Vivant Skin
Care recently chatted with Alana Mitchell, founder and owner of our valued Orange County, CA
partners Skincare by Alana and Spa Alana about skin
care, her businesses and how she got her start in the industry. Here’s a recap
of our conversation:
1.
How did you get your start in the skin care
industry?
You could
say I "grew up" in the beauty and skin care industry. My parents have
owned beauty supplies, haircut salons and day spas for over 40 years. When I
was a child, my day care consisted of hanging around our family businesses and
helping out. It started at an early age. It may sound kind of cruel, but
believe me, I developed my ecstatic obsession with skin care products at an
early age as a result of this upbringing. I loved this sort of environment when
I was a child, and I started learning about the industry at a very early age.
2.
What is the most important aspect of your
business?
Customers service,
bottom line. The reason why my online skincare business thrives in a looming
economy and with so many competitors popping up is because I emphasize
personalized customer service. I have live estheticians answer the phones and
live chat where customers can get real help with their skin. Other websites
discourage personal interaction, where skincarebyalana.com encourages it!
3.
How would you like for your customers to
perceive your brand image?
I think my
customers perceive Skincare by Alana as a place where they can easily get help
purchasing the latest and greatest beauty products, and where they can keep up
to date on the latest beauty and skincare trends. I have had many customers
tell me they consider me their "online day spa” – what an honor!
4.
How important is social media to your
business model and why?
Social
Media is a necessary part of Skincare by Alana's marketing plan, but I am
careful not to overemphasize it. We have an active Facebook page, Twitter
account, YouTube page and so on and they are all getting quite popular. I have
mostly utilized these accounts not to pursue new customers as much, but rather
to make my website more personalized for current customers. Most of my products
and vendor pages feature videos I have created to assist my customers and
answer frequently asked questions.
5.
Where do you see Skincare by Alana / Spa
Alana in five years?
I was
honored when Spa Alana (my on site day spa) reached the point in 2012 when we
were no longer accepting new clients. Meaning, we were forced to consider it a
"private day spa" due to the overwhelming amount of clients that were
requesting to make an appointment. I never expected this, so I am not sure what
direction to take it in! However, it has been quite humbling to take on some
celebrity clientele lately. I want to make my celebrity clientele a little more
of an emphasis in future years, as I feel it really helps the popularity of my
website when I announce certain celebrity endorsements. Skincare by Alana in
the next five years is going to get even more exciting. My goal is to push the
envelopes of how skin care products are sold online. In 2013 we will be testing
our new live video chat feature, which allows users to receive a free live skin
consultation straight from their computer webcam. I have a hard time thinking five
years ahead, but by then, I hope to be doing the exact same thing I am doing
right now, helping people conquer their skin care problems.
6.
Your thoughts on the Vivant Skin Care line /
team?
The Vivant Skincare line and team have both exceeded my
expectations. As you can see from my website skincarebyalana.com, I carry
hundreds of skin care product lines. Meaning, I deal with a lot of companies.
The great thing about Vivant, the products are almost always repurchased. From my experience, this means the products
REALLY work. As a retailer, this gives me the freedom to sell them with
confidence. The 8% Mandelic Acid
3-in-1 Serum in particular is a favorite Vivant product of mine. The
Vivant team is also really great. I feel like they are such a good match with
our team, because we share a lot of the same marketing ideals and customer
service values. I really enjoy working with Vivant Skin care.
7.
What do you like to do in your spare time
away from your profession?
I love the
spare time questions! What do I do in my spare time? I hang with my three year
old boy and my husband. We live in beautiful Dana Point, CA, so there is always
something to do like going to the beach, painting, shopping, etc. I am also
really involved in my local church, and my husband and I are involved in a lot
of local charity work. This is going to sound kind of weird, but in my spare
time I love trying new beauty products and concepts. I guess it’s a hobby, as
well as my profession!
