We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nicole LeBlanc. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nicole below.

Alright, Nicole thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

I’ve actually held a full-time job in design leadership since I’ve been a business owner. In each role, I spend a lot of time strategizing, planning, and scoping my efforts; but then they start to become different. Life as a business owner moves more urgently. If there’s an issue or decision to make, it has to be handled right away. Trial and error is real, and errors cost your own money instead of a company’s. Working for a large organization, things don’t move as fast, more people are responsible for decisions and outcomes, and I have more peers. I appreciate the perspective of being both the employed and employer, and I treat each role as a valuable learning experience.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m an Atlanta native and skincare aficionado, and I credit my passion for all things beauty and wellness to my upbringing around strong women. When I was 29, I opened Georgia’s first Radiant Waxing salon, becoming the youngest franchise owner in the company’s history. Before opening the salon, I spent time in Silicon Valley working in UX design (and I’m still a full-time design leader). In 2020, I came back home ready to reinvest in my community and support the economic development of local Atlanta women.

Radiant Waxing offers a skincare experience that is both premium and approachable. Our guests see the difference in comfort, efficiency, and glowing skin that our proprietary soft wax blend and expert techniques provide. We love empowering and educating them on how to best care for their skin in between visits to ensure the best results and glowing skin. I’ve also been super excited to join the growing West Midtown beauty landscape. I’m passionate about nurturing talented local estheticians and empowering the city’s next generation of beauty entrepreneurs

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

My talented group of waxologists are the women who perform all waxing services and are the lasting impression on our guests. It’s very important to me that they feel supported and safe. We feel like a little family! Here’s what I do to keep up that energy:

Regular check-ins: I check in with each waxologist regularly. I let them know what they’re doing really well and what their growth opportunities are. I take their feedback seriously, and it makes our processes and culture stronger. I also like to hear about their lives outside of work, and bond over simple things like skincare or new places to check out in Atlanta.

Occasional off-sites: We all have busy schedules outside of work, but when we can, we like to get together to do fun team-building events outside the salon. In the past, we’ve gone to Topgolf and grabbed a drink (or three) at a local Mexican restaurant. This definitely helps to build our camaraderie.

Celebrating holidays and special occasions: We love to celebrate in the salon! We threw a really fun Galentine’s Day event with champagne, sweets and a photo wall. Most recently, we celebrated our one-year anniversary with an Instagram giveaway in partnership with other Westside brands. Fun stuff like this helps the team feel creative and connected to our community.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Our best source of new guests are word-of-mouth and social media. Our online presence helps promote our memberships and offers, and helps people learn about the brand. This is a mix of organic content that we create for our Instagram page and our Facebook/Instagram ads. We believe that our online presence is an extension of our physical location, so we’re intentional about how we curate our content and messaging.

Word-of-mouth is even more powerful. Once guests have visited the salon and had a positive and welcoming experience, they quickly tell their friends and family. A lot of guests appreciate the fact that we’re Black and woman-owned, and that’s a big part of our organic traffic. People love supporting brands that have a story or face to it — a lot of our marketing focuses on connecting with other local business owners or the community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.radiantwaxing.com/ga-atlanta-howell-mill/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/radiantwaxingatlanta/ https://www.instagram.com/nicolecaina/
• Other: Google: https://www.google.com/search?q=radiant+waxing+atlanta&oq=radiant+waxing+atlanta&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBggAEEUYOzIGCAAQRRg7MgYIARBFGDsyBggCEEUYPDIGCAMQRRg80gEIMjM3OWoxajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#lrd=0x88f505ec2fa09451:0x6eab4f5019e79695,1,,,,

Image Credits
Lauren Liz Photography