May 1, 2017

Meet Lana Mikhno of Beauty Tech in Brookline

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lana Mikhno.

Lana, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Having grown up in communist Russia, the main focus of our existence was long lines, limited supplies, even if we had the money to be able to afford whatever we wanted. My family immigrated to Boston from St Petersburg in 1995 and what a different life we were exposed to. Not only were the basics in life available, but the ultimate luxury of being able to pamper one’s self was not out of reach to all. I was so excited not only to be able to pamper myself but be a part of the beauty industry. When my son was old enough to relieve me of my full time mommy duties, I decided to join the work force and for several years worked in the spa industry. I soon became aware that my clients and I had a special connection and that they came to see me and having more control over my brand and life balance I decided to take a risk in 2015 to launch Beauty Tech. I have to thank my close friends who had the faith in me to provide me the seed capital to buy the sophisticated equipment I needed.
I so thank them!

I bet you might wonder if I do this because I hate hair? It actually isn’t about that at all. It is about the feeling I get when I work with a beautiful person who before my eyes starts to enjoy the feelings of confidence in their new appearance often telling me where others have failed, my techniques have succeeded.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The first couple of months of going out on my own were scary and stressful. I had never had to worry about payroll…including my own. I was inundated with people who offered advice and help and following my instinct on what advice I heeded and what I ignored.

One of the pivotal relationships I had was with Sam Alalam, the owner and head hair stylist of Alexender’s Salon in Brookline. He had so many clients who needed laser treatment and he knew that co-locating Beauty Tech in his salon made business sense for both of us.

Although I had never run a business before, I had clarity on the kind of relationship I wanted to have with my clients and that my success or failure would be based on both the results and experience I provided.

With the encouragement of friends, family and clients, I endured those scary months and due to the wonders of technology and my reputation I have quickly grown to over 2,000 clients.

Please tell us about Beauty Tech.
Beauty Tech specializes in laser treatments to deal with unwanted hair, age spots, surface spider veins and uses the most advanced technology and methods available in the market. As important to the technology and methods is taking the time to understand my client’s expectations and the art of the possible.

I’m proudest about the fact that my new client acquisition is fueled by a high degree of word of mouth and that clients feel we provide a safe environment to address something that in many cases has tormented them for years. You can’t imagine how the imperfections my treatments deal with erode the confidence of my clients.

What sets us apart is our service and understanding that at every step of the process, from the initial consultation to the final treatment, we partner with our client with their questions, concerns and expectations. This isn’t a medical procedure per se, it is about self-image, and we never forget that.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Clothing in USSR as I grew up was very limited and resembled more a uniform than something a fashion conscious teen wanted to be wearing. My mother had access to various cloth scraps and it was so much fun with my friends to make our own clothes and trade them with each other. Of course each of us thought we were the prettiest and it became more of a fashion contest for us. Now that I think of it, in some respects, although we don’t make our clothes anymore, my friends and I do seem to continue to “compete” with our personal sense of fashion.

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