Meet Amanda Ruggero | Licensed Esthetician and Facial Specialist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Amanda Ruggero and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Amanda, we’d love to hear more about your end-goal, professionally.
It’s hard for me to really decide what my end goal is. I think the beauty about being your own boss is that you can make those decisions as they come. I’m a big believer in “what’s meant to be will be” so for me I just try to be as present as possible and enjoy the era that I am in now and have still have short term goals and things to look forward to, but without getting my hopes up too much. I obviously hope to grow the Good Skin Studios brand bigger and different ways, and potentially grow my team and have a storefront of my own. But, I think as long as I feel fulfilled and happy, and I am able to take care of family and myself while enjoying every single day, then the success has already happened and there’s not really an ‘end goal’ it’s just “how can I be better?”

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve always considered myself to be a little bit creative. I knew I definitely didn’t want to work a normal 9-to-5 office job forever. I knew I wanted to do some thing more creative. Originally I wanted to become an actress that was my dream since I was in kindergarten. I was even accepted into an acting school in California, However due to financial issues and other things I obviously didn’t pursue that career.

I remember feeling so lost and truly felt like there was nothing left out there for me.

After many years working in the service industry and then a normal 9-5 I realized I never felt fulfilled and I always kind of felt like the places that I worked at were not necessarily the most respectful and positive environments, so for me I just wanted to have a space where I felt safe and positive and have a way to inspire and share with others. Mental health awareness has always been important to me as well so I wondered how I could merge that somehow into a career or even just a hobby to give me some inspiration.

I started an instagram account in 2020 called “Good Days Only” where I posted mental health quotes and spread awareness about self care and self love. Eventually I wanted to have more of a niche and decided to implement skincare and turned it into an account called Good Days Skin where I merged skin care with self care. As the page grew I knew I should probably know what I am talking about so I started to research about skin care ingredients and I started developing a passion for learning about skin care. I grew a small following, but most importantly I drove me to looking into esthetician schools in my area and ultimately I enrolled in the beginning of 2021 with one spot left in the class which to me was a “meant to be” feeling. I was working 9-5 and going to school 6-1o everyday and eventually graduated. I knew I wanted to work solo and start. something on my own, it definitely was not easy and it was lonely at times but I think that is all apart of being a small business owner is that it is a risk in it of itself. At that time was living with my boyfriend in his mom‘s house, we were saving up money to move. I was working at a job that was paying me minimum wage and the only savings that I had was literally to put me through school and fund my small studio so literally when I started, I used all of my savings to open in summer of 2021 and called my business Good Skin Studios. Luckily people showed up for me and word of mouth helped the crap out of me, but it was definitely very scary because being a small business owner being in a service industry, it’s so unpredictable, and I think we all learned that with Covid it’s just so hard to gauge and still is three years into it how your month is going to go and of course there’s times that I doubt myself, but I think just remembering my ‘why’ just keeps me on the right track. Its for sure not easy but i have no regrets and am so grateful for every lesson and bump along the way.

My upbringing has for sure impacted me and taught me lessons. My dad has always been so hard-working and has always been the one to provide because my mom has disabilities, which make it so she can’t work which is really unfortunate . I think for me the way that has impacted my work ethic is I know that tomorrow is not promised and the most important thing in life is your health and not every day is easy but at the end of the day if you’re doing it for the intention of providing for your family and yourself then that’s what makes it easy. I think just you know, being grateful, seeing how much my mom would love to work and can’t it makes me literally stop in my tracks if I ever complain about having to work one day, so I think in those ways it impacts me.

I’ve always been a hard worker and any job that I’ve had. I just try to always set myself up for success and luckily I’ve had jobs in the past that really built my character. I also come from a family where you know we basically had enough just for our basic needs and I have seen what it’s like for my parents to really struggle financially and I know that that is something that I want to avoid as much as I can and of course I am young and I am learning, and I am not rolling in money, but I try to just be as financially responsible as I can, and just try to think about the future as much as I can, and it can be so hard as a business owner because a lot of your income goes back into your business but I think just trying to stay on the right track, having good intentions, being genuine, and knowing your “why” can take you so far.

The values that matter most to me are definitely just being honest and just being kind. One of the best compliments I’ve ever received was somebody telling me that I made them feel so comfortable and made them feel that they were not left out.

The one thing for me about my business is obviously I take care of peoples skin and I have dealt with skin issues in the past so I know what it feels like to feel alone in those moments, and I know what it feels like to feel like you’ve exhausted all options and to feel frustrated like that so for me I just try to be as patient as I can with everyone that I come across and know that it could be the first time that they’re dealing with these things and it’s my job to just make them feel comfortable and safe. I just try to help them the best way that I can at their pace, and I think that they do really appreciate that because it’s genuine and I just again am so protective of them that I think that because I know how mentally exhausting it is to just like be on a skin journey I just kind of relate to them and that way.

You know, the tough thing about being a small business owner, especially in the beginning is and it’s true what they say that you are working 24/7 because you are the manager, the bookkeeper, the editor, the content creator, the hands-on person you’re doing and wearing so many hats, so it can be hard to balance that work life and personal life.s for my job, It took a while but I’ve gotten to a place where I have a steady clientele and loyal people and people who trust me and who genuinely also care about my well-being. I was able to set up boundaries after being in business for two years and and I try to be just as present as and just having a mutual understanding with my clients and with myself and giving myself grace and also just not feeling guilty about it because at the end of the day, my intentions are good and just as much as I am a business owner i am also a human who needs breaks and self care myself.

I think the most important factor of the success of my brand is honestly my clients. I have said it so many times that the reason I do what I do and continue to do it is because of my clients. I have met the most amazing, beautiful souls and it’s incredible to see the connection that we have and it’s why I always say that good skin studios is an experience and not just a service. The willingness they have to show up for themselves and myself is truly something that I am so grateful for and I believe as what sets my brand apart from anything else is, it’s not only about me helping them in their skin journey and in with wellness, or anything like that, but it’s also me and them, us both, helping each other with our mental health, and just allowing both of ourselves to feel vulnerable and just focus on self-care and whatever form that is.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So one thing about me is I am a foodie. I would for sure do a little food tour at all my favorite spots. I think starting the day with a nice long walk at a cute park with the dogs would be a good start, then grabbing a coffee and bagel sandwiches. I currently am obsessed with this places called “bagels and a whole lot more” in coral springs, fl. I honestly love checking out other small business or small local shops so maybe going to a farmers market or a solo grocery store or something along those lines would be right up my alley. I am pretty chill so for me the more casual everything is, the better. I think what makes moments so special is not what you are doing but who you are with and how that connection is and how it thrives just through being present.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I give so much credit to my Fiance Kevin. He is really the first person who I thought truly believed in me and wanted the best for me. He always let me know when I was doing well, and encouraged me in times when I felt down. I was always so inspired by his work ethic and how dedicated and driven he can be, and it was important for me to make him proud. He was for sure a driving force in what led me to deciding to be a small business owner. Even to this day he is so involved in wanting me to grow and gets super excited thinking about the future of my business in the most selfless way.

Website: https://squareup.com/appointments/book/coyjkz7202j56i/LKJTX5V4N321J/services

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goodskinstudios/?hl=en