Today we’d like to introduce you to Janis Cohen.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Janis. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I grew up with a devoted mother who was always beautifully made up. Makeup and nail polish was always displayed in the bathroom. I never really saw mom without makeup, she always had at least lipstick, nail polish and blush even working in her garden. So this set the gold standard for me who did exactly the same, always looking good no matter where you are.
At a very young age I was enrolled in dancing school and was thrilled to be made up. Through the years of High School and College with Proms and Social events I would offer to make up my friends which made me very popular! Practicing on different skin tones that early in life prepared me for whatever comes my way now as a Professional makeup artist. I never entertained the thought of starting a business until my friends were getting married and asked me to do their makeup as well as the Bridal Party. One wedding lead to another, and another, and my friends said “You should start to do this professionally and make money”, which I thought was silly, since I enjoyed making everyone look beautiful and comfortable with their look.
I found myself traveling to Florida for extensive periods of time and decided to go to a Beauty Academy there which was great during vacation time, business travel time , and brought my training and new techniques back to Boston to start BEAUTIFUL FACES, which now is 13 years old. I am very proud of this business, and I especially enjoy the Multicultural nature it has become. I can honestly say I have made up EVERY skin type/tone and became part of finding wonderful friendships and families, this to me is priceless!
Has it been a smooth road?
I don’t think any Business story escapes bumps along the way, for me the bumps were a bit softer than others.
The biggest challenge was for me to add on to make a Team, sounds great, but that comes with many logistical issues.
I had to realize early on that I could not fulfill the deluge of calls and weddings that were coming my way. I had to look and hire extremely talented Artists that were creative, experienced, and possessed top notch customer service skills, in hopes that they would represent me, as if I did the wedding,…………… somewhat impossible!
I also had some negative feedback on hiring assistants, in hearing from other makeup artist friends that I knew, who felt that I would be grooming potential competition within the industry.
Well my thoughts were and still are …why not help these girls to develop their skill??
It doesn’t bother me that they would be competition, I had 3 interns that are doing weddings on their own now after many years with BEAUTIFUL FACES, and it’s all about helping others.
That’s how I looked at it then…………… and still do now!
We’d love to hear more about your business.
My Mission , for which we are known for a Beautiful Faces is to provide an exceptional knowledge of techniques matched with unparalleled Customer Service for everyone we have the pleasure of meeting during their trial and especially being a part of their Wedding Day, Event , or Private or Group Makeup Instruction Class.
I specialize in not just all of the above, but most important to me is anyone who comes to me with skin issues: Roceasa, Cystic Acne, Scarring, and Melasma. It’s not just about applying makeup , not everyone has perfect skin and helping Brides as I have had in the past with these issues , especially one Bride in particular that was in a fire , her face was burned, scarred, she had no eye brows, or lips. Making her look Stunning on her Wedding Day, which was the most important day of her life was as rewarding as anything to me!
Another addition …a makeup instruction email I received from a woman client for makeup instructions, who after I set up her appointment she emailed me to let me know she was transgender and stated “If I wanted to cancel her that was ok.”
Certainly not! I welcomed her and found out after she sat in the makeup chair she stated, “Thank you, you were he ONLY makeup artist that answered me back”.
Many years of stories, I should write a book, but these are a few important, meaningful happenings that I will always be most proud and feel that I feel, sets me apart from others.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Having a business in Boston is limited to what our weather has to offer if you are doing a photos shoot for example, we are limited to the months of outside work you would have, as opposed to other states with warmer climates and can offer work year round.
If you are just starting out and just concentrating on Weddings, we have about 8 months of decent weather to work.
In New York makeup artists have the Theatre opportunities, we have that limited here. We have to structure our business if we live in Boston and work around the obstacles we face and accept them.
Pricing:
- Discounted Hair and Makeup Packages with no minimum requirement
- No additional fees for Airbrushed makeup or extra Assistants for larger Wedding Party’s
- Touchups for BOTH Hair and Makeup never an additional charge
- We travel first 20 miles no charge
- For our Brides that book a year in advance (with a current trial ) a No Cost HAIR and or Makeup Trial is offered the year of their wedding
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.beautifulfacesbyjanis.com/
- Phone: 781 439 5931
- Email: cohenjanis@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beautifulfaces_jc/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beautifulfaceswaltham/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/beautiful-faces-by-janis-waltham?osq=beautiful+faces+by+janis
Image Credit:
Dee & Jay Ent.
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