Meet Nancy
NYIB: Tell us a little bit about yourself?
Nancy: I am a graduate of New York Institute of Beauty. I currently have my own business in Bayport doing lash extensions, waxing, microblading. It’s small but its successful.
NYIB: So, you are technically our first very graduate, correct?
Nancy: Yes. Very first student, actually.
NYIB: That is incredible! What made you decide to come to a brand-new school?
Nancy: There weren’t a lot of options back then, to be honest. I can’t remember exactly. I don’t think there was google, I don’t think I even knew how to google if there was. I was a young mother raising two children, so I just remember that I took information given to me and ran with it.
NYIB: What initially drew you to the Esthetics industry?
Nancy: I always loved makeup. I always loved doing it and always got compliments on doing it. Then I went to work for someone in the industry who was a cosmetologist and the only thing I could do was work the makeup counter. She suggested that if I wanted to be more productive financially that I should get my license so that I could do more than sales.
NYIB: What made you decided to do Esthetics and not Cosmetology?
Nancy: I didn’t think I wanted to do hair. And I found out there wasn’t enough focus on the esthetics portion within a cosmetology program. A lot of people I knew who went through cosmetology had to be almost retrained or go through a lot more education about skin, hopefully through a company that would sponsor them. But a week or two of makeup and facials just was not going to cut it for me with what I wanted to do. And esthetics focused on skin, it’s the core of it. So, it was a better fit.
NYIB: Sounds like it definitely was. Your business is doing really well, can you tell us a little bit more about it?
Nancy: I work alongside Karasmatic Day Spa. The owner, Kara Morris, is another NYIB graduate, she was actually one of my students. It is in an old Bayport house. She has one part, I have the front room where I run my company, MegaRich Lash, which is named after my kids Megan and Rich. Besides for eyelash extensions, we also do waxing, sugaring, microblading. It’s going really well.
NYIB: I know we need to jump back a way, but was there anything while you were in school that really peaked your interest or made you so excited to learn about?
Nancy: Hmm. I remember I was much more fearful of clinic than I thought I would be. I had never touched another person besides my children or my husband, so when you sit down and actually have to touch someone’s face, even a fellow student’s, it is very daunting. That was interesting.
I also loved that there was so much continuing education here. I knew I wanted to be involved in something that I could always grow with. A career where there would always be something to learn. And this school gets that and offers so many options for graduates.
NYIB: That is one of the big things I tell the students. When you complete the 600 hours you will know a lot about a lot, but you will not be an expert. You will still have so much to learn. And it is that drive to continue learning that separates the really successful.
Nancy: Absolutely. You have to keep learning. It is the only way.
NYIB: Tell me a little bit more about your career. How did you get where you are now?
Nancy: Well, I started doing facials at a couple of different spas and kind of fell into lashes. I had heard about them, but a lot of people I knew didn’t think they were going to last. But I took the chance. I like detail work, and I just stuck with it. There is really no overnight success. I worked hard, and I still work really hard.
I also worked here for a while. I was an Esthetics instructor for about 5 years. At the same time, I was building my lash business and finally became successful enough that I could go out on my own. I just kept at it until I achieved some goals. Again, its hard work but it’s worth it.
NYIB: Absolutely. And I tell a lot of the students- Nothing you learn will you be successful at overnight. Take the lashes for example. Sometimes I have students who anticipate being pros after a 1 or 2-day class, and I have to remind them that isn’t how it works. I took a lash class with you because I swore I was going to be a lash queen, and I immediately knew it was not for me haha. I am way too all over the place. But a friend of mine who did the training with me loved it, and is now doing really well for herself in Nassau County. But she worked at it. She practiced over and over again and never stops trying to be better. That Is the key. She got the fundamentals from your class, the proper sanitation, application, all of that. And with that foundation she was able to build on.
Nancy: That’s another thing you get here at NYIB. The foundation. All Esthetics program teach you the basics of facials, waxing, and makeup. But here they go a step beyond. So much sanitation, and proper protocol, but also integrity and ethics. I see a lot of people out there who water all of that down, but this school doesn’t. When I teach a lash class, and I know some of the students are NYIB graduates I always ask them- what is the one thing that the school really stressed to you? And almost always they go “sanitation!” It makes a difference.
NYIB: Absolutely it does! It is the death of our industry if done wrong.
NYIB: So, we talked about the fact that you own a business. Any future goals? Any more services you have your eye on doing?
Nancy: Right now, I have a franchise opportunity that might be coming up. I have to do my homework, learn further about how to put together a business plan, get some more information on it. It really could be up and running by the end of the year if all goes well. So that is very exciting.
NYIB: Well that is exciting! I will have my fingers crossed that 2018 is another amazing year for you!
NYIB: Last but not least- You have given us a lot of good advice her so far, but anything you wanted to share for someone reading this that may be a bit fearful of jumping in?
Nancy: When I came to school I was a single mother, raising 2 young children. It was tough. I was working. I came to school 3 nights a week and worked the other 4 days. When I look back now I am not sure how I did it or if I could do it again. And I remember sitting in class, it was all fun and game at first. I think we started on makeup. Then chemistry came, and I just sat up and was like, “Nope I can’t do this.” And my teacher said, “Sit down. Because the only way you’re getting out is to graduate.” And I’ll never forget those words. And I did it. I just kept going until I graduated. And I just keep going now.
So, my advice is to just breathe. You take it a day at a time. Ask for help. Make connections with others in the industry. Don’t look at the end, just go day by day. And you can do it.
NYIB: I want to thank Nancy Smith for taking time out of her very busy schedule to sit and chat with me a bit. We here at New York Institute of Beauty are very proud of all that she has accomplished over the last twenty years, and we look forward to seeing her continued success!
Interviewed and written by Megan Leitch, L.E., NYIB Admissions Representative.
