I had the honor and pleasure of sitting down with Megan Cole, owner of Kalm Skincare in Richmond, Vermont. I wanted to learn more about her Luxury Skincare business and her life as a small business owner. Megan has been a licensed cosmetologist and esthetician since 2014. Her mission is to continue to provide a high-end, Ritz Carlton style-service to Vermonters without having to pay the high price tag. Her policy is to have a “no-judgment” and “no-pressure” environment where you can visit her spa and feel safe during COVID-19 and any other time.
Q: “What inspired you to start your own business?“
A: “I’ve been an esthetician for over 7 years and have worked for luxury and medical day spas. I’ve definitely put my time in and I woke up one day and said, “You know what? I think I want to own my own business and to work for myself. I think some people dream of that, for me, I never dreamt of that. Firstly, because I’m a mother and I wanted to make sure that I had time with them. Secondly, I wanted to create my own schedule and my own hours. I am 39 and I wanted to be home more and a lot of day spas hours are brutal. You’re there really early in the morning, work lots of late nights, and holidays. I didn’t want to do that anymore. Thirdly, there’s a need for skincare here in Richmond, Vermont. Richmond is such a beautiful small town, the community is wonderful, there are so many great businesses here. We’re so fortunate to live in a state where we support local businesses. So, that’s why I wanted to open my own business.”
Q: “Why is this business true to who you are? Why are you passionate about it?”
A: “I’m a ginger with very sensitive skin. I’ve worked in this industry for a long time and I never really found products that were true to who I was. I never felt like I used anything that represented my skin and treated my skin. I was never allowed in the businesses that I worked for to have a say-so in the products that we offered. So, owning my own business allows me to be true to myself because I can carry a product line that I believe in–that is true to me. I need to believe in the whole product line and use it on my own skin. Kalm Skincare is a space where I can be myself and be true to myself. My spa creates an environment where we can really hone in on your skin and custom tailor your treatments based on your unique needs. One thing I do want to mention, not only do I provide the treatments but we also talk about whole-body wellness here. I believe that skincare is only one part of the puzzle, then we have mental health, when you eat and exercise, so I talk about those things to really make sure that we have the whole picture. I want to make sure that the clients and I also have clear communication and realistic goals, I will never promise you a purple unicorn, or that you are going to be Kim Kardashian overnight. I’m 39, but I always want to stay true to my age, my saying is really ‘aging with grace and beauty.’ I wholeheartedly believe that.”
Q: “Can you tell me more about your current products and services?”
A: “I offer organic facials, natural facials, body treatments, full body waxing, for males, females, unicorns whoever you are. I offer brow tinting, lash tinting, and the product line that I carry is a product line Verde Goddess it’s made here locally in Vermont. It is a small batch company, so she makes small batches of her product to keep it 100% safe. The shelf life of these products is about a year, because they are natural they don’t have any preservatives other than the ones naturally occurring in essential oils like Tea Tree. I’m also going to be offering foot and leg soak treatments! I’m super excited but due to COVID getting products right now is a challenge. Amazon is not 2-day shipping right now. It is like 7-8, or 20 or whatever, it’s the new world we are living in, so please follow my Instagram and Facebook accounts as well as my website to make sure you’re on top of when I do add that treatment.”
Q: “Are there any products and services that you plan to offer in the future?”
A: “In the future, as far as what I want to offer, lately I’m thinking about a skincare line. My husband keeps saying to me: ‘Babe, you’ve been talking about this for years, you’re so passionate about what you do, you love what you do, you love skin, you love helping people, you want to have a product line that is going to work for them and that you believe in.’ That’s really important to me because I have worked for many places that pushed products on the client–that’s the job. I will never do that. This is a safe place, you will never feel pressured to buy anything here.”
Q: “Do you have any advice for someone looking to start their own business?”
