We recently connected with Cherie Elder and have shared our conversation below.

Cherie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

Starting my own business is probably the scariest, most exciting thing I’ve ever done. Since I was about 5, I always knew that I wanted to work for myself… however, I never had a clear idea of what working for myself would actually look like. People always have an idea of a glitzy, glammer-y work life, working for themselves. What most people don’t factor in, though, is the behind-the-scenes work that needs to take place in order for a business to maintain upwards momentum. This was me… before I knew better (lol).

In January of 2018, I was running a wellness center with a couple of friends when I realized that I wanted to head in a different direction, business-wise. After parting ways, I focused all of my attention on starting and building my own esthetics practice. Using the knowledge I gained at the wellness center, as well as what I had learned while pursuing earlier business ventures of my own, I started laying the most important part of any business – the foundation.

I began by researching state requirements, laws, regulations etc. pertaining to my particular industry (the beauty industry). What was the bare minimum needed to get things started? Business name? Check. EIN? Check. State and county fees? Triple-check. Business plan? This is where the real work started for me. This is where I really learned about what it takes to build a functional, sustainable business, and that there would be no short-cuts to take.

Thankfully, I had pooled together some incredibly useful resources over the years; one being the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) website. They provided so many check lists, templates, and examples to assist anyone starting a small business with their process. Their business plan templates were especially helpful in my case since I planned on acquiring start-up funding from an investor. A solid business plan is essential to building and sustaining any business. I also made sure to take advantage of as many of the SBA’s classes as possible, so I would be aware of everything that was available to me as a Black, woman, small business owner.

Once I had all of my key resources on hand, I proceeded with laying my foundation: website, scheduling system, marketing, CPA, attorney – all of these things and people begin to come into play. If there is one piece of advice I would give to anyone looking to start a business, it would be understanding how to run a business, by connecting and consulting with professionals such as those I just mentioned. As a creative, all I want to do is the work that I love. Understanding that my lane is incredibly specialized helps me (a former perfectionist) leave room for other specialized pros to come in and assist me in the areas where I am not proficient, and they excel. This is a MAJOR key!

An additional piece of advice, would be to take your time completing that business plan. It’s not something to just breeze through. Do your market research, know your profit margins, projections, etc. Take. Your. Time. Trust me, it’ll be worth it in the long run. All in all, I took about a year and a few months to hash out my plan and make sure that the full spectrum of my business was being accurately portrayed.

Besides laying all of the tedious ground work, remember to take time to truly enjoy your journey! Celebrate every step, no matter how small. Celebrate the small wins. Also, keep people around you who want to see you succeed and will encourage you when things get tough, because it absolutely will become trying at times.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Wow! So, my entrance into the beauty industry was completely unplanned. My love for skin care actually started about 15 years before I became an esthetician…

During my first semester in college, my kidneys failed. Talk about devastated. I ended up having to return home and wasn’t able to move about too much, so I had to get creative and figure out how to make myself feel better without overdoing it. That’s when I started having spa days for myself. I mean, hair, nails, skin – everything. I went all out! It was at this time that I became fascinated with skin products and ingredients and wanted to learn as much as I possibly could.

Fast-forward a few years, and one of my aunts had started a cosmetology and esthetics school in Georgia. During my first visit was when I really learned that my love for skin had a lane called esthetics, and I fell in love. Only… I wasn’t as ready as I thought I was to start my esthetics education. So, I put it off for almost an entire decade. (Cringe.)

Fast-forward a few more years, and I had started my own business hand making all sorts of skin, bath, body, and home confections. Something I genuinely enjoyed, since it gave me an opportunity to run wild with my creativity, and put my hands to use. It wasn’t until after a few years of making products, when clients began asking me for facials, that I revisited the idea of going to esthetics school. At the time, one of my girlfriends was teaching at a school I had considered at one point. She invited me to do a tour and I knew immediately that I needed to be there. Needless to say, I signed up and the rest of history.

Soon after I graduated, my aunt’s school celebrated their 10-year anniversary and I went to join the celebration. It was a total full-circle moment that confirmed for me that I was on the right track.

Now, I get the most joy in seeing how my clients progress within their skin programs. The literal glow-ups, and watching how they look at their new reflections is the ultimate feel-good feeling! I also appreciate and am humbled by how much they trust me with their skin, especially if they have a history of not-so-good experiences in the past. Knowing that I make them comfortable enough to trust with their skin journey is so rewarding.

Though the perspective is becoming more and more popular, I believe one of the things that makes me stand out is *how* I treat the skin. I use what I like to call a “WHOLE-listic” approach, where I treat clients’ skin from the inside, out. Considering things like nutritional and lifestyle habits, medical history, environmental exposures, etc. is essential to healing the skin, as these all have a major impact on the overall health of the skin. Additionally, I specialize in treating skin of color, a demographic whose skin has been long misunderstood. I have taken and continue to take a number of additional classes and certification courses to know how best to treat skin of color, both in the treatment room and at home. I incorporate much of my education while I’m servicing clients, so they will feel confident in understanding their own skin and how to provide it the best care, themselves.

Lastly, my desire for each individual who enters the threshold of my studio to ultimately feel beautiful and at peace in and with their own skin. The name of my business expresses this, literally: NavaShalom, a Hebrew name, which translates to Beautiful Peace.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

As most people could probably relate, a recent time when I had to pivot was when COVID started wreaking its havoc. As a professional who provides one-on-one, hands-on services for living, I had to make huge adjustments when I had to shut down in 2020. Thankfully, I had been building an online presence and was able to use this as a launch pad to make my online product sales my primary source of income while the world was shut down. I also began offering virtual consultations, and checked in with clients virtually and by phone to keep things afloat.

I’m grateful to God to be able to say that my business did not suffer at all during those three months I wasn’t able to work, and things have been consistently moving upwards since then!

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

If I could go back to when I was in high school trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, I would have absolutely chosen being an esthetician from the very beginning. Back then, vocational schools didn’t really get the acknowledgement that they deserve. They still don’t, to a degree. I would have spent more time understanding the significance of knowing a trade, though. And saved a lot of tuition money (lol).

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nsskinstudio.com
• Instagram: @ns.skinstudio

Image Credits
Cherie Elder/NAVASHALOM Skin Studio