe environment. We provide lots of learning opportunities for our clients along with other fellow esthetician’s in the area and across the country. Our instagram page has several learning videos and clips and we are always answering direct messages about techniques and tips & tricks! Knowledge Is power, I believe in sharing knowledge to those who truly want to master their craft and general knowledge! If anyone has any questions please reach out, no question is too silly or doesn’t deserve a response.
Leaf Waxing isn’t just another waxing company, with years of experience I wanted to bring services to the people who were told they couldn’t wax because it was out of financial reach or told they don’t belong in establishments. Times are hard, trust me I’ve been there well enough to know, but that doesn’t mean people should be limited access to great skincare no matter what the situation. At Leaf Waxing you are an equal, I am not above you and you are not above me. We are two people learning from each other, from me I’ll teach you everything there is to know about maintaining healthy skin and keeping your skin protected from the outside elements. You might teach me about accounting or maybe how to make an amazing coffee! When you wax at Leaf Waxing you become more than just a client, you’ve joined the Leaf Village and deserve to feel confident in yourself. Thats the service we provide, a boost to your confidence if you will. You’re already amazing individuals, we just add the confetti background as you walk out to your theme song. Thats what our Brand represents! The boost of confidence you didn’t realize you already had and a support system you may not have known you needed!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Resilience, such a word is the chapter title for my 30’s. In life there’s ups and downs, same thing with careers. I was at the top of my game at the last major company I worked for, supporting my family off my one pay check, moving up in ranks within the company, being able to work with corporate. It was amazing, until it wasn’t. We had a change of hands and like most companies that means a change in house. I was the last one standing until it was my time to be “let go”. Suddenly everything was gone. I wasn’t able to support my family, I was no longer moving up within the company, and no longer did I have any ties to corporate. It was at that moment I realized either I let this destroy me or I figure out what to do next. After being blocked by the system of that company I went and worked for another waxing company as management. I learned a lot from them. How NOT to run a business but also how to manage as well as perform back of house duties. However the tides quickly turned and I discovered that integrity is not something everyone practices. I had to leave, I wasn’t going to compromise my integrity to play the role I was asked to play. Again I was in a situation I couldn’t recover fast enough from. I didn’t want to leave my field I had worked so hard in and created a name for myself. My only other option; Open my own Wax business from the ground up. I already worked for big Corporate and learned so much from them. What to do how not to treat customers like a number, followed by working for the smaller corporate wax companies and learning what to do and what not to do. I decided it was time. Time for me to do what I could to support my family. Time for me to do what I knew how to do best. WAX! So I created Leaf Waxing and have been slowly growing ever since. Starting from the ground up isn’t east but I’ll tell you this, I didn’t get “never give up” tattooed on the back of my neck for no reason. I never gave up, there were times I wanted to but with support from my friend and family I was able to keep pushing forward. Im still pushing forward even as you read this!
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Starting a business from the ground up is no joke! When I started Leaf Waxing I had maxed out my personal credit cards to support my family and keep us from being homeless. So, once I went and opened a business account I wasn’t able to secure the capital I needed at the time to help keep me a float. Everything I have put towards this business has been out of pocket, however I did have one thing going for me, friends who were clients. I’m so thankful for them! I used my. last paychecks from the other companies to buy supplies and consumables needed to open the doors to Leaf Waxing. Slowly client by new client I was making my way to being able to pay the rent for my business space. Right now my funding comes from clients. That’s business life for you. I depend on my amazing clientele like any other business. Obviously the debt to income ratio is not quite where I would like for it to be but time and patience and hard work will eventually produce what I need to be a fully successful operation. I still consider my business successful due to the fact that I’m still working hard at it and I haven’t given up on Leaf Waxing. The funding will come eventually, but I will continue to count my blessings and Im so thankful for the revenue I have now. I consider myself to be transparent when it comes to the honest truth, that being said the truth is I started my business out of pocket with less that 2k in that pocket to begin with.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.leafwaxing.com
- Instagram: @leafwaxingnc
- Other: Google Leaf Waxing
Image Credits
@leafwaxingnc