A: “If I could say anything to you listening to or reading this right now and you’re at your job or you’re at your desk and you are thinking to yourself, ‘Oh man, I’m in my 50’s and I don’t really like my job and it’s never too late. Do what you want to do. It’s not about the money all of the time–of course, we need the money to pay the bills but ultimately, follow your dreams. If you have dreams, make it happen! It’s not going to happen overnight, but the more you work on it, the more you will believe in yourself! I want to say you want to support yourself with a really good group of friends, mentors, that inspire you. You don’t want anyone negative bringing you down so, my advice for everyone watching/listening/reading, is if you hate your job, if you hate your career, it’s never too late. You could be 25, 40, 50, 60, 80, whatever it is, do what makes you happy! I fully wholeheartedly believe in that and it ties in with what Truly Blazey does, and it’s to be true to yourself. I believe in that, I want everyone else to believe in that, and I will say [speaking to Brittany], you’re very fortunate to realize that young in life. I started this career late in my life, I was in my 30’s, I was starting another career, but I jumped in, you know? So, how I ended up here really was by accident, I wanted to go into the beauty industry, I thought I wanted to work with hair actually. While I was in hair school, I hated it–every time I had to do a haircut I would get anxious. I would get nervous, and while in school we had a quick little session on skincare and facials. They had us as models, so I was able to get a facial and all of these amazing treatments and I was like ‘LIGHT BULB: HOLY MOLY, I chose the wrong career!’ I already paid lots of money for this cosmetology license, but I went home and I told my husband, ‘I’m in the wrong place.’ He said, ‘that’s okay, commit yourself. You’re going to graduate, you’re going to get your cosmetology license.’ I graduated on a Friday and on Monday I was in the esthetician program. Did I take a hit financially? Yeah. I’m definitely paying for a career that I’m not using but it also helped me even in the skincare industry. So, I will say just be true to yourself and when you know it’s not right, rip the band-aid off. That’s what I did. I ripped the band-aid off real quick and made the decision to be true to myself, so I’m so thankful where I’m in a career where I’m happy and true to myself. It takes time to build a business.”
Q: “What are your favorite skin care products?”
A: “You need products when you’re doing a facial that are going to work, but not take you 30-minutes to get off the face. I love the Verde Goddess product line. My favorite product from Verde Goddess is the Goddess Grains which is currently available at my spa. I also love Tata Harper’s products and Ogee lip products.”
Q: “What is your skin care routine?”
A: “I do not wash my face in the sink. I feel like the sink gets dirty, the water is running down my arms–it’s a mess. I feel like I cannot get all of the makeup or skincare off either. I’m a skincare in the shower kind of gal. Your pores will be open from the steam in the shower and it’s great for mental health because you’re actually taking some time for yourself. I have sensitive skin so I only exfoliate 1 to 2 times per week and sometimes it’s just spot treating in the chin area or maybe just on the nose–definitely never around the cheeks for anyone who has rosacea, really bad, because you can bring up too much stimulation, redness, and vascular. I cleanse and tone every day. Toning changes the PH balance of your skin. I use an oil or lavender salve, and I don’t use that much. I’m a simple girl. I would say less is more.”
Q: “What was the most challenging thing you’ve faced as a small business owner and what was the outcome/how did you overcome it?
A: “100% the COVID-19 pandemic–that’s been my biggest challenge as a business owner. COVID-19 has changed the way we do everything, the way we do business, the way our kids go to school, the way we get our food at the grocery store. I do want to say that even though that is a challenge for many, a lot of the protocols that the state of Vermont has put out for us to be safe as far as infection control, I’ve always practiced because I have to be safe and sanitary. I work with extractions which means, you know, bodily fluids…I do full body waxing and other skin treatments so I’ve always kept such a tight ship with sanitization and disinfection. So, it’s been challenging in the way that clients are feeling a little scared to come out to get treatments, but they are hesitant because of COVID. I just want to say it’s OK to feel that way! It’s OK to maybe not want to get a treatment right now, so for those clients at home right now who are not wanting to go to the spa because they don’t want to take their masks off, I do want to let you know that I do offer full-body treatments where you can wear the mask the whole time. I wear my mask the whole time, so we are completely safe, so that is an option for clients if they are not wanting to get a facial right now. I definitely empathize with those clients and you don’t have to feel bad whatsoever.”
Megan is a truly amazing woman who is so passionate about the work that she does. Please follow along with her on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and her website for the latest updates and treatment launch announcements! What treatments would you love to see that Megan doesn’t currently offer? Let me know in the comments below! 👇♥️
Great article! I am looking forward to booking an appointment using new products.
Thank you so much, Joan! I appreciate the kind words and I’m excited that you plan to book an appointment at Kalm Skincare. 😊