DAYSPA is the magazine of spa management. Spa owners and spa managers turn to DAYSPA for spa management trends, spa management tips and more.
Issue link: https://dayspamagazine.epubxp.com/i/109233
5 QUESTIONS WITH... Elina Fedotova,Founder and President of Elina Organics From where do you draw inspiration when developing new products? Many ideas come from meditation. For example, one of my newest products, Ambra-Lift, contains Baltic Amber, which has been used for centuries as an antiaging ���Vessel of Eternal Youth.��� I ���rst learned about its healing powers through holistic Russian traditions and practices. The idea came to me again during my daily meditation practice and I decided to do more research on it. I never follow trends in the industry and don���t look at what other people are doing. Everyone has his or her own journey���they listen to their guidance and I listen to mine. 1 Fedotova���s husband, Igor, is also her favorite musician. When it comes to running an organic skincare company, this entrepreneur���s approach extends beyond her products���it���s a way of life. Fedotova���s adoption of holistic practices dates back to her roots in Russia, where homoeopathic care is widely accepted and in high demand. Inspired by the ���green physicians��� of her hometown of Moscow, she earned a degree in cosmetic chemistry and began, developing her own natural skincare solutions. Upon arriving in the U.S. in 1991, Fedotova acquired her esthetician���s license and eventually opened her own skincare salon. She also launched a small skincare line consisting of ���ve formulations and catered to medical practitioners and professional salons. Over the past 20 years, Fedotova has grown Elina Organics into a well-oiled green machine that now serves more than 140 skincare salons and doctors��� of���ces nationwide, includes branded spas in Chicago and Kalamazoo, Michigan (Fedotova���s home base), and produces some 56 face and body formulations. From the Emerald Eye Elixir and Fruit Peel, to the Nourishing Broccoli Mask and Botanical Toner, Fedotova���s products run the gamut of all things natural���and edible. ���Great skin solutions should be like a fresh meal for your skin,��� says Fedotova, who has been known to eat her products during presentations to prove their safety. Along with her organic formulations, Fedotova has stuck to a grassroots business philosophy and kept her operations small, yet ef���cient. ���My products are not mass-produced; each batch is hand-made by me,��� says Fedotova. ���If I want to consistently deliver a superior level of quality, it needs to stay that way.������Angela Melero 32 DAYSPA | MARCH 2013 What do you seek in a spa/salon partner? All of my spa and salon distributors are small, niche operations that are holistic- and wellness-minded and specialize in serious skin care. I don���t have a sales rep recruiting new clients, so all of my referrals come from word of mouth. I also offer commission rewards to skincare pros who already work with my products and refer them to other estheticians. 2 For what do you want your company to be known? Quality. I am a boutique 3 company with specialized formulations and I want to be consistent in that. I don���t want my products to be sold on every corner, which is why I ensure my spa clients are located within a certain distance from one another. I want my brand to have an element of exclusivity. Is your family involved in the business? Yes. I began bringing my son Yuri to work when he was ���ve years old, so he���s grown up in the business. As a teenager, he started as a cleaning boy, was then promoted to labeler, then bottler, and now serves as distribution manager. He studied business and marketing in college, and I hope he will one day take over the company. 4 What do you do when you���re not running a skincare company? I���m a big music lover, especially classical and opera. Some of my favorite musicians include pianists Evgeny Kissin, Sviatoslav Richter and my wonderful husband, who plays the viola. I also love to travel. I feel every place has its own soul and energy, whether its Europe, California or the Caribbean. My hometown of Moscow has such an incredible philosophical atmosphere that I miss sometimes. 5