I’ve been to a good amount of skincare, cosmetics, social media content creation, marketing, finance and accounting classes/networking events, however I don’t recall having had it all in one course. I’m always bouncing around to multiple networking events or classes. More specifically, all of this was in one course tailored to beauty professionals, even more specifically, tailored to black beauty professionals and even more niched down to catering to Black Estheticians. I had the privilege to be invited by a mail invite/brochure to the Nuekie Skin of Color Conference held in my new home city of Atlanta, Georgia on February 7-8, 2020 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel. The conference was impressive, energizing, inspiring and oh so inclusive, you could immediately feel the amazing synergy from the start. I’m thinking about what Steve Jobs said, people don’t know what they want until you show them. Well, Eunice Cofie-Obeng, our conference fonder and facilitator, a Cosmetic Scientist + Esthetician is filling a need for the Black Esthetician who is passionate about treating skin of color and building a skincare business. As great as these two days were I think we all know it’s only going to get better with each year.
The Nuekie skin of Color Conference is a conference geared toward discussing the differences in melanin rich skin and how to approach treatment for it. For example, melanocytes, the cell that produces melanin comes n a larger amount, produces more and are larger than our Caucasian counterparts. Sounds simple but because of the difference in melanocytes, we hyper-pigment after inflammation caused by acne or a cut that causes scarring. We are prone to keloids due to increased amount of fibroblasts in black skin. Therefore, obviously the approach to certain treatments of our skin must be different than the mainstream. Caucasians don’t hyper-pigment and they don’t keloid. As black does not crack, like the saying goes but rather we sag, that is due to us having more (although smaller) collagen fibers which hold our skin firmly together. With knowing this, you will realize not all skincare products marketed to the masses are good for us. Our skin will benefit from increased use of products that include peptides and ceramides as we age to keep our skin firm and prevent excessive sagging. Although this is information that is great for any Esthetician, the conference is geared toward Black Estheticians that want to improve their skills in treating skin of color, clientele building, profit forecasts, price setting, financial outlook, accounting/tax preparation, setting the vision, longevity planning, consistency. Inspiring us to build a legacy for the future not for the now, setting up a strong foundation while simultaneously maintaining the confidence to go after the ideal client we ultimately desire without the fear of leaving anyone out.
In addition to Eunice Cofie-Obeng, there were other talented speakers who offered plenty of mind-blowing nuggets during the conference:
Cynthia Felix, an accounting consultant and CEO of Regalwood Consulting spoke on finance, accounting and tax planning.
Katina Gilmore, RN, Esthetician and Founder of Black Estheticians and Skin Therapists Association spoke on identifying different skin conditions.
Dr. Paa-Kofi Obeng, Physician spoke on the lifestyle of the black woman.
Professor LaTanya White, Founder, Becoming Fearless spoke on marketing and profit per client calculation vs. desired yearly income.
Last but not least, the conference concluded with a nice dinner tribute to Black Women in Esthetics. We all gathered at Maggiano’s in Buckhead for a tribute to Black Women in Esthetics where we ate, drank, talked intimately and received certificates for our attendance and participation. Dinner was so, so good and filling! I’m not complaining. Love me some Maggiano’s!
Esthetician, Beauty Expert & Consultant 