Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristy Darrenogue.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Kristy. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I started beauty school right out of high school to pass the time while I figured out what I wanted to go to college for. I fell in love with the science and beauty of esthetics. I worked at the Hyatt in Lake Tahoe in their spa. It was a great first job. I even did a facial on Cindy Crawford!
After working in a few fancy hotel spa’s in Tahoe and Reno, Nevada I had my sights set on San Francisco. I wanted to go to the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). I knew I would need a good paying job to live in the city and go to FIDM. So, I applied at the #1 spa in SF, Tru Spa ( rated by Allure Magazine in 2005) not thinking I would get the job, but maybe a chance for me to see what this place was all about. I was lucky enough to get an interview, then a second, and then a chance to do a facial on the manager.
I got the job! This was my ticket into the prestigious SF beauty scene. We were the industry standard. I was on top of the world. FIDM was in the back of my mind. I had my dream job. Then the 2008 recession hit. I went from being booked solid to barely working part-time. Facials, skincare, and beauty treatments were not the priority for SF beauty queens. I had to think, what was I going to do? Was the economy going to turn around anytime soon? Not likely. So I thought, this would be the perfect time to go to school. I went and toured FIDM, and felt certain this is where I need to be now. I enrolled in the Visual Communications Program. It felt like being on the show Project Runway every day. It was amazing!
During my time at FIDM I needed a more flexible schedule and went to work for Benefit Cosmetics at their Flagship Store in Pacific Heights. It was brow boot camp. I was used to spending an hour plus with my Tru Spa Clients and now I was seeing 4 clients an hour. I would see Jean and Jane Ford, the founders of Benefit, zoom in and out of the store a few times a month. I learned so much there. After graduating from FIDM, it felt like the right time to start fresh, a new city. Also, I was sick of not seeing the sun, so I decided on San Diego for a fresh start. To my surprise, it seemed no one was hiring for the jobs I was seeking in visual communications. I was so frustrated. I decided to go back to cosmetics for a bit while I job-seek for my new career. I got a job at Bloomingdales in Fashion Valley in Cosmetics.
I worked my way up to a business manager For NARS cosmetics and later CHANEL Cosmetics. I was in the thick of the cosmetics business environment. I managed people, created and held events, and learned how to really cultivate a clientele. Totally different than a facial clientele. I was lucky enough to have clients who really cared about me and got to know me and my story. One of the clients who is now a close friend referred me to her friend who was looking to hire someone just like me for his new skincare company. It was the perfect position for me. It captured everything I love; aesthetics, business, and branding. I said goodbye to my Bloomingdales family of four years and moved on to Skincential Sciences.
The founder had created a revolutionary product for seborrheic keratosis and keratosis pilaris, two skin care conditions that nearly affect 70% of the human population. My job was to help brand, market and sell it to Doctors offices, Medical Spas, and Salons. I worked with some of San Diego’s top Dermatologists, Plastic Surgeons, and Nurses during my time with Skincential Sciences and I realized a couple of things: One, how much I missed being the service provider, and Two, how all these professionals ran their business. I came to the realization that I needed to fill a niche in the skincare/aesthetics community and after all my past experience I knew just how to do it.
I rented a small storefront in North Park, I mean really small, like closet small. It was perfect for me. I realized there was a huge gap in the facial industry, either facial is too expensive and you cant get them often enough to make a difference or you go to a chop shop (code for nail salon facials) and you get burnt or some sort of rash. Neither are ideal. Before the recession in 2008, I charged $180 for a facial. After the recession, I felt like most aestheticians did not adapt to the new priorities of how clients viewed skincare and facials. I paid close attention to all of it. How people wanted to buy, why they bought, who they buy from.
So, I designed my new shop with all of this in mind. I keep the prices affordable, keep the appointment times shorter than an hour, and take out a bit of the fluff. People have little time or patience for fluff. Since opening in June of 2015 I have expanded to a larger building in North Park and acquired the building next door to open Bon Nail Therapies and Reflexology. We have gained a lot of popularity with the community bringing affordable, clean beauty services. I think I’m addicted to opening up business’ so be on the lookout for more to come.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Nothings ever smooth in business. I still work about 70 hours a week. Between seeing 40 plus clients a week, doing all the marketing, branding, graphic design, and now hiring and training staff it’s exhausting but worth it. And I don’t see it lightening up any time soon, especially if I want to open more stores.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Aesthetic Savoir Beauty Services is a place to get customized beauty treatments without sacrificing quality, price, and expertise. We really take pride in keeping our prices low so we can see our clients often. We are all experts in our field and some would say obsessed with beauty treatments.
Being a full female staff and working on mostly females, there’s no getting around the female energy that is embedded in both shops. But, we do get men in and they seem to have a great time and enjoy their services without embarrassment some might have about going into a salon. Maybe its the beer them that helps.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up I was always outside with my friends. We played until the parents would yell or in my case whistle for us. We would spend the whole day either making up dance routines to New Kids On the Block songs or making stuff to sell to our neighbors.
I would make magnets, bracelets, and paint rocks to take around in my wagon and sell to my neighbor’s door to door. If I was feeling really crafty I would go to my neighbor’s house that had oil stains in the driveway and asks them if I could remove them for five cents a spot with kitty litter and a brick! I think I was an entrepreneur at birth. I must have got if, from my parents, both have had their own businesses.
Pricing:
- 50 minute facial $52
- Brow Shaping $20
- Un Manicure $18
Contact Info:
- Address: 3562 and 3564 30th st. San Diego, CA 92104
- Website: aestheticsavoir.com & nailsbybon.com
- Phone: 619-906-0955
- Email: aestheticsavoir@gmail.com
- Instagram: @aestheticsavoir & @nailsbybonsd
- Facebook: facebook.com/aestheticsavoir & facebook.com/nailandnetflix
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/aesthetic-savoir-san-diego-2?osq=aesthetic+savoir
Image Credit:
Elizabeth Zaranka and Del Toro Photo
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