Today we’d like to introduce you to Athena Reavis.
Hi Athena, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I grew up in Royal oak, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. After College, I traveled to New Orleans and spent four years there. I had my son, who is now eight, and then moved to Key West, FL in 2013. Boy, was that a transition. I absolutely loved it. There I re-entered the hospitality workforce. I started out in Spa- of all things… and fell in love with skincare, treatments, the management and business side of it. After spending over ten years in hospitality, and the last few working my way up the corporate ladder as a General Manager, I decided to follow my creative passion. I went on to become trained in Permanent Make-Up for Eyebrows and Areola/nipple reconstruction tattoos. Training and falling in love with these services lit a fire in my soul to continue my education and go to esthetics school. I mean, I already had the customer service and revenue analysis background- so heading off to esthetics school for additional training and licensure was the perfect combo for me to excel in this industry.
I began my training in PMU when I moved to Saint Pete, FL, from Key West in 2019. Training for PMU (permanent make-up) was a little shocking at first. My trainer was amazing 100% recommend her all the time of course, but through discussion, it was clear that regulations for training in Cosmetic Tattooing, and knowledge of the skin, was very disconnected. With my professional background and personality- I just didn’t feel like I had enough knowledge to go out there and perform these services on people even though I had amazing training… I needed more. Even so, I pushed forward and opened up my studio and business, Microblade St Pete LLC, and went to school full time for medical esthetics taking clients as I built my business back in 2019. Not only did I want more education and information about the skin, I learned as much as I could about the two industries in general by researching. I tapped into my creative brain and began designing things I wished we had access to in school- that just weren’t there for us. After school was over and covid was upon us… I created the now patent-pending Cryo Glam Globe™ and The Estie Bestie® followed a few months later. I guess you could say I made great use of my time during Covid lockdowns and lack of in-person service inquiries- because that’s the truth.. the service industry was hit hard for those of us that work one on one performing facial and cosmetic make-up treatments, cosmetology etc.
Education is very important to me, and yes, we learn new things every day, but I never feel like I learn enough. I’m the type of person that feels like I can always improve and learn more. Throughout this journey of product creation, branding, and creating and merging my businesses into one platform, I’ve learned so much and am now able to open my own brick and mortar right here in Saint Pete, FL. So, here we are today prepping the grand opening of The Estie Bestie ® this summer 2021. I hope that I can continue to grow and provide my services to the Tampa Bay and St. Pete area. After renting studio space for almost two years, I’m so excited to expand and merge everything under one roof. One of my favorite services that I provide and building my professional portfolio is Medical Areola and Nipple reconstruction tattoos. I provide these services for Saint Pete, FL and I have been lucky enough to have amazing support from the local community. These services are needed for the trans community, breast cancer survivors, those that have had any compromise to their areola or nipple area and are not candidates or choose not to go under the knife for reconstruction. The past few years of work and experience have lead me to this amazing opportunity and I’m just very grateful.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
No road to success is paved with a rolled-out velvet red carpet. Of course, it’s been a bumpy road- I shifted careers after being comfortable in my executive-level position, re-located from one end of the state (the Southernmost point… had to give credit there), and started over. As much as I understood about business ops- I needed to immerse myself to be fully aware of all the ins and outs of owning my own business. One of the struggles I faced personally- was marketing knowledge. I didn’t know how to market for services when I was just starting out. I also didn’t even care much about social media presence… Yeah, I’m a millennial- but I have always been a free-spirited-off socials kind of person. Reality check… especially within our industry of beauty and skincare. WHOA, did I learn it can be brutal! Beautiful and rewarding just as much… but I’m 30 years old and I can honestly say I never thought I’d need to have such thick skin before in my life.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about The Estie Bestie®?
I’ve been operating my PMU business here in Saint Pete FL since 2019 through @microbladestpete. Through covid-19, I pivoted to online sales and developed my patent-pending products (Cryo Glam Globes). I am so proud to have had that time and worked day in and day out (ask my spouse and son) to create my own registered brand and platform that merges the two industry services together – The Estie Bestie ®. With all of the local love and support through my permanent make-up business Microblade St. Pete, trial and e-comm errors, and AMAZING clients right here in St. Pete… I am now expanding my operations and opening up my first brick and mortar under one roof on central Ave. This has allowed me to be able to hire another Saint Pete local to help grow along the way!
Services that The Estie Bestie provides: ⭐️Microblading, ⭐️ombré brows, ⭐️ Areola and nipple hyper-realistic tattoos for breast cancer or reduction/ transitioning clients. (These are my free services so please message me if you know someone who needs this service – I offer corrections to previous artist work- but consult is needed and case by case. I am happy to add to my portfolio)
⭐️Microneedling and Anti-aging treatments, ⭐️Hydrodermabrasion facials (perfect for summer treatments right now!), ⭐️Custom enzyme and chemical peel (in the fall) facials.
Most of our items are going to be available in-store 💗 at the time of opening we will be offering in-store pick-up on designated days for locals to come to get their skincare products for at-home use. I also have a CBD skincare line that is chemically formulated and manufactured right here in Saint Pete too! Talk about local support! My Star Sign is Skincare is launching in June 2021 and if you want the deets- head over to www.theestiebestie.com and follow along with me and our blog.
I am so excited to welcome everyone to my space this summer and help make everyone feel confident and amazing. The Estie Bestie ® mission is simple- Educate. Empower. Create.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Always be open. It’s important to be genuine in your curiosity and transparent. What’s worked for me in networking is just being professional and kind no matter how someone else treats you. At the end of the day, you go home to yourself. You are the one that can say – “hey, I did my best, that road wasn’t for me.” and then go on to find an alternate route. For me- I’ve found a few amazing businesses that resonated with my visions, customer service importance, integrity- that aligned with my own views. That’s the key- Find mentors and businesses or owners that share the same values as you- if you try to do what everyone else is doing and that’s not “your vibe” you will clash within your business and the situation won’t end with you moving forward- it will be a setback or reroute per-say.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.theestiebestie.com
- Instagram: @theestiebestie
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/theestiebestie/
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/theestiebestie/
- Other: www.instagram.com/theestiebestie/
