Tell us about yourself.
Aside from being an entrepreneur, a women’s advocate and a Christian philanthropist,
I am the CEO and Founder of O Skin Med Spa. It’s been my passion to help people take care of their skin and I have been professionally doing that 16 years. I am happily married with 4 wonderful kids.
I started my practice in 2003 inside a leased spare room in a beauty salon in Artesia, CA until the time and the resources were enough to move to a bigger clinic in 2007. By 2012, we opened our second branch in Eagle Rock Plaza Mall, and by 2013, we moved the Artesia branch to Cerritos Mall in order to accommodate more clients. Now, we have 2 branches, 12 treatment rooms, 3 consultation rooms and a wide range of skin treatment services; from facials, 3D eyebrow sculpting, IV glutathione, Botox and fillers, to Stem Cell rejuvenation, and our recent innovation, “Magic foundation.”
O Skin Med Spa is also considered one of the most sought after Filipino-owned medical spa in Southern California with over 40 employees, mostly Filipinos comprised of licensed nurses, estheticians, doctors, micro-blading artists and a board-certified plastic surgeon.
How was your brand conceived?
We wanted a brand name and a logo that’s easy to remember and as the owner, we thought my name, Olivia or “O,’ is visually attractive. We wanted the name and the logo to look simple, classy and elegant. In terms of target market, our goal was for O Skin Care to be a household brand and for it to be accessible to the masses.
What inspired you?
When I was younger, my face was covered with acne. It was almost like there’s not a spot on my face that has no pimple in it. I started getting facials and pimple extraction so it eventually subsided but the treatment left some skin discoloration. My face had some yellowish patches and while it (the treatment) solved the acne problem, you can still see traces of “skin imperfections.” And that’s when the question hit me – what if there’s a product or treatment that will not leave any scar or traces of acne? What if we can have a solution to acne that will leave us with a flawless face and an even skin tone? These questions got me thinking and stirred up. I was determined to find ways and come up with products that would yield the kind of results that I envisioned.
How do you keep up with the pressure of being a mother, a wife and an entrepreneur?
There’s only pressure if you let it get to you. In my case, I try my best to perform all three roles with the help of the people around me. Like for example, as a mother and a wife, I make time for my family by working outside the home for 3 days in a week. This way, I get to maintain a work-life balance where I am available take my kids to violin, saxophone, drums, and piano practice. I love spending time with my husband just watching Netflix at home. We also make it a point to go out on Friday dates without the the kids. We make the most of the weekends and holidays by going on vacation as a family when we can. As an entrepreneur, this is where delegation comes in. I take advantage of the fact that I have key people working with me – and having 40 employees is a plus! When it comes to tasks, I don’t maintain a checklist, or at least it’s not my default. What I do is when I think of something, I proceed to execution right away. I already have very competent and dedicated people whom I trust so when I have an idea, I don’t spend too much time writing it down, then planning and mulling over it. I proceed to reaching out to people and then I delegate accordingly. That’s how I get things done – with little to zero pressure.
What is a normal day like for you?
On a work day, a normal day for me starts 9 am when I wake up. I spend time with the kids before their dad takes my 2 kids to school. I had play time with the twins until around 12pm which is their nap time. Then I go to the clinic and start working by 1 or 2pm. I get home for dinner around 7:30 or 8. I catch up with my husband and kids; catch up with them and ask them how their day went, watch Netflix with my husband; Then we clean up. I am the one bathing the twins. Then, lights out is usually by 9pm. When they are all asleep, that’s when I do my consultations via social media or attend to online inquiries. I sleep maybe around 12 am. That’s my routine.
A normal work day for me consists of meetings, more meetings and skin consultations with clients.
On days-off, same thing; I wake up at 9, play time with the kids, then nap time. After lunch, I do my work from home then come pick up the kids from school in the afternoon.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
In five year’s time, I see myself still doing what I’m doing now but – hopefully and God-willing – in a larger scale. I want to help more people. I remember there was a teaching at church referring to a parable in the Bible. It’s on Matthew 25:14-30. It talks about this master who went away on a journey, so he left some talents (money) to his servants. While he was away, one of the servants traded the talents and made profit, and so did the other servants. One servant, however, dug in the ground and hid the talent he was given. When the master came back, he commended the servants who made profit and gave them more. But he reprimanded the one servant who was “slothful and wicked” because he did nothing to what was given to him. The chapter end with the verse saying “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” I think about this verse, and the teaching actually that gave me some clarity and helped me put things in perspective. You see, I don’t want to be that slothful and greedy servant. I want to share the blessings that God has showered me with. I have all these resources and the ability to help other people and I can’t just waste all of that. With God’s help, I want to reach more people through my service and my products. Five years from now I still see myself helping others by continuing our charity work through various ministries such as the House of Moses, Joyce Meyer ministries and other church planting and evangelism ministries the Philippines.
Where do you see O Skin Care in five years?
God-willing, I hope for O Skin products to be in the store shelves in the next five years. By that time, I pray that it would have reached its worldwide target, and has helped a lot more people. Nothing makes me happier than having clients or consumers come up to me to say how much our products have helped their skin. And that’s how I want O Skin to be remembered and be known for in the years to come.
The beauty industry is highly competitive, what keeps you on top of your game?
First of all, I start everything with prayer and whenever a new product is being formulated, I pray for it every step of the way. I believe that everything I have is from the Lord and He will also bless the products supernaturally. I can only operate within the limits of what I have which is having the passion and the ability to produce skin products that are effective but beyond that, I leave it up to the Lord. Just knowing that it is He who keeps me and the business (He gave me) doing well, makes all the difference. I concentrate on what I can control and give glory to Whom deserves all the glory.
Also, I never focus my energy at the competitors. I don’t tell myself, “oh, look how big they are now or, what should I do be at their level, etc.” I don’t compare myself with others. I just follow my passion and focus my energy in coming up with great products in the hopes that one day it will be a global household brand.
What message do you have for young entrepreneurs?
Two things. First is to make sure that whatever you do, you should have the passion for it because if there’s no passion, people can see it and it will eventually fail. Your heart must be in it. Secondly, you should not let naysayers tell you, “you can’t do it” or “it’s too expensive or too broad.” Don’t dwell on the negative. Believe in yourself and be resilient. Most of all, put your faith in God and tithe (Malachi 3:10)
If you were to serve your purpose in this world, what would it be and why?
I want to lead more people to the Lord. I am first a Christian, then Esthetician, second. I believe that I was given the gift of Evangelism and I’d like to make good use of that gift. That doesn’t mean I don’t fulfill my role as an esthetician, of course I should. God has put me in this position, gave me the ability and the means to save other people from skin problems – I should honor that by being dedicated to my work. That gives me great purpose in this world. However, I also want to “store up riches in heaven” by helping others to know Christ. That’s the ultimate reward that I look forward to in the after-life.
Saving people’s skin may be my purpose here on earth but “saving souls” is my ultimate purpose.
