Technology plays an essential role in Eula Salvador’s life as a Holistic Medical Esthetician. Skin Goddess Wellness, Eula’s small but perfectly formed spa in her East Vancouver studio, specializes in the latest effective tools and treatments with little downtime including hydrodermabrasion, LED light therapy, microcurrent, microneedling, peels and dermaplaning. But for Eula, every journey towards healthier skin begins by looking inwards.
I’m a skincare detective! I ask my clients questions about their skincare, their stress levels, and about their personal and work lives. As a Holistic Medical Esthetician, I want people to understand that they can heal their skin from within.
“I had anxiety growing up, which would lead to my skin breaking out,” explains Eula. “The areas on your face reflect an internal organ and your emotions. I would break out on my cheeks, which reflected sadness. Breakouts on my chin reflected fear. And breakouts on my forehead reflected stress.
“I tried everything. I went vegetarian and vegan. I would go to the gym, but nothing seemed to work. Eventually I thought that maybe if I started practicing meditation and learned how to deal with my feelings my acne would go away? I’m happy to say that eventually it worked and my acne subsided. I learned that if you carry trauma in your body and don’t have a healthy mindset, it will show on your skin. What you feel on the inside will inevitably show up on the outside.”
Healing the soul and the skin go hand in hand at Skin Goddess Wellness. It’s an approach beloved by an ever-growing list of clients from Vancouver and beyond.
“I’m a skincare detective! I ask my clients questions about their skincare, their stress levels, and about their personal and work lives. People appreciate that I’m not trying to sell them anything. I’m trying to dig deeper and find the causes of their problems. Clients will tell me that no-ones ever asked them about these things before. As a Holistic Medical Esthetician, I want people to understand that they can heal their skin from within.
“I had one client recently who didn’t create healthy boundaries at work. Every time she was asked to take a shift she’d say yes, even when she didn’t want to be continually working. It would stress her out and give her severe acne. I told her that she needed to learn to say no and that she needed to practice self-care. After three treatments her skin looked amazing. She took my advice, started meditating, journaling and drinking camomile tea to help calm herself before bedtime. She learned how to express herself at work and now her skin is so healthy.”
Blanche Macdonald was a great experience. What made it fun was the experience of working on clients and getting to know them at a deeper level. To build your clientele you need to foster good relationships.
Eula’s uniquely personal approach to skincare began with her enrolment at Canada’s top Esthetics School.
Eula chose to take a break from esthetics after graduation. She moved to Toronto and began working at a clinic. After two years away she made the decision to return home to Vancouver and turn everything she’d learned into a thriving business as a Holistic Medical Esthetician.
Often what triggers people’s skincare problems are the very things they need to heal. For example, breakouts on cheeks are often tied to grief. If you can’t release those emotions they stay in your body and can cause skin issues.
“I promised myself that I would work hard. I trusted my heart and had confidence in what I could do. I knew the universe would have my back. I knew I wanted to work from home. The overheads are low and I could create my own hours. We painted and gave our spare room a complete makeover. I bought the equipment and began offering treatments to local social media influencers. I’d ask them if they’d like complementary facials in exchange for exposure on their social media. The rest is history!”
Every influencer Eula approached accepted the offer. They received more than a facial treatment, as Eula gently enquired about their lives, laying the foundations for a holistic wellness experience. That same experience greets every client to this day.
“I ask clients about their skincare regime,” explains Eula. “Once we figure out what they use, I ask questions that can appear a little personal. If they’re happy to answer then we go from there. I don’t try to provide solutions but I do try to understand and ideas about how to manage stress levels. I try to switch sad emotions to positives.
“Because I’m vulnerable, that allows my clients to be vulnerable too. They’ll tell me about their feelings and we can talk about practices like meditation or going for walks. Often what triggers people’s skincare problems are the very things they need to heal. For example, breakouts on cheeks are often tied to grief. If you can’t release those emotions they stay in your body and can cause skin issues.”
The holistic approach to skincare at Skin Goddess Wellness doesn’t mean the technology takes a back seat. Every treatment Eula provides is designed to deliver maximum results in minimal time.
“Most of my clients are between 18 and 50. They don’t have a lot of down time. One of my most popular treatments is the Advanced Facial, which includes hydrodermabrasion, LED therapy and microcurrent. That takes 90 minutes and after the treatment you’re free to go out and live your life.”
Still, it’s the depth of the connection that Eula looks to make that keep clients returning.
“When you can connect and educate you find the root cause of the issues and everything else falls into place. Connecting on a deeper level allows me to educate clients at a deeper level. You see clients every month, and there’s only so much you can talk about skincare. So why not have an authentic relationship with them? They’re not just clients. They’re friends.”
