May 8, 2017

Meet Salwa Galal of Spa Lapis in Cambridge

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Salwa Galal.

Salwa, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve been an Esthetician for 7 years, but skin care and the world of beauty has been an interest of mine since I was a young girl. Always giving manicures, styling hair, and doing makeup for family and friends. It was fun! After college and some travel, I settled back into Boston and got a job at Sephora. It didn’t take long for me to realize that this was something I could do for a career. So, I jumped into esthetics school and began my journey. I worked full time for a few years in a Cambridge establishment, and when it was time to leave, I wasn’t sure what would be next. Within a couple of months, a close and trusted friend suggested I come meet the owner of a space that she works out of. The owner was looking for an esthetician to rent a room, in order to add to the mix of already amazing wellness practitioners. I instantly connected with the energy of the place and the owner. I got visions of working out of the rooms, seeing my clients and flourishing. I also had visions of my dream business, and knew that being here would be that next step needed to get one inch closer to my dream. Coming up with an original name for the business was tough. I wanted something that representing who I am and what I do. Lapis lazuli is a beautiful blue stone with many healing properties. Overall, it harmonizes your physical, emotional, and spiritual imbalances. Physically, lapis can aide in faster recovery from injury or surgery, helps with vertigo and can reduce headaches/migraines, can aide in more balanced production of the thyroid and thymus glands, and help you sleep. Emotionally and spiritually, lapis helps to open communication and self-expression, give you protection and allow you to be an advocate for others, and opens your third eye amplifying your thought process and receptivity to ideas. These amazing healing properties are representative of what I wanted as a practitioner and as a person. The use of lapis lazuli also has its roots in Ancient Egypt and can be found in a number of sarcophages of the pharaohs. Being Egyptian myself, I felt a deep link to lapis. It fit all too perfectly. Later on, I started finding old jewelry of my own, of my mother’s, and my grandmother’s to have the lapis stone at its center. Talk about opening the third eye!

Since opening in August, Spa Lapis has flourished with my loyal clients, many new faces, and the support of my family and friends. I am grateful and humbled.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
So far, I can say it has been relatively smooth. After my first month in business, I saw a dramatic drop in business. I was in complete panic! I had hardly any incoming revenue, my online presence was scarce and I didn’t know what to expect. I realized that the reason I did so well the first month is that I saw so many of my clients from my previous work all at once, so with a lack of advertising, I did not have a chance to fill up my books for the second month. I looked into Yelp! Advertising, as they are among the top used websites for rating businesses in the area. Within days of live ads, I started receiving phone calls and appointment bookings. Once I was over that bump in the road, the flow of clients was consistent. Everything else has been a learning curve, updating clients on changes, documentation, inventory flow, and balancing my work and home life.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Spa Lapis story. Tell us more about the business.
Spa Lapis is all about enhancing your best self. I offer a variety of relaxing and effective skin treatments, threading and waxing services for the face and body, and eyelash/eyebrow enhancements. My specialty and what I am most known for is eyebrow shaping. Eyebrow shaping is an art form and I take pride in my artwork. I feel that if you have good brows, everything else just falls into place. I believe what sets me apart from the rest is my energy and my attention to detail. When client after client tells me they were so relaxed they almost fell asleep while waxing, then I know I’m doing something right.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I feel very little luck has played a role in starting and building my business. I believe that what you put out into the world comes back to you. I could not have started this journey without the support of family and friends, but it takes determination, a drive for success, willingness to fall, and a passion for what you do.

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