Today we’d like to introduce you to LaShondra Wilkins.
LaShondra, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Since I was a child, I was always into all things beauty (skin, makeup, hair, high fashion, and etc.). By the age of 11, I told my mom I would own a boutique, salon and/or spa one day. So, she ended up buying me a picture of a beauty salon to hang in my room. I used it as my inspiration then and even still to this day (I have the picture hanging in my spa). Now fast forward to when I was about 16. I started having facial breakouts, and my mom took me to see a dermatologist. Dr. Cash was her name, you may have seen her on Oprah years ago, and she told me when she was my age, she had problematic skin, which led her to pursue dermatology. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a dermatologist or not, but I was very interested in caring for skin and enhancing natural beauty and didn’t have a clue about being an esthetician.
A few years after attending junior college and majoring in business administration, I got married and had a cute baby boy with dimples. He was diagnosed with Sickle Cell Disease. A disease that I was too familiar with because I watched my grandmother battle it until her passing. I never really got over her death, but I was always educated about Sickle Cell Disease and the pain it brought her. Our son having it really pushed me to come up with a plan and choose a career that was flexible, where I could make my own schedule and allow me to be available to him. So, I opened a small boutique near our home. I used to take him with me everyday and had him behind the cash register with me. Inside the boutique, I sold clothes, shoes, and a number of accessories. Customers would often ask me if I provided any beauty services because they felt it would be something I would be great at doing. This is when I started researching esthetics and what it would take to be an esthetician. At this point, I decided to close up shop and revise my business plan to take my career to the next level.
While putting my master’s business plan together, I went back to school and became a certified Community Health Worker. This allowed me to offer support and advocate for parents and their children with Sickle Cell Disease and other medical issues. I worked with an amazing clinic finding resources for patients. I worked an 8-5 schedule Monday-Friday, which was more like a 6-6 schedule once you factored in the crazy Houston traffic. Although this was such a rewarding career and I loved helping those families, the schedule wore my family and I down and didn’t allow me to be more available for our son, who’s battling the same disease.
So again, I decided to go back to school to get my certification in Esthetics and become a Licensed Esthetician. I was working a full-time job during the day and traveling an hour plus to attending night school for an 11 months program. Literally gone from my family 16 hours out the day. I remember being so exhausted and only seeing my son roughly about 30 minutes a day during the week. I missed all his school events and all his baseball games except one. I was so drained by the time the weekend came that everything we did seemed like a blur. I remember wanting to quit on numerous occasions, but with prayer and support from my family, I made it through.
Success doesn’t come easy. I started building my clientele while in school. Not only did I work hard on my skin, but also my family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, old schoolmates, and whoever would let me use them to improve my craft while helping them reach their skin care goals. I’m so grateful and thankful. Now, I can create my own schedule and most importantly be available to our son.
As for continuing my work for the sickle cell community, I have created a group to help parents who have children with medical needs with business planning and support. The support continues to be amazing, and the best is yet to come for Lux Studio Houston.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Oh, it’s been rough! Lol. I can laugh now but then I was so tired. I worked an 8-5 schedule Monday-Friday, which was more like a 6-6 schedule once you factored in the crazy Houston traffic. I was working a full-time job during the day and traveling an hour plus to attending night school for an 11 months program. Literally gone from my family 16 hours out the day. I remember being so exhausted and only seeing my son roughly about 30 minutes a day during the week. I missed all his school events and all his baseball games except one. I was so drained by the time the weekend came that everything we did seemed like a blur. I remember wanting to quit on numerous occasions, but with prayer and support from my family, I made it through.
Please tell us about Lux Studio Houston.
Lux Studio Houston is a beauty suite that offers facials, chemical peels, waxing, yoni steams, and more. We are located 15 minutes from downtown and 9 minutes from Galleria. Lux specializes in corrective skin and educating and enhancing their natural beauty. Our goal in every service is to make sure you leave happy, relaxed, and flawless.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Playing a beauty shop owner with my dolls and grandmother. I use to brush and braid her long jet black hair. She uses to give me a quarter for my beauty services.
Pricing:
- At Lux Studio your 5th facial is always free!
Contact Info:
- Address: 10301 Northwest Freeway Houston Texas 77092
- Website: www.luxstudiohouston.com
- Phone: 713-581-4606
- Email: luxstudiohouston@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Luxstudiohouston/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/luxstudiohouston
Image Credit:
Professional Photograph by Chadsity Jones, Owner of Eye Candy Photography in Houston.
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