Meet Bonnie Johnson Lugo | Skincare Specialist and Licensed Aesthetician

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bonnie Johnson Lugo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bonnie, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My professional background started in a resort. A very well known spiritual resort here in town. This place was a beautiful calming environment to work in and I knew from the moment I started there that that was the work environment I wanted to surround myself with. I stayed with that company for 8 years. While working there I began to take friends and family clients at my home, I strived to give them a similar experience as a resort but at a more affordable price. From then it just grew. In fact, I grew personally and gained as much knowledge and confidence I could from my time at that resort and then created my own place for clients to come and see me. I have tried extremely hard to still create that same calm and relaxing environment at an affordable price in my spa. I want everyone to be able to afford a sense of calmness and stillness when coming to see me. That’s especially important to me as the world can be a very stressful place at times. Come in and see me for one hour and take a break from that world.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I found my love of skincare through make up. I started at about age 13 doing make up for my friends for any occasion, and even just for fun. In high school, I got better at it and started doing actual brides and make up for prom and for a short time I worked at my high school for the drama department doing stage make up. I discovered I loved horror make up and started doing Halloween make up. That was always a blast. In my senior year of high school I had to do a senior exit project and pick a career path in order to complete my project. That’s when I learned about becoming an Aesthetician. I went to a local spa,
interviewed an aesthetician and received a facial from her and that was it! I knew I wanted to make people look and feel amazing through make up and having healthy skin. For me to become a licensed Aesthetician I had to go to beauty school and that was one of the most challenging times in my life. In order to pay for school I worked two job starting at 5am and then went to school at night, 5 days a week for almost a year. I had no free time and hardly slept, if I wasn’t at school or work I was home studying and trying to take care of a house hold. Once I finished school it wasn’t easy getting a job right away. No one is willing to hire an aesthetician straight out of school with no experience. I took a full time job as a receptionist and worked part time on the weekends doing make up at Ulta with a make up line called Amazing Cosmetics. My friend Sloane got me that job and we went on to work together on a few fashion shows which was an incredible experience. I will never forget her, she is extremely talented and taught me a lot about the make up industry. My friend Stacy got my foot in the door at the resort but not in the skincare department, my first job there was in the spa working in the retail area. I worked my full time time and also worked nights weekends and holidays at the resort just building my skills and trying to learn as much as possible. I learned to always surround yourself with talented people who come from all different backgrounds and walks of life. I learned from the salon girls like Amy and Shawna, I learned from the front desk staff and some of the admin staff like Adriana. My spa manager at the time was Simon and he was very helpful to me and was always upbeat and taught me about customer service and how to go above and beyond for your clients. I still hold that true til this day. I have found that I have to remind myself who I am and how I got started and why I got started, it keeps me humble and grounded. From that I thank the lord every day for my blessings and the talent he has gifted me with. I am happy to share my knowledge with my clients and am grateful that they choose me to be their aesthetician. They can go anywhere to see another aesthetician but continue to see me and support me.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
One of my favorite places to visit in Arizona is Apache lake. It is not only so beautiful, but it is so peaceful and truly is my happy place. I enjoy Pine Top to get out of the heat and it has many places to hike and some neat lakes to fish. Some really fun local places are downtown in the heart of Tucson, there is always something going on downtown or on 4th avenue. Che’s lounge never changes, I started there in my 20’s and still make it down there a few times a year to have a drink. Anytime I can get to a 4th ave street fair I am all in. Many locally owned art businesses and food trucks are everywhere, so much talent in once place. Whiskey Roads is a fun locally owned country bar with live music and a huge dance floor and two great outdoor patios. I held a Healthy and Beauty mixer there in a private room and it turned out great. The food was delicious, and it held about 50 attendees, it was perfect.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am extremely thankful for my trainers at the resort that I worked and started my career in skincare. Kim K. was a big part of my training and took a lot of time with me showing me a number of facial protocols that I had to study every day and then test out on each facial, it took many hours. She was very patient with me, and we laughed a lot together. Some of the other ladies there took me under there wing and just showed me so much support and kindness, Darlene, Amy P, Victoria, Celia, there are many more and I will never forget them or the bonds that we share. My best friend Briana is a hard working extremely talented salon owner and has been for years. She has been through many obstacles and has over come them all, so I knew that I should always listen to her advice. Anything she shares with me or teaches me is a gift and I appreciate her business sense very much. My family especially my husband Joe have always been cheer leaders for me. Long hours, long days, countless family time has been put aside for my work and dedication to my clients, and they just stuck it out with me. They let me experiment on them with new products or a new massage technique. It is not always easy, but they also listen to my joyful news or sometimes difficult news. I have made some bad business decisions and have had to learn and grow from them and every step of the way my family is by my side. I am very blessed to have such a close net family. I couldn’t have done any of this without them. Lastly my clients and close friends, because of them I continue to have a job and because of their confidence in me and sticking with me through out my changing locations or hours, I am still here doing what I love.

Website: https://www.vagaro.com/beautybybonniellc

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