We recently connected with Samantha George and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Samantha, thanks for joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
I’ve always had a vision of owning my own spa. My job at the time , before I took a leap of faith and quit were only offering one type of service. As estheticians we are talented in different avenues when it comes to esthetics. I wanted my clients to have an overall experience when it comes to self care. I wanted a safe place for clients to wine down, open up and be themselves without being self conscious about their image. To be honest opening up a business I really had to do my research. I’m new to some areas being a business owner so taking that leap of faith was risky, but I kept telling myself Disney wasn’t built in a day. I wrote down so many names before I picked my final, then created my logo which was the fun part. I have notebooks with so many notes written down I can’t count. What got me excited though was when I was finally able to get the keys to my suite, then in my head I was like there go love you did it!!
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 started off in the makeup industry in my early 20s. Being from Brooklyn with a Caribbean background I have always been surrounded by art and colors. Makeup at the time for me was therapeutic , something that always calmed me down. We moved to Atlanta my junior year and I had my son shortly after I graduated high school. He definitely made me grow up fast mentally. To make some extra money I took any makeup job I could think of big or small just took get my name out there. When we moved to Atlanta I realized it wasn’t that far off from New York when it came to the beauty industry. Just by word of mouth I was able to land gigs like doing makeup for photo shoots, weddings, and film. I wanted to expand my skills so I put myself in school to become a licensed Esthetician graduating from Paul Mitchell. From there I landing a waxing job which I worked for 3 years. I wanted more for me and my son and something I can call my own. Moving forward now 31 I did just that! I wanted to offer my clients more options. At Candescence Spa I provide makeup, relaxing facials, and face&body waxing. I wanted a safe place for my clients to relax. I want to make sure they feel comfortable with me as soon as they meet me so the services can run smooth. I wanted to be everyone’s self care person. If I’m every able to make a person smile, or even boost their confidence a little more then that shows me I’m doing my job.
We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.
I would say my side hustle definitely turned full time. Being in the beauty industry was a way for me to make extra money at the time, but it was also my passion. I noticed that when you turn one of your hobbies into a job, it never feels like work because this has been something you actually love doing . So that definitely makes it less stressful. My side hustle ended up letting me apply makeup on celebrities like Keith Sweat and Isaiah Washington to name a few. When I see my business I’m always reminded of my beginnings in which I’m very thankful for everything went right and what didn’t.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Being myself has definitely helped me gain my clientele, especially making them repeating clients. We all have to work I get it, but it doesn’t feel like work. Once my clients are in the room, I allow them to be themselves and I feel like they take joy in that. We laugh, we cry, we give advice. Be a boss but make it fun and stress free. You will notice the growth
Contact Info:
- Website: candescencespa.glossgenius.com
- Instagram: @candescencespa_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/makeupbysammig