We were lucky to catch up with Tori Stanley recently and have shared our conversation below.

Tori, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

It all started when I met my now business partner back in 2007. She had hired me as a manager of a specialty facial threading salon she had opened with another business partner. After a year in business the partnership fell apart and they decided to close permanently. I had helped open their business and ran it for that year, I absolutely loved the idea behind bringing such a wonderful and unique beauty technique to Arizona and I believed in facial threading very much. When they decided to close I told my now Business partner Mercie Loftus I would love to try again with her idea but as a business partner this time. She had told me all her savings had gone to her previous venture and didn’t have any more money to invest. I was determined to make this happen as I knew in my heart it would be a success. This was in 2009 when everything crashed and we were in a recession. I called my dad and told him my goals and asked if he could help me get a loan, I was willing to start with anything. I remember him saying “Tori, do you understand what you are getting yourself into, this is very risky especially during this time.” I knew it wasn’t going to be easy but I believed I could do it. He decided to support my decision and took a $13,000 loan out (which we paid back the first year) and that is all we had to open a new business with. At the ripe age of 23 years old Beautif-EYE was born. We started out of a small office space we made into a salon suite in old town Scottsdale and worked very hard to grow each year. We grew it to a point of having 3 store front locations in prime areas of Arizona. Growing pains did occur and of course the struggle of making it out of Covid but I am very proud to say we have 1 thriving location 16 years later in the heart of North scottsdale.

Tori, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I knew I wanted to be an Esthetician since I was in high school. I struggled greatly with severe acne and as a teenager I felt very embarrassed, not confident and confused why this was happening to me and not all teenagers. I then had a passion to learn the anatomy of the skin and figure out why this happens to individuals and solutions to help other people who were struggling as well as feel beautiful. Directly out of high school I went to Esthetic college and my journey to help others began. I started mostly doing skin care but it evolved into all aspects of beauty and esthetics. I was introduced to facial threading and was extremely fascinated by this ancient middle eastern technique. Not only do my clients get the most precise and clean looking brows, it is also safe for anyone to try including people who are on acne medications and that was a game changer for me.
When my journey opening Beautif-EYE started I have always taken pride in making sure my technique was the best I could possibly make it. I made sure we used the best products, including importing thread from India designed for threading. Ensuring all my clients had the best experience was always my top priority and Im proud to say it still is. All artists that work for Beautif-EYE go through extensive training by myself to make sure all clients have a similar and enjoyable experience. I believe having genuine care for my clients best interest and truly listening to their desires has always set me apart. Not only do they come into my store feeling welcome and warm but they leave feeling beautiful inside and out.

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

During the last 16 years there have been many times we have had to pivot in unexpected times or situations, I could go on for a long time lol. The biggest challenge would have to be when covid happened. In Arizona the beauty industry was actually deemed essential so while most businesses were shut down we were required to stay open. Most people would say this is a good thing, It was not for us. Threading is a technique where you are very close to people and most everyone did not feel comfortable coming in to get that service. We had no clients coming in, meaning no revenue and because we were essential we were not qualified for financial assistance. It was very discouraging along with the scare of the whole situation. We weren’t sure how we would stay open. Not only did the financial aspect of it all hit us drastically I also had to re teach myself how to thread again….let me explain. There are multiple techniques when it comes to threading. How I learned was the original middle eastern technique founded over 2000 years ago and that was by putting a piece of the thread in the mouth, Well that was not going to work anymore with mask requirements and for the safety of clients. Over night I had to find a new way and re teach myself a new technique using my neck and then follow that with re training my entire staff. We persevered and made it through and we are still open and thriving years later. I always say now “If we could get through covid we can get through anything.”

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I believe consistency is key in most everything in life but especially being a business owner. We have always taken pride and built a wonderful reputation by making sure all clients get optimal service by providing not only consistent hands on beauty services but also customer service. We have clients who have been coming to us for all 16 years and now their children, friends and family are referred to come and are loyal clients as well. We make sure to always do our best to make our clients feel like they are beautiful, heard, safe and appreciated. I believe this alone sets us drastically apart from a lot of businesses where clients are treated as a number and I have never and will never operate my business that way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.Beautif-eyestudios.com
• Instagram: beautif_eye_studios
• Facebook: Beautif-Eye Studios
• Yelp: Beautif-EYE-North

Image Credits

